"The answer is nothing. If you had a separate passive "preamp" it would
still have to be connected to the amp. No one here would make that
connection with two solid pieces of bare wire as is commonly done on
integrated amps like the Creek that have pre-outs."
If its nothing then why would they go out of their way to make it, advertise it and offer an active card as a back up?
OP. I didn't say it wouldn't work, I said don't fool with it. When you use a passive line stage, your source component drives the amp directly. Small changes can have a much bigger effect on SQ because there's no active line stage to act as a buffer betweent the components. Regardless of what one of the other posters said, Creek used those jumpers for a reason. They have the least effect on the signal. They are not bare wires. Its a connection similar to what you would find inside the amp. NAD, McIntosh and every other integrated I can think of that jumps the 2 sections externaly, uses similar jumpers, not wires. Integrated amps, active or passive LS, have to connect the amp section to the preamp section. When was the last time you saw someone open an integrated amp, cut the amp/preamp connection and jam a pair of IC's in the signal path? That's not why jumpers were put outside. Its just the opposite. They do it this way to keep things out of the signal path.
Your Creek is very laid back in the highs to begin with. Unless you're having an issue with your system, I see no reason to play with the jumpers. Its another variable your source component has to deal with. But, if you're one of those people that has to fool with stuff, and feel compelled, AQ makes special jumpers for connections like this.
https://www.amazon.com/AudioQuest-Male-Male-Preamp-Jumpers-2/dp/B0006VMBGO
If its nothing then why would they go out of their way to make it, advertise it and offer an active card as a back up?
OP. I didn't say it wouldn't work, I said don't fool with it. When you use a passive line stage, your source component drives the amp directly. Small changes can have a much bigger effect on SQ because there's no active line stage to act as a buffer betweent the components. Regardless of what one of the other posters said, Creek used those jumpers for a reason. They have the least effect on the signal. They are not bare wires. Its a connection similar to what you would find inside the amp. NAD, McIntosh and every other integrated I can think of that jumps the 2 sections externaly, uses similar jumpers, not wires. Integrated amps, active or passive LS, have to connect the amp section to the preamp section. When was the last time you saw someone open an integrated amp, cut the amp/preamp connection and jam a pair of IC's in the signal path? That's not why jumpers were put outside. Its just the opposite. They do it this way to keep things out of the signal path.
Your Creek is very laid back in the highs to begin with. Unless you're having an issue with your system, I see no reason to play with the jumpers. Its another variable your source component has to deal with. But, if you're one of those people that has to fool with stuff, and feel compelled, AQ makes special jumpers for connections like this.
https://www.amazon.com/AudioQuest-Male-Male-Preamp-Jumpers-2/dp/B0006VMBGO