Spatine,
ime with the Meridian 808.2i I felt that its output stage is perfectly fine for running direct to an amp; I would assume that the 808 is very similar.
All,
I'm flip-flopping again, the Ayre KX-R has brought about an amazing change to my system for the better, so I'm back in the preamp camp and likely for some time. In any case, this just reinforces what I've said above; the components decide what is the better option. What I do know is that absent a very special preamp like the KX-R, I still feel that direct is the superior option.
ime with the Meridian 808.2i I felt that its output stage is perfectly fine for running direct to an amp; I would assume that the 808 is very similar.
All,
I'm flip-flopping again, the Ayre KX-R has brought about an amazing change to my system for the better, so I'm back in the preamp camp and likely for some time. In any case, this just reinforces what I've said above; the components decide what is the better option. What I do know is that absent a very special preamp like the KX-R, I still feel that direct is the superior option.