I have talked a lot about this subject in other threads. The inherent problem is that whatever parts ANY CDP is using to control its output/volume is not as good as a the parts in world class preamp that does the same thing.
It's like asking the question as to why should one go with a seperate preamp and amp when an integrated amp does the same thing. Yes I will admit their are world class integrated amps... HOWEVER, a well matched world class amp and preamp will beat a world class integrated amp any day of the week sonically. In this case though, a lot of the reason amp/preamp combo beats integrateds occurs because of isolation issues between low level signals and high level signals.
The problem is that too many CDPs that control volume use a kind of passive preamplification to do this. Basically most of them put out ungodly high outputs at full throttle/volume, and this signal is run through some passive preamplification (usually a type of metal filament technology) that contol it by the .5 db. I used to have a Camelot Uther DAC/digital preamp, and my sound dramatically improved when I moved to an active SF3SE preamp and having the Uther at max output.
KF
It's like asking the question as to why should one go with a seperate preamp and amp when an integrated amp does the same thing. Yes I will admit their are world class integrated amps... HOWEVER, a well matched world class amp and preamp will beat a world class integrated amp any day of the week sonically. In this case though, a lot of the reason amp/preamp combo beats integrateds occurs because of isolation issues between low level signals and high level signals.
The problem is that too many CDPs that control volume use a kind of passive preamplification to do this. Basically most of them put out ungodly high outputs at full throttle/volume, and this signal is run through some passive preamplification (usually a type of metal filament technology) that contol it by the .5 db. I used to have a Camelot Uther DAC/digital preamp, and my sound dramatically improved when I moved to an active SF3SE preamp and having the Uther at max output.
KF