Home Theater Processor or Dedicated Preamp?


Hi,
This question must have been asked frequently but I couldn't find any thread that talks about this so here it is again, hoping that someone can shed some light.

My preference is 95% music and 5% movie.

My current set up consists of a pair of Martin Logan Aerius (to be upgraded to a larger ML model), an Adcom GTP-500 preamp, Marantz DV6400 player, and Acurus 5x125W amp.

I'm considering the following (All used Audiogon prices):
1. (budget $800)Preamp/Processor: Krell HTS2, Proceed AVP or should I go with a dedicated Preamp and if so which one is the best for my budget?
2. (budget $1000)Amp: 250-300W (8-ohm) 2-channel
3. (budget $400)CD/DVD player: Emotiva, Oppo, or anything else?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
johncdnt

Showing 1 response by srosenberg

i went from a theta casablanca pre/pro to a dedicated 2-channel preamp... no camparison. the 2-ch pre was better in every way. much better.

i started with a counterpoint, recently moved to an aesthetix calypso for the HT bypass. as good as the counterpoint was, the aesthetix is even better.

if music is your priority, i've yet to find a HT pre/pro that could keep up with a decent 2-ch preamp.