So what's a good preamp?


I know that's a broad question but I've been using a series of passive preamps for the past 12 years and now I have an amp (Joule Stargate SET) that really like to have an active preamp ahead of it. I'm really not sure where to start. Budget is $1500 or less probably used and I only listen to vinyl so bells and whistles are not an issue-- if there was such thing as an active single input preamp, that could be great. I'm just not sure where to start looking, although I'm sort of interested in the ARC SP16 because I've been told that it has a nice neutral sound by some friends. My priorities are versatility because I listen to lots of different music from jazz to folk to electronic/dance to soundtracks.
dhcod

Showing 2 responses by zd542

Since you listen to vinyl only, I assume you have an active phono stage. You may want to consider upgrading that instead. I say this because you know the value of a passive line stage. $1500 is a hard price point to work with, even for a used active preamp.

I'm not saying that you can't get anything good. Depending on what you like, it may be possible; just difficult. If it were me, I wouldn't get anything without trying it in my system first.