I think you missed the spirit in which advice was given as I have no problem with your liking the Placette as it is a very good commercial unit. To make something that sounds better costs like Hell and normally isn't very commercial or convenient to use. I build gear for a living and the CTC preamp ate the passive Placette as respects focus, venue and dynamics. It wasn't close and think you can get a taste for it by reading Mike's earlier posts as we did this in Mike's system last Fall. If you like the passive Placette I imagine you would love the active one even better was my point.
Regarding Renbourn, he puts on a great show and prefers the small venues as spoke to him backstage for a while at the break. He was travelling with Jacqui McShee and together they were just awesome. Jacqui currently has a group called Jacqui McShee's Pentangle......This weekend I will hear Mighty Sam McClain at Bluesfest in Maryland, but expect the PA will be overpowering......
You make a good point in system matching as my amps (Parasound JC-1s) prefer an active stage before them to do their best as do most amps. My business partner called earlier tonight and I explained what was going on with this thread and he got a hoot out of it as he was pretty much at a loss to explain why the Blowtorch is so dynamic compared to most any other unit other than the topology is a complimentary differential folded cascode with no loop feedback. He used to use some 26 turn pots which had beaten up a unit he had designed in 1980, the Dennesen JC-80, and then the Blowtorch came in and destroyed the wire wound pots. Bottom line is there is more dynamic information with the CTC than there is with most anything out there. Curl made a joke and said it must be the atomic dynamicizer he designed into the circuit :-) Open loop bandwidth of 350K doesn't hurt either :-)
Regarding Renbourn, he puts on a great show and prefers the small venues as spoke to him backstage for a while at the break. He was travelling with Jacqui McShee and together they were just awesome. Jacqui currently has a group called Jacqui McShee's Pentangle......This weekend I will hear Mighty Sam McClain at Bluesfest in Maryland, but expect the PA will be overpowering......
You make a good point in system matching as my amps (Parasound JC-1s) prefer an active stage before them to do their best as do most amps. My business partner called earlier tonight and I explained what was going on with this thread and he got a hoot out of it as he was pretty much at a loss to explain why the Blowtorch is so dynamic compared to most any other unit other than the topology is a complimentary differential folded cascode with no loop feedback. He used to use some 26 turn pots which had beaten up a unit he had designed in 1980, the Dennesen JC-80, and then the Blowtorch came in and destroyed the wire wound pots. Bottom line is there is more dynamic information with the CTC than there is with most anything out there. Curl made a joke and said it must be the atomic dynamicizer he designed into the circuit :-) Open loop bandwidth of 350K doesn't hurt either :-)