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How much do I need to spend to get a preamp that sounds better than no preamp?

Hello all.
I'm using an Audible Illusions L1 preamp and I think my system sounds better when I remove it from the signal path. Oppo BD105 directly to SMC Audio DNA1 Gold power amp. I have read that there is level of quality you need to hit before there will be an improvement in sound. I can't seem to find what that level is. Any ideas?
Thanks in advance,
Ben
honashagen
Post removed 
honashagen OP
137 posts
 
Well I just bought a used Ayre K-5x pre. Any opinions?
phomchick's avatar
phomchick
209 posts
 
Well I just bought a used Ayre K-5x pre. Any opinions?
Only a question: if you were happy with no preamp, why?
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
Only a question: if you were happy with no preamp, why?
+1

Cheers George
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
kosst_amojan
A quote from an article for an active pre-amp. You’re ridiculous.
You have totally lost it, or your on your second bottle, that quote is NOT from Nelsons active preamp, but from his stance on passive preamps.
Here ’s the whole thing, once again for the aggro one. 

A Quote from the master Nelson Pass on passive preamps.

Nelson Pass,

We’ve got lots of gain in our electronics. More gain than some of us need or want. At least 10 db more.

Think of it this way: If you are running your volume control down around 9 o’clock, you are actually throwing away signal level so that a subsequent gain stage can make it back up.

Routinely DIYers opt to make themselves a “passive preamp” - just an input selector and a volume control.

What could be better? Hardly any noise or distortion added by these simple passive parts. No feedback, no worrying about what type of capacitors – just musical perfection.

And yet there are guys out there who don’t care for the result. “It sucks the life out of the music”, is a commonly heard refrain (really - I’m being serious here!). Maybe they are reacting psychologically to the need to turn the volume control up compared to an active preamp.

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