2. amps-preamps
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Who is using passive preamps and why?

Seldom has there been any discussions on passive preamps in the forums and although my experience with them has been limited I have found them so far to be very enjoyable and refreshingly different. They seem to fall into their own category, somewhere between solid state and tube. Finding a preamp that is satisfing has been difficult. Some active solid state preamps can be very good but they seem to inject grain to some degree in the upper registers and some tube preamps are not too far behind. So far I think they should at least be matched up with an amp that has sufficient gain which is often overlooked. Which passives are you using and with what amp? Why do you like them?
phd
clio09
3,353 posts
 
Well you would think with minimal parts and no active circuitry (non-buffered designs) a passive would be low maintenance, but I've run into a few scenarios where owners of both Sonic Euphoria and Promitheus expressed issues related to noise/hum. I imagine you can occasionally get a bad transformer, or in the case of my Lightspeed a bad opto-coupler. So they are not maintenance free.

Also, I'm already gray so that probably increases my risk:)
rrog
1,958 posts
 
I tried passive preamps and 7 volt output CD players straight into power amps on numerous occasions and with several amplifier/speaker combinations and passive never sounds as good as a high quality preamp.
rrog
1,958 posts
 
I believe there is a problem with a source component being required to drive the amplifier and thereby loading the power supply of the source. Active preamps are designed to drive the power amp, not the source.
phd OP
1,307 posts
 
Ig31b, don't ever make the mistake I made. I sold my upgraded McCormacks. Since then it was like being adrift in a vast ocean never reaching a land mass. You have in the realm of solid state, the best possible sound.
pubul57
3,712 posts
 
Phd, I'm sure the McCormack gear is wonderful, but Nelson Pass and Charles Hansen have some pretty good sounding SS gear.
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