George,
I get what you are saying about not adding anything negative to a signal via an active preamp. But shouldn't the proof be in the listening?
I mean if the OP likes what he hears with a preamp in the chain compared to without, then couldn't he just go with what his ears prefer than with theory alone?
Cheers! J. |
Of course Jon2020, and I've said exactly that, if he likes what a preamp adds (and that's a colouration) because something else is not quite right that's ok.
What erks me is when the preamp brigade use blanket statements that preamps are better than direct period, without even knowing if the user needs that colouration or not in his or her system.
And then also saying it drives the poweramp/interconnect better which in this case it cannot, as he has a perfect impedance, voltage and gain match going direct.
Cheers George
|
Well, it's all very simple then.
1. Start with no preamp in the chain.
2. Then add preamp.
3. If adding preamp makes the sound better, keep it.
4. If adding preamp makes the sound worse, remove it.
Preamp or no preamp brigades become superfluous very quickly here.
Cheers! J. |
09-27-15: Georgelofi
Of course Jon2020, and I've said exactly that, if he likes what a preamp adds (and that's a colouration) because something else is not quite right that's ok.
What erks me is when the preamp brigade use blanket statements that preamps are better than direct period, without even knowing if the user needs that colouration or not in his or her system.
And then also saying it drives the poweramp/interconnect better which in this case it cannot, as he has a perfect impedance, voltage and gain match going direct. IMO George's post is very well put, and I fully agree (assuming, that is, that "erks" is a Down-Underism for "irks" :-)). I would emphasize the phrase "because something else is not quite right." As I stated earlier: If you do eventually have an opportunity to try a tube (or other) preamp in your system, and if you find the resulting sonics to be preferable to no preamp, keep in mind the possibility that the root cause MIGHT be a less than optimal tonal match between your power amp and your speakers. Particularly in view of the impedance characteristics of the speakers (4 ohms nominal, 0.8 ohms at 20 kHz), which could conceivably result in an over-emphasis of the upper treble in conjunction with some solid state amplifiers.
Should that ever prove to be the case, changing power amps would probably be a better solution than adding a preamp. Note that I said "probably." It is also certainly possible that adding a preamp in that circumstance could be a good solution. But my point is that if the sound improves as a result of the addition of a preamp, the possibility that something else should be replaced, instead of the preamp being kept in the system, should be kept in mind. Best regards, -- Al |
If you are interested in Cary, skip the SLP-03 and go to the SLP-05, which can be purchased used for less than $5K. It is a huge step up from the slp-03 or sli-80. |
