Pontus, Brooklyn+ or Benchmark 3? Pros and Cons

@yyzsantabarbara that sounds like a great system — I’ve always wanted to hear a pair of 3.7’s, and I’d bet the Benchmark gear compliments them nicely. Thanks for all your thoughts on the Benchmark 1 to 3B upgrade, though I’m sorry to hear it doesn’t play so well without a pre. How did the addition of the HPA4 change the sound?

@cheeg The biggest difference is in the volume control. There are something like 256 steps on the HPA4 volume and the quality of those steps is very noticeable at low volume. With DAC direct to amp using the DAC3 HGC I was never able to dial in the volume correctly for late night low volume listening. I remember this being a big problem because I just had a kid and I worked late night while the family slept. I should have just got some headphones back then. 

With the HPA4/LA4 the low volume sounds full range but just quieter as one would want. 

The HPA4 as a headphone amp is one of the best. As a preamp I think it is the best if you do not want to hear it. That is because it is quieter than ALL other gear. Adding this preamp is not going to add any noise to the signal. It is in the same level of noise as the quietest DACs. When I bought it last year I think it was quieter than all DACs. Not sure now with new DAC releases.

My only complaint about the HPA4 is that it became a gateway drug to the world of headphones. I have spent way too much money on headphones since the HPA4.

The CS3.7 sounds great with the Benchmark stack. The COAX on the CS3.7 is neither bright or dark and matches nicely with the neutral electronics. 

My DAC3 HGC and AHB2 are great at very low levels (90dB speakers).  Both have XLR level adjustment and Benchmark recommends to set the highest DAC3 HGC output and the highest AHB2 input levels.   That way gain is moved from power amp to DAC - quieter environment.  It also reduces relative noise pickup by interconnects.  You can set XLR output to 0dB, -10dB or -20dB.  I did not try unbalanced outputs (AHB2 only has XLR inputs).

@yyzsantabarbara @kijanki Thank you both for the additional detail on changing the level match between the B3 and the AHB2.  If volume is the only issue, I'm tempted to try the B3; if there is a problem at low levels, I can always try a Lightspeed attenuator.  It sounds like neither of you have tried the RCA outputs from the B3, since the AHB2 only has XLR inputs; my DNA-1 only has RCA's, but as long as I keep my lines short I doubt that will be an issue.  Thanks again!

I actually use both XLR and RCA on the DAC3B to 2 different preamps (or integrated amps). At least until a few days ago and I now only have 1 preamp left, the HPA4. Next week I will again have 2 preamps and the RCA output on the DAC3B will  be hooked up to the second preamp.

I also use the Benchmark gear in the recommended configuration with the 24 dBu+ signal. The RCA is considered the poor cousin in terms of connectivity by Benchmark. They strongly recommend XLR throughout.
https://benchmarkmedia.com/blogs/application_notes/balanced-vs-unbalanced-analog-interfaces

I know you were asking about connecting to a amp. I the HGC has both RCA and XLR outputs so you could have both of your amps connected to the HGC at the same time.

I strongly recommend you try the LA4 or HPA4 in the chain for FREE with the 30 day home trial. I thought it was a big deal to put the preamp into the chain. I have owned DAC2 HGC, DAC3 HGC, and DAC1. The very best sound is with either of those 2 preamps in the chain.