Floored by the Sound Quality of TEO Liquid Pre


I recently reviewed the TEO Audio Liquid Pre and now own it. So, as a happy user I would encourage the community to read my review at Dagogo.com.

I have rapidly come to the tentative conclusion that the liquid conductor is holistically superior to TVC technology. I will continue to assess this conclusion going forward, but at this time I have the sense that the liquid cable is of a similar caliber as the ESS Sabre chips I wrote about years ago - a product which is capable of causing a sea change in manufacturing of audio equipment. I envisioned the ESS chips and accompanying architecture as the future of digital playback, and they have become so. I get the same sense with the liquid conductor technology. It's way too good to not move to the forefront.

I did not switch to a passive until I had a means of remotely controlling the volume, and that came along when I switched to file playback. Both have been wonderful moves, terrific steps in building better sounding rigs. I strongly encourage people who are at a junction, who are sitting on the fence in regards to file playback to push onward, and to procure a passive preamp for demo. I think you will be astonished at the level of improvement available to you. I suggest you do not make your audio experience all about tweaks, but rather focus on the signal path and get yourself some serious gains in performance. I don't recommend junk products or insipid improvements. File playback with passive preamp is the ticket to a new vista of digital listening. :)

A factor which must be taken into consideration is the output of the amp relative to the speaker's efficiency. I advise you discuss this with prospective amplification sellers. Since a passive does not add gain, you must have an amp/speaker pairing which the speaker can be easily driven by the amp to sufficient listening levels.

The Liquid Pre is reference quality fit for elite systems. TEO deserves a lot of eyeballs on this product, and I'm happy to direct yours there.
douglas_schroeder
I am sure the Teo is an upgrade from the MFA Baby Reference, but I would count the ARC ref 75 the centre of my system and a wonderful match for Daedalus speakers, that you have used Doug. I saw that you were trying to sell yours, I don't know if you succeeded. I have heard Lou's speakers with a number of amps, none come near to the quality I get with the Ref 75, including Modwright amps that I know he favours.
Guys, i don't have a dog in this fight. And having just purchased a Manley 300B preamp for one of my systems, I'm not looking for a new preamp. But a few years ago when I was looking at the Pathos integrated for my family room, I read Doug's review and ended up purchasing the integrateds in mono-block form. I 'm still using them with my Sonus Faber speakers and am still very happy with them. My point is, that Doug is a very good and fair reviewer. He answered all my e-mail questions promptly and I found his review comments spot on once I got the Pathi in my home. I would trust his comments on any audio product as being fair and his honest opinion. After reading his comments what you do about the product would be up to you.
I'm surprised no one has pointed out how much you are screwing up the sound by using the "slider" volume control on your ipad in conjunction with ANY preamp.

Shakey
Shakeydeal - please elaborate. Why is htis bad? What is the optimal setting for the ipad (or pc) slider volume?
Shakeydeal, I am open to your suggestions on how you wish to help me accomplish my goals of having my media collection and level control at my fingertips without potentially negatively influencing the signal path.