hap Posted May 18, 2010 Share Posted May 18, 2010 I really shouldn't text on anything but my Mac keyboad.* My SO and I have been enjoying our Will Vincent Dynaco ST-70 driving our 1976 Heresys for some time. Mostly classical form souces as varies as CDs, DVDs, vinyl and Squeezebox. Our preamp is a holdover Creek OBH-12 passive with remote. We wonder what < (less, under...)* $1000 preamp with remote would improve our already enjoyable sound enough to make us wnat to change? Any opinions, suggestions, biases will be appreciated... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4tay Posted May 18, 2010 Share Posted May 18, 2010 Rogue Audio Metis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinmi Posted May 19, 2010 Share Posted May 19, 2010 Normally you will get better sound from a passive preamp than an active one simply because there are less components in the signal path.An active preamp may also amplify unwanted noise. You might want to borrow another preamp before purchasing one just to make sure you are not taking a step backward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hap Posted May 19, 2010 Author Share Posted May 19, 2010 New preamp is not that imperative. We've used the Creek with B&K ST140, Monarchy Audio SM-70 (both stereo and mono-block modes) and now the Will Vincent ST-70 and have not been unhappy. But the grass always seems greener... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4tay Posted May 19, 2010 Share Posted May 19, 2010 New preamp is not that imperative. We've used the Creek with B&K ST140, Monarchy Audio SM-70 (both stereo and mono-block modes) and now the Will Vincent ST-70 and have not been unhappy. But the grass always seems greener... Glad to see another Monarchy audio fan! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted May 20, 2010 Share Posted May 20, 2010 Juicy Music of course, but also Antique Sound Labs, Cayin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edwinr Posted May 20, 2010 Share Posted May 20, 2010 I have always understood that many passive preamps are difficult to match correctly to most power amps. Unless of course the pre and power amplifiers have been specifcally designed to go together. I believe Mark is quite correct in what he is saying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Mandaville Posted May 21, 2010 Share Posted May 21, 2010 The word "preamp" might also simply be used in terms of its position in the signal chain. Some "passive" line attenuators are transformer-based, with a primary and secondary winding, and can, as in the case of a phono step-up transformer, be configured to offer a bit of gain in addition to signal attenuation. Passive transformer based attenuators, while in most cases (that I've seen) are more expensive than the more common type mentioned above, may subjectively offer improved performance because of arguably better input/output impedance ratios. Most modern sources can, on their own, provide enough gain to push many amplifiers into clipping distortion; which is why some have found passive attenuators, where short interconnect can be used between components, a better solution than an active, power-supply-driven line stage. Try both, choose what you like best, have fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Mandaville Posted May 21, 2010 Share Posted May 21, 2010 Here's an example: http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/musicfirst/passive.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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