Is no preamp really better that a good preamp?


Hi All, I have PS Audio gear, and both my DAC and my phono section have enough gain to run directly to the amp. Is this really the optimal arrangement, or might I actually get better sound by adding a good preamp, say a Cary or a Modwright tube unit, to the mix. Thanks in advance.
Ag insider logo xs@2xrustler
JonJon2020: No worries,...no offense taken, was only expressing a preference given my being thrown into the fray :-)

As to Nelson Pass' designs: brilliant man who is a definite asset to the audiophile community. I do not however buy the argument that not producing a passive preamp is 'business strategy' simply as stated above. If a passive preamp is superior to an active and yet may be a loss leader for a company (for a period of time presumably), and if that company makes a wealth of other gear that could potentially offset such a loss-leader product in the line up (again for a strategically chosen period of time), then belief should not be cast aside and he should produce such a product for which such a strong opinion is offered. If it is as good as it gets so to speak, word will spread, people will buy it and any potential loss will be put behind them. I agree with Knghifi's comments above. If it's a better product, people will buy it....
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Knghifi,
Nice, very common sense observation. People will ultimately spent their money on what they believe sounds best to them.
I was curious if anyone has successfully used a passive preamp with a Pass Lab amp and then thought it sounded far superior to one of his active preamps.

But great minds do think alike when it was stated that people will buy whatever sounds good to them.

PHD, some Pass labs, First watt, Threshold ect, had very low input impedance <33kohm and low gain.

So yes they would be suited better with buffered passives or active preamps. Rather than just a passive attenuator.

The ones that have >33kohm (the standard being 47kohm or more) input impedance, and 1-2v input sensitivity for full output, would suit a passive attenuator.

Cheers George