Description
PS Audio PMG Signature Preamplifier
The PS Audio PMG Signature Preamplifier delivers zero-distortion clarity, so you get everything you want to hear, and nothing you don’t.
The Paul McGowan Signature Preamplifier isn’t an evolution—it’s a revolution. It’s PS Audio’s flagship, the very best they know how to build, and the first product in 50 years to carry the name of their founder.
It had to. This time, it’s personal.
Born from a lifetime of relentless pursuit, this is the purest, most transparent conduit between music and emotion they’ve ever created. With a vanishingly low noise floor of -145dB—beyond the limits of human perception—it uncovers musical truth with explosive dynamics, infinite depth, and holographic imaging.
Nothing PS Audio have built comes close. Once you hear it, there’s no going back. It’s not just a preamp. It’s a revelation.
View Owners Manual >> View PS AUDIO >>
Reviews
- “It’s sweet, it’s engaging. No listening fatigue. Lot’s of resolution but never hardness. But it does have this powerful sound. It makes your power amplifier sound more powerful”. Steve Guttenberg – Audiophiliac
- “Since I was only able to listen to pianist and orchestra live recently, I particularly appreciate the timbre fidelity and accuracy of the PMG preamplifier here.” HIFI Statement – Roland Dietl
Features
The Paul McGowan Signature Preamplifier is a statement of what’s possible when nothing is held back.
Designed by Darren Myers and carrying the name of their founder for the first time in 50 years, this is the culmination of a lifetime of innovation. Fully balanced from input to output, every stage features zero-feedback Diamond buffers for unmatched speed, transparency, and control. A high-resolution stepped attenuator ensures precise volume with 1/10th dB channel accuracy, revealing microdynamics with lifelike precision.
At its heart is a revolutionary power supply that eliminates traditional electrolytic capacitors, replacing them with long-life, sonically superior film capacitors. The result is lightning-fast transient response, deeper silence, and greater dynamic swing. Housed in a double chassis construction that shields against noise and interference, the PMG Signature achieves a noise floor of -145dB—so quiet it’s not there.
What you hear is exactly what was recorded—nothing added, nothing taken away. No glare, no grain, no veil. Just the music, uncolored and alive. The PMG Signature is the finest preamplifier PS Audio have ever built…
Design
The Paul McGowan Signature Preamplifier is a bold leap beyond anything that’s come before.
Its fully balanced circuitry delivers an unprecedented level of purity and control. With a dynamic range approaching 150dB—the difference between a single molecule of sound and standing beside a roaring jet engine—it achieves a level of sonic blackness almost no other design on Earth can touch.
Transients explode with lightning speed, and its bandwidth stretches beyond 500kHz for limitless openness and realism. High-speed, zero-feedback Diamond buffers preserve every musical nuance, while a revolutionary film-capacitor power supply unleashes dynamics with astonishing grace.
This is not refinement. This is reinvention. The PMG Signature is pure musical authority.
Application
The preamplifier is the heart of any high-end system. Every note, every breath, every bit of music from your sources—DACs, phono stages, CD players—passes through it before reaching your power amp.
It’s the final gatekeeper, and it better be right.
The Paul McGowan Signature Preamplifier is the first product in 50 years to carry his name, and for good reason.
It delivers complete control, ultra-low distortion, and total isolation between sources and amplification. With five identical balanced and single-ended inputs, all signals are converted to fully balanced and passed through our zero-feedback Class A Diamond buffers.
Nothing is added, nothing taken away. This is where the magic happens.
Revolutionary new gain stage
At the heart of the Paul McGowan Signature Preamplifier lies a completely reimagined gain stage—one that defines its unmatched sonic purity.
This is where the real magic happens, where the fragile musical signal is amplified without the slightest trace of coloration. The design blends the best of both FET and BJT technologies, combining the finesse and linearity of FETs with the dynamic control and drive of BJTs.
Fully complementary from input to output, the gain stage maintains perfect symmetry and balance, operating in pure Class A, direct-coupled and servo-controlled for absolute signal integrity.
What sets this stage apart is its innovative take on the folded cascode topology. Traditional cascodes use stacked transistors to improve gain and bandwidth, but the folded version “bends” the signal path, allowing high voltage swing, low noise, and wide bandwidth without the instability or harshness of conventional designs. Our version pushes this even further, lowering output impedance, increasing linearity, and preserving every nuance of the source.
The result is pure and perfect amplification—no filters, no coloration, just an open window into the soul of the music.
The power supply
Everything we hear in our systems—every note, every whisper, every explosive crescendo—starts life as raw DC power. That power is then modulated by the circuitry into music. Which means, at its core, what we’re actually listening to is the quality of the power supply.
Get that wrong, and nothing else matters.
Most high-end preamplifiers rely on electrolytic capacitors to store and deliver that energy. But electrolytics come with baggage: high equivalent series resistance, limited lifespan, increased distortion under load, and poor high-frequency performance due to internal inductance. They dissipate energy inefficiently and smear transients. In short, they dull the edge of realism.
The Paul McGowan Signature Preamplifier throws all that out the window. Using an elegant system of analog level multiplication and dozens of large, hand-selected film capacitors—components known for their speed, ultra-low loss, and near-eternal lifespan – they’ve eliminated the noise, grain, and sluggishness that plagues even the best conventional designs.
The result is a supply so clean, so responsive, it disappears. What’s left is music with effortless dynamics, stunning clarity, and a sense of magic few have ever heard. This is power reborn.
FAQ’s
- What is the PS Audio PMG Signature Preamplifier designed to do? It serves as the control center of a high-end audio system, managing source selection and volume with exceptional transparency and precision.
- Is the PMG Signature Preamplifier fully balanced? Yes, it features a fully balanced design from input to output, helping reduce noise and preserve signal integrity.
- What types of connections does it offer? It provides multiple balanced (XLR) and unbalanced (RCA) inputs and outputs for flexible system integration.
- Does the PMG Signature Preamplifier color the sound? No, it is engineered for ultra-low noise and distortion, delivering a neutral, highly detailed sound that preserves the character of your source components.
- Is the PMG Signature Preamplifier easy to use? Yes, it offers intuitive controls and seamless integration with compatible PS Audio components, making everyday operation simple and enjoyable.
Specifications
Physical
- Unit Weight: 30 lbs / 13.6 kg
- Unit Dimensions: 14 3/4” x 17 1/2” x 4 3/8” (with feet) / 375 mm x 445 mm x 112 mm (with feet)
- Shipping Weight: 34 lbs / 15.4 kg
- Shipping Dimensions: 20 1/2” x 24” x 10” / 521 mm x 610 mm x 254 mm
Power Requirements
- Input Power: Auto Voltage: 120VAC or 230VAC 50 or 60Hz
- Power Consumption: 18W
Connectors
- Audio Inputs:
- RCA / Single-Ended: 2 pair
- XLR / Balanced: 4 pair
- Audio Outputs:
- RCA / Single-Ended: 2 pair
- XLR / Balanced: 2 pair
- Trigger Output: 2
- USB: For USB firmware update only
Performance
- Max Gain: 12.6dB
- Frequency Response: 15Hz-150kHz, +/- 0.1dB
- Input Impedance: 50K Ω RCA / Single-Ended / 100K Ω XLR / Balanced
- Bandwidth: 5Hz-500kHz, -3dB
- THD: < .0002% @ 1kHz, 1VRMS input
- THD+N: < .0003% @ 1kHz, 1VRMS input
- IMD: .0005% @ 1VRMS input, CCIF, 20kHz mean, 1kHz difference
- Crosstalk: -135dB, One channel driven
- Output level: 9VRMS Single-ended / 18VRMS Balanced @ 1% THD+N
- Output Impedance: 100Ω
