Multichannel Preamp


I had a thread some time ago (see end of post) asking about this subject. At the time many of the good (or only) multichannel preamps available at a bargain were older processors made for home theater that no one wanted because the technology was outdated. Now, you have Bel Canto, McIntosh, McCormack, Audio Refinement (to name the ones Stereophile "Music In the Round" has reviewed) and some others who have made simple multichannel preamps for multichannel DVD-A, SACD, or connection to a DVD player with its own decoding.
Now that this much time has past, can anyone compare these units as well as any new ones? Dare I ask which is the best?
Thanks
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jimmy2615

Showing 1 response by jimmy2615

I'll answer my own thread here for the sake of posterity since I now have had some experience on the subject.

When I wrote this thread I was just getting into MCh operations. I had had a main system with a Sony 777ES, Mac MA6900 integrated amp, and Tyler Linbrook system (full) speakers. My "home theater" which I thought I could live with was polk speakers all around with an Adcom PrePro (GTP 830 - a great way to get in cheap to MCh by the way buying used) and Acurus amps (2 and 3 channel). Source was a Phillips 962 (predecessor to the 963) DVD/SACD player.

Ultimately, I could not live with the two systems, as the surround system was so inferior to the other. So I bought three Tyler Linbrook monitors to go with my other Tyler speakers and began searching for a good 5 channel amp and preamp. For an amp I bought the Cary Cinema 5 (which is really nice, as the reviews state) and a Marantz SA8260 for the source. I then tried this combination for a time with the adcom PrePro. I then bought the AR Pre5 to replace the Adcom, thinking the Adcom was inferior to the rest of the system. For the next month or so I switched between the Adcom and the AR, trying to decide which I liked better, but overall something was wrong. The Adcom was too dry, and the AR was good at first glance, but over time seemed strained in the upper mid-band with many recordings, and perhaps not as revealing as I was used to with my old McIntosh Integrated in stereo recordings. Believe it or not, for extended listening I preferred the Adcom to the AR.
So I decided I needed a better preamp (I could not know at the time with the preamps I had, but I gambled that the Cary Amp was not the problem).

In search of other preamp options, I borrowed the McCormack MCh preamp from a great local dealer - and sure enough, things started to sound much better indeed. Bass was fuller, highs more....you know the drill, but overall I got all the detail I had been missing and eliminated the fatigue - a breath of fresh air so to speak. But upon continued research online (reading only) it seemed to me that the Bel Canto had more technology in it (and extremely flexible) so I auditioned that too.
Needless to say, I now own the Bel Canto. It is an excellent preamp. I won't go into the "audio terms," I'll just say that in my system it is not fatiguing and an absolute pleasure to listen to. Plus the stereo balanced inputs and 5 channel balanced outputs are a big plus, not to mention other flexibility options. Its sound has no noticeable aural crappiness (my contribution to the list of audio terms), a joy to listen to, and a step above the McCormack in transparency, though I could probably live with the McCormack. I never did get to audition the Mac C45, but don't feel the need to after owning the C15 some years ago and then the MA6900 - the Bel Canto is in my system for a long time.
So, for those in a similar situation, I would recommend either an old prepro (like the adcom) with multichannel capability or the AR if you have a less revealing system - either will do the trick, or if you have a better system the McCormack or the Bel Canto (the best in my experience).