Placette pre amp

Smw- Marakenetz has some good points- that guy knows what he is talking about! That being said, My Audio Aero Capitole CDP has I believe ~ a 4v output- quite strong actually. It is driving my 300B's nicely (although they have been totally rebuilt and insanely modded) there is no 'sluggishness' in these babies whatsoever- using a gutsy tube like the KR 300BXLS helps as well as a very efficient speaker...

Must admit to being curious about the Placette though- can adding a passive preamp actually give me any benefits?? hmmm.....

I don't believe so Sutts. I have the Capitole and a Placette passive (just the insides actually, not the official box - anyone want it?) and there is no way it improves things. It just does the job with minimal damage. The active Placette is another thing altogether, and I highly recommend it, but not as a way to improve the Capitole.

I have decided to go with the Legend pre-amp and if I absolutely have to have a remote volume, I will try the Placette passive remote volume control. I have put a lot of thought into my system before I bought each piece of equipment, and decided from all the information I received, that this would be the best course of action. My speakers are not real sensitive (Dahlquist 20I - I think they are 88 or 89 decibels) and they are supposed to be hard to drive, so I think I better have a pre-amp. I will have to get a phono pre-amp when I play records, but that will be a ways down the road. Thanks again for the input, it was a big help.

I have owned the Creek OBH-12, McCormack TLC-1, Adcom GFP-750, Classe CP-35, CJ PF-R, CJ PV-12L, CJ PV-14L, ARC LS-16, and BAT VK-20. My CD player is the Cary 306/200 and my amp is the CJ Premier 11a tube amp.

Of the passive preamps, I like the McCormack TLC-1 the best(but no remote), the Creek OBH-12 next, and lastly the Adcom GFP-750 (in passive or active mode). The McCormack produces the least coloration without upsetting the soundstage. The OBH-12 is quite good, much better than the Adcom GFP-750. The Adcom sounded flat and lacking dynamics in passive mode and was somewhat bright and irritating in active mode. However, in my system, an active preamp seems to be a better fit for my listening enjoyment. The active preamps do seem to produce better dynamics and soundstage.

Of the vacuum tube preamps above, the ARC LS16 was the most neutral sounding and had the best bass authority but not nearly as good as the ss preamps. Ultimately, I prefer a ss active preamp and find the CJ PF-R to be outstanding with good dynamics while retaining that nice CJ midrange. The BAT VK-20 (which is in my system now) is more neutral than the CJ PF-R and it has great dynamics and soundstage while having the best user interface I have ever experienced. I still haven't decided which I like better and for now it's a toss up between the CJ PF-R and the BAT VK-20, both priced about the same on the used market. I'm keeping the McCormack TLC-1 and I continue to experiment with the CJ PF-R and the BAT VK-20.

I'd love to try a Placette preamp or a Pass Labs preamp someday.

Abe- re: the Pass & Placette- they are the same ones I would want to try as well. A dealer I know up here in Canada still has an older Aleph L (no remote, single-ended only) lying around- a passive/actuve hybrid- ingenious design.

Red- thanks for the tip. Another dealer up here has a used Placette Remote Volume Control for ~ $600 USD. How do you think adding that to the Capitole would be?