Best Preamp - NO preamp... (?)

Point taken.

I would've completely agreed just a few months ago. Direct Stream Sr to the Pass XA60.5 sounded glorious. On a whim, I bought a Pass X0.2 preamp (figured that I could always resell it if I didn't make enough of a difference). Oh was I wrong! The X0.2 might be an older Pass, but it added space and drive to the music that I just didn't have with the DSD Sr. I guess no preamp is better, unless the preamp is really good! :-)

I have tried direct to amp with PS Audio direct stream memory transport and PS Audio DAC to various amps and was underwhelmed by the results in all situations.  The volume control in the PS Audio added to much grain, especially at lower volumes.  Most transports offer enough power for passive/direct wiring to amps these days, but the grain from volume attenuation becomes troublesome.

My pre (Aesthetix Callisto Eclipse) lacks feedback and is dual balanced (dual volume knobs).  Add in tube rolling to tame an overly warm mono block configuration or to add liveliness to a sterile SS amp configuration, it gives me the ability to fine tune whatever configuration I find myself in, and achieve deep bass withVon Schweikert’s (21 hertz) speakers.

I also went down the rabbit hole this year and purchased/experimented with a passive pre (Tortuga) that I had professionally built (I was obsessive with getting things just right in even trying different solders at different places to achieve the most neutral presentation).  I added a tube buffer in the chain and loved the result, but in the end found that set up wonderful for near field application only.  I craved more cowbell during lively rock/country passages.  When I used 1940s NOS tubes and was amazed by the delicate warmth that was offered.  (FYI: I will be reluctantly listing the Tortuga shortly if anyone is interested).

For our moderator, may I suggest an RCA selector between source and amp, you are not going to be happy with all the wear and tear on RCA connectors down the road.  I had one made for my Tortuga that did the trick, but don’t buy a mass marketed selector, have one made to your needs that is robust enough to handle the amount of switching needed.  There are several interconnect builders that should be qualified on AudiogoN.  I use my RCA selector between stereo and mono TT in my analog chain.

Happy holidays all, and enjoy the music!

I guess no preamp is better, unless the preamp is really good! :-)

That has been my experience as well.

For a short while I tried my Berkeley Alpha DAC Series 2 direct into my Pass Labs amplifier (with Magico speakers) and found the sound was super detailed, clean, and dynamic.  I was very impressed. 

I then tried a SimAudio 740P preamp in my system and much preferred the overall sound with the preamp present.   I likely lost a tad bit of detail with dynamics and timbre being similar,  but the BIG difference was in the explosion of soundstage and space between the instruments and vocals.  The added front to back depth and 3d like imaging made me have no desire to save the not insignificant price of the preamp and go back to using the DAC direct. 

Using the DAC direct was like a 2d super detailed presentation, where the 740P made it sound 3d and more like the artists were physically playing in my listening room (albeit maybe not in a recording studio...).

I've heard very big differences while trying various preamps over the years and have no doubt I would prefer the sound of a great DAC like the Berkeley direct in many of these cases; but I'm also unfortunately sold on the value of a great preamp in making one's system sound its best, even when you have a single digital source like me.

@mountz

I have tried direct to amp with PS Audio direct stream memory transport and PS Audio DAC to various amps and was underwhelmed by the results in all situations.

That has been my experience too, and that includes using a variety of passives including autoformer passives. My final effort was DAC direct from Metrum’s Adagio DAC, which uses an elegant volume control solution by changing the reference voltage of the DAC, so no lost bits ever.
My solution was to use a very high quality solid state unity-gain buffer, which added back all the tonal color, dimension, and solidity that was missing when I was going directly from the DAC to my amps.