Through a substantial power supply upgrade, Virgo II now moves the Performance Series one step closer to the Reference Series.
Virgo II now includes the same power supply used for Altair. This supply offers numerous advantages. While the original Virgo’s power supply took electrical isolation to a high level with separate transformers and outputs for the audio and control circuits, the Virgo II supply enables true dual-mono operation, with separate transformers and outputs for left-channel audio, right-channel audio and control circuits. Thus, high demand in one channel does not affect the performance of the other channel.

The new power supply also adds additional filtering to reduce noise and improve sonic detail. It is designed to fit directly underneath the Virgo II main chassis instead of behind the equipment rack, so it takes up less space and is easier to install. High-current-capacity Hypertronics cables, originally developed for aerospace applications, interface the power supply with the main preamp chassis.

Original Virgo preamps can be returned to Constellation Audio’s production facility for an upgrade to the new version. For even better fidelity, Virgo II and upgraded original Virgos are compatible with our new external DC filter, a component with additional power filtration and storage that fits between the power supply and the preamp’s main chassis.

Otherwise, Virgo II retains all the characteristics that our “dream team” of the world's best audio engineers and industrial designers included in the original design. The core of Virgo II’s technology remains Constellation Audio’s Line Stage Gain Module, a fully complementary preamplifier circuit that achieves essentially perfect balance between the positive and negative halves of the audio signal. No conventional balanced-topology preamp can equal Virgo II’s musicality and transparency. Because audio signals emerging from Virgo II are so perfectly balanced, they can use Constellation Direct, a special interface that bypasses the amplifiers’ input stages for superior sound quality.

We isolate the Line Stage Gain Modules and other audio circuits inside Virgo II by floating them on what we like to refer to as a “raft”: a metal plate that supports and isolates the circuitry. Audio circuits sit on top of the raft, while control circuits are suspended below. The entire assembly floats on an elastomeric suspension that isolates it from outside vibration, just as a calm lake isolates a floating raft from disturbances on shore. The metal plate also shields the audio circuits from the control circuits for greater sonic purity.