Using Different Brands for Pro/Pre and Amplifier


I recently purchased a used Adcom 7400, 5x100, and am in the market for a pro/pre. I was going to use my Onkyo receiver as a pro/pre, but have been encouraged to get a better pro/pre.

Now my question is if it is ok to use say a B&K pro/pre, or should I stay with an Adcom product. Also does anyone have any experience with the B&K ref 30 pro???
dovjm
Dovjm, I really don't see any benefit of keeping the pre/pro and amp in the same family. That being said, mine happens to be in the same family, Krell HTS 7.1 and Krell FPB amp (for 2 main channels) and a different Proceed 3-channel amp for center and surrounds.

That being said, I have also owned the following: Denon 380X?, B&K 507 S2 where I used at some point the amp portion and at other points just the pre/pro portion with combinations at some points as well, Acurus ACT 3 w/ ABM with various amps and a McIntosh MX 132 with various amps.

The Adcom is a nice amp to get into this with. Used you can get them at a very good price and they sound very good for this price. If I were you, I would be tempted to get a straight pre/pro vs. using just the pre/pro portion of a receiver. Pre/pro prices drop rather significantly (for example I bought my Krell HTS 7.1 brand new with warranty for under $3K with a list price of $8K). If your primary concern is HT and not 2-channel, I think you have a lot of flexibility here. If you have only one video source, I wouldn't even require the HDMI (you can run the HDMI from your DVD player directly to the TV and the audio signal/digital to your pre/pro for better results anyway).

My recommendation would be the B&K, I believe but am not sure it is the ref. 20, but I might be mistaken here.

If you get more into 2-channel, you can add a 2-channel amp for your main speakers (again, it does not need to be an Adcom) for noticeable improvement when listening to stereo. Multi-channel amps just don't cut it for stereo listening (I have owned many, Krell, Conrad Johnson, Dreadnaught II, none are very good in 2-channel operation).

But in the end, don't sweat the amp and the pre/pro being from the same mfg., get the best of each that you can afford and be cautious about how much you spend on a pre/pro as their value drops very quickly. Not the typical 50% in a year, but more like 75% or more after a year!