best transparent pre amp

We have a customer that did exactly the same thing by replacing his Ref 3 with our UV-1 preamp (line stage only version) and he said exactly the same thing. It gave him some pause as the UV-1 line stage costs about the same as the Tortuga; I think he sold the Ref 3 used for more than he paid for the UV-1.

George is correct in that if a preamp imposes a coloration a passive control, even a very inexpensive one might be better.

It's not cast in concrete though- passives have problems of their own that have been expounded upon a lot over the years, just like active preamps.

If OTHO if an active preamp is free of many of the pitfalls that a line section has to face, it will be found to be more transparent.

The line section/passive control has 4 functions:

1) Control volume
2) select input
3) provide any needed gain (with a passive of course if set up right you won't been needing any)
4) control the interconnect cable from the preamp to amp.

It is 4) on this list that is the least understood- heck, most audiophiles don't even think that is possible and wind up buying some really expensive cables to deal with/prevent cable artifact. This is also the thing that passive systems don't do at all (essentially its mathematically impossible, and many line sections don't do very well with this either). But if the line section **does** prevent cable interactions from occurring, it is very likely to also be the most transparent; introducing the least coloration.

Actually the idea that a passive is more transparent is a matter of dispute.

You have to keep in mind that a well-designed and built active will have distortion that is a tiny fraction of what it is in a power amplifier!

A passive has no distortion but is extremely prone to artifacts from the interconnect cables. This is unavoidable: it is purely a math issue and has nothing to do with the quality of the control. Anyone using a passive control knows how important it is to select the right cables for their system and to keep the cables short.

A good line stage can control the cables so well that they become moot insofar as the system sounds.

The bottom line has to do with budget and audition. If it works for you that is what is important.