2. digital
  3. 955308816

CD with volume control/ no preamp.

I have a CJ 11a amp, Audible Illusions L1, Adcom CD player (about 6 years old), and new MSB DAC al with high quality MIT cables. When I run the system with no preamp using the cheap volume control on the CD player, the soundstage is wider with more detail. Do I get rid of the preamp/DAC and maybe upgrade to a better CD player with volume control, like wadia or resolution audio. Or do I try a better Transport/DAC? Which path should I head down for best sound?
joekras

Showing 2 responses by pjpoland

pjpoland
7 posts
 
I own a Theta Digital Miles and Magnepan 1.6qr's. The trade-off here is not is the image better and more coherrent with or without a preamp. You've found the same thing I have, It is Better! To me the question is, "Is it worth the gain in soundstage and detail, to loose the dynamics and warmth of the tubes in your preamp." I've always heard a distinctive loss in signal when I have to attenuate (sp?) the level out of the CD Player. It was the same for my older Dennon dc360, my marantz CE67SE. I like the CD player through a preamp at lower and moderate listening levels. When I choose to open up the system and let it run, I prefer straight through.
pjpoland
7 posts
 
Carl, I was very curious about balanced outputs into my NAD amp, but at the last moment opted for the preamp (a cj pv10) and a second par of interconnects. May be a design consideration, but the Theta bypasses the volume control at full open and that was another consideration. Does the 6db refer to the total increase in volume, or the increase in signal to noise ratio?
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