Passive/Active preamps: pros and cons....


New to preamps...what are the advantages/disadvantages of passive or active designs? I will be only connecting one source (CD) to the pre...any thoughts? passive/active switch like the highly reviewed Adcom piece? any others come to mind? Also...in an active design...how much emphasis does the pre have in regard to the main amp signal?
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Showing 1 response by saltyflies

I have a S&B TVC, agree with Ozzy62, and find the passives “lack of” perception is more like passives “don’t add” dynamics, colorations, etc. of active pres.

Compared to running direct - the TVC adds a tube like liquid, warm feeling in the mids, the highs smoother or slightly rounded, and pace more relaxed. The alteration are very, very slight, and much less than the actives I’ve tried, but not absolutely invisable either. Everything else seems untouched.

I haven’t compared it to many actives and would be interested in comparisons from others – like Ramses.