oldmako Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 I am looking for a nice, vintage Preamp. Unfortunately since I live in a van down by the river, my means are modest. So, I picked up a used Flame Linear amp. It needs a homie. I see prices all over the map and obviously you get what you pay for. But, can you get a decent, used preamp for just a couple hundred bucks? SAE?? Carver?? NAD?? ADCOM? Phase? These actually go for fairly cheap prices. The marantz, McIntosh, Conrad Johnson etc stuff goes for quite a bit, and this is for their SS products. Tube stuff is very high. It's not that I don't want tube......reading this forum for the last 9 months has me Jonseing bigtime for tube gear. But I can't justify the big price tag at this time. Any opinions welcome. If none, I'll just head back down to the river and smoke a doobie. Matt Foley. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.4knee Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 http://cgi.ebay.com/Denon-PRA-1000-PreAmp-with-Rosewood-Side-Panels_W0QQitemZ280335314685QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item280335314685&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1234%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50 I used one of these for nearly 20 years before I moved to HT, wish I had never gotten rid of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SET12 Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 I am looking for a nice, vintage Preamp. Unfortunately since I live in a van down by the river, my means are modest. So, I picked up a used Flame Linear amp. It needs a homie. I see prices all over the map and obviously you get what you pay for. But, can you get a decent, used preamp for just a couple hundred bucks? SAE?? Carver?? NAD?? ADCOM? Phase? These actually go for fairly cheap prices. The marantz, McIntosh, Conrad Johnson etc stuff goes for quite a bit, and this is for their SS products. Tube stuff is very high. It's not that I don't want tube......reading this forum for the last 9 months has me Jonseing bigtime for tube gear. But I can't justify the big price tag at this time. Any opinions welcome. If none, I'll just head back down to the river and smoke a doobie. Matt Foley. Well Matt, What can I tell you? I can tell you what I did! As an audio buff with 35yrs experiance. You could build your own line stage. Myself I don't use one as I have enough gain and besides, I'd rather poor the money into a superior front end. I use my modified CDP direct as I find most preamps just get in the way and some of those are a few thousand dollars. There are a few good ones but like you I couldn't affoard them. I guessI could design and build one but I have found great satisfaction without one. You could build a Tube Power Amp at a fraction of what they cost new. And have something that is very rewarding. As to Forte II's there are those that feel their mids are a bit elevated in their opions and that the Forte I's are a bit better sounding. As far as the KLF 30's I would choose the 20's as I find I like the crossover better for moding. See My thread here for why I like the KLF20's http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=159340&page=12 Good Luck on your Audio Journey! SET12 Enjoying Audio More now DIYing, Then ever before with Klipsch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blvdre Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 When I was looking for a budget preamp, after much research, I ended up with a Parasound 850. very nice preamp for the money. Here's an example on e-bay, but I think $180 is a bit steep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SET12 Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 When I was looking for a budget preamp, after much research, I ended up with a Parasound 850. very nice preamp for the money. Here's an example on e-bay, but I think $180 is a bit steep. I liked what you had to say here " I had both a Wright WLA12 and a Peach at the same time, and ended up keeping the Wright. Now, to give my decision some context, I was using the preamps to drive a pair of Wright mono-blocks, so system synergy played a part. I wouldn't say one's better than the other per se, but that they're both strong performers. Passives are another option, system dependent, but for a modest price tag may out-perform big buck preamps." I had SWL's former Peach II here for a listen and it wasn't even a contest CDP direct for me. To much imformation was lost IMO. System dependent for passives is certainly very correct. What it takes is amplifier sensitivty and needs of system SPL levels. And unless one is using the gain of a preamp the volume control is nothing but attenuating the signal for instance if your using an audio taper control with a 8 o'clock to 4 o'clock position than 12 o'clock is attenuating 80% of the signal. and thats just one issue IMO. Talk about a preamp heres the finest I have ever heard this guy found one used I think it goes some 70lbs I gave him some of my impressions to say the least! http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=223359 Heres the manufacture http://www.firstsoundaudio.com/products.html BTW nice crossovers! Would mind seeing some bigger pictures then your avatar. SET12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J M O N Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 I'd suggest looking into an older PS Audio preamp. I once owned the 5.5 and it was a great performer even regardless of it's price. You should be able to find something like this for around $200. Check Audiogon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheltie dave Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 RGR and Hafler DH-101s are good bets when they are recapped and up to spec. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cody_Mack Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 .......I'll just head back down to the river and smoke a doobie. I'm assuming that is only to enhance yer bad hearing.....[H] Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 Matt, Which Tangents do you have? If you find some Tangent 400 cheap, you should grab them, as they have the same parts (totally the same, incl. crossovers) as the Heresy II. A friend of mine picked up a pair fairly cheap. I'm thinking of build a set of cabinets to move my HII parts into. Lower bass... much better! Plus it gets the drivers up more to ear level. Bruce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hifi jim Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 Hey Matt, if you're really jonesin' for the tube sound you could maybe sell the Phase Linear amp (not sure what its used value is though) and buy a used Scott tube integrated that might satisfy your needs. Prices start at about $400. Just another option... Or look into an older Yamaha solid state preamp like the one Colter is currently using, a c-40, typically found on eBay for well under your budget. Michael reports that the Yamaha is very quiet and sounds great... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audio Flynn Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 RGR and Hafler DH-101s are good bets when they are recapped and up to spec. I bought a Hafler as a back up to my Blueberry two years ago. Very quiet but noticably edgy on the top for my taste in cymbals. Compared to Blueberry or CJ. RGR and APT Holman sounds real decent. http://www.audioreview.com/cat/amplification/preamplifiers/apt-holman/preamplifier/PRD_118156_1591crx.aspx You have to be tolerant of the fact that most of these vintage SS preamps are using 20-30 year old components that may need upgrading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheEvan Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 The point of recapping up to spec is an important one. I recently had my 70's Luxman L-309 (I think that's the number) integrated recapped and refreshed. The thing always sounded nice. Inoffensive is more like. Well, well, the refreshed version is fabulous! A huge difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerwoodKhorns Posted April 25, 2009 Share Posted April 25, 2009 Skip the preamp, buy this integrated. You cannot go wrong with it. I love their gear: Musical Fidelity A3 Integrated: http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?intatran&1245290150&/Musical-Fidelity-A3-Dual-Mono- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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