Passive Preamp Recommendations?

You might be surprised to learn that there is not a lot of difference between really expensive and really inexpensive passive controls, when used in some type of outboard box.

You will find that the things that play the biggest role in the sound are the actual value of the control and the interconnect cables themselves.

A high value (100K) can interact somewhat with the input impedance of the amplifier and may cause high frequency roll offs. Conversely, it can also interact with any output coupling capacitor that might be in the source, effectively increasing the cutoff frequency (reducing bass impact).

A lower impedance like 10K will have less high frequency interaction, but will still interact with the coupling cap in the source, and some sources may not be happy driving such a low impedance load.

So you have to be really careful with your setup, and you must keep your cables short, no matter the brand or price. A properly designed and built active line stage can overcome these problems but it is a statement of the poor state of line stages that so few actually bring home the bacon, hence the on-going debate about which is better- active or passive. IME if you do get a good line stage there will be no looking back.

..whatever the reasons, I tried them a few times, and they were all way less good than my active preamp.

Jgiacalo: You are right, a passive volume control will give you the best transparency and dynamics if your setup is right, your 252 poweramp only needs 1.6v for full output and most sources give out over 2v, so this is a great match, as you can see there is no need for extra active preamplification.

Your source will determine if it can drive the combined load of a passive and the 10kohm input impedance of your 252, if you tell me what your source are brand and model I will let you know if all is good for you to go ahead.

Don't listen too knee jerk sceptics who dismiss passives without looking to see if your system is compatible for one, because if it is you will never go back to active preamplification again.

Cheers George

I think the luminous audio axiom II is a nice product..especially with the upgraded Caddock resistor..when ordering they will ask you questions about your source, speakers, and amp so they can fine tune it to your setup.. not a huge investment either..even if you go with their Walker mod package