High Output Preamp for First Watt SIT-3?


I'm new to the audiophile world and recently purchased a First Watt SIT-3 with Magnepan .7s.  I have a Mytek Brooklyn Bridge for streaming, though I prefer to play vinyl with my Mofi Ultradeck.  The Mytek serves as the phono stage (69dB gain for MM?), and I don't use a preamp;  the Brooklyn is connected directly to the First Watt. 

I understand that the SIT-3 is only 11.5 dB of gain, and that's extremely low compared to most amps.  I like most everything about the system except for the fact that I have the Mytek maxed out volume-wise many days.  Certain LPs are cut quieter, and I wish I had more power.  There are times streaming where the Maggies aren't getting to their sweet spot.  I realize the Maggies are a lower sensitivity speaker. 

What should I look for in a preamp to fully drive the SIT-3?  Eventually, I'd like to replace the phono stage instead of relying on the Brooklyn.  Is there a tube preamp featuring a phono stage with sufficient output to drive my amp in the $4k range?  Otherwise, I'm eyeing the Modwright PH 9.0 and a linestage preamp, realizing that this will probably be costlier.  I'm looking for a warm sound, not analytical but engaging. 

Any help is greatly appreciated.  I'm a working musician with a basic understanding of related electronics but little experience in this world. 

murphbass

I’d love to hear a direct comparison of the two Canadian speakers, Tetra and Coherent Audio speakers (Toronto Ontario).Either can be driven by low power SET amplifiers.

Charles

@charles1dad 

Regarding the optimal ohm rating for the SIT3, the following is from Nelson Pass.

“The most popular impedance for the load is 4 to 8 ohms, which is the region where it measures best, and there is not a lot of difference between those two numbers. At lower, we see increased distortion, and at higher impedancethe distortion numbers don’t go up, but there is an increase in higher orderharmonics. It’s not a big deal, but you can play with this by putting some resistance across the speaker. Typically people play with resistor values from 8 to 25 ohms, and since resistors are cheap I recommend that you get several values to try. The type of resistor is not critical, but should be ratedat 5 watts or more.”


I have Avantgarde duo XD at 18 ohms. I use a Zu Audio 10 ohm resistor across my terminals to give the amp a resistance rating of 6.42 ohms calculated. 
Works wonderfully.

Hi. I used to own a sit-3 and had similar issues with the pre-amp. The best match I found is the COS Engineering D1 dac/preamp. Maximum output 8V (most pre-amp do 2-3V) and 0db gain. It’s one of the best dac I’ve ever used too. PM me if you wish to sell your SIT3 or are interested in knowing more about the COS D1.
Hi joeinid,
Thanks for posting that detailed explanation per Nelson Pass. Given atmosphere’s comments I wondered if thi applies to the S.I.T-3 (up to a certain point). In your case you prefer the sound with less than your speaker’s 18 ohm impedance load.

My speakers are 14 ohms and my amplifier seems to thrive with this high impedance. No doubt that this likely varies amongst amplifiers.
Charles