Simply stated, a quality pre-amp is critically important in a hi-fi system. Audition some well regarded preamps in your system before making the leap.
BOL
BOL
How important is the pre-amp?
Hello all,
Genuine request here for other's experiences.
I get how power amps can make really significant changes to the sound of a system. And of course speakers have an even bigger effect. And then there is the complicated relationship between the speaker and power amp. But I wonder about pre-amps.
In theory a well designed preamp should just act as a source switch and volume control. But does it add (or ruin) magic? Can a pre-amp color the sound? Alter pace and timing? Could you take a great sounding system and spoil it with the wrong preamp? Stereophile once gushed (while reviewing a preamp that cost as much as a car) that the preamp was the heart of the system, setting the tone of everything. Really? Some people don't even bother with a preamp, feeding their DACs straight into the power amp. Others favor passive devices, things without power. If one can get a perfectly good $2K preamp, why bother with 20K?
What your experiences been?
Genuine request here for other's experiences.
I get how power amps can make really significant changes to the sound of a system. And of course speakers have an even bigger effect. And then there is the complicated relationship between the speaker and power amp. But I wonder about pre-amps.
In theory a well designed preamp should just act as a source switch and volume control. But does it add (or ruin) magic? Can a pre-amp color the sound? Alter pace and timing? Could you take a great sounding system and spoil it with the wrong preamp? Stereophile once gushed (while reviewing a preamp that cost as much as a car) that the preamp was the heart of the system, setting the tone of everything. Really? Some people don't even bother with a preamp, feeding their DACs straight into the power amp. Others favor passive devices, things without power. If one can get a perfectly good $2K preamp, why bother with 20K?
What your experiences been?
- ...
- 130 posts total
In my single source CD based system, the DIY HiFi Supply Django Mini TVC, with Silk transformers, works great, for what I consider a very reasonable price. https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/diy-hifi-django-mini-tvc-pre In my system, I consider the pre essential, but I will never go back to active and/or resistive volume control. When I have the funds to make a serious upgrade, I’m looking at the Music First Audio Baby Reference or Reference. https://www.mfaudio.co.uk/pre-amplifiers/ |
So in the end, would a high quality integrated be the best way to go (assuming one likes the sound of the unit) due to one less pair of cables, electrical cord, etc?If you're looking for ultimate sound quality, no. Integrated amps have both power amp sections sharing a common power supply; in rare exceptions they might have dual power supplies (so that's a thing to look for) but you have a lot of other circuitry on the same chassis and finally, to make it work it has to sit between the speakers (since for best results the speaker cables should be kept short). That may not be the best place in the room since vibration can play a role in system performance. Integrated amps often share ground connections, which has the same effect that you hear with a 3-wire headphone hookup as opposed to a 4-wire hookup. Its nice to keep the left and right hand ground circuits separate- that gives you the opportunity for lower noise and possibly less ground loop potential. Separates have more chassis real estate for things like extra power transformers, regulation and the like. The don't share power cords (unless you plug them all into the same power strip) so there are less voltage drops in the AC supply. |
- 130 posts total