@kdude66 , I put the MZ2 back into the chain. The MZ2 is almost completely transparent as preamps go and pairing it with a relatively noiseless amp shows no added noise or lack of anything. There is a slightly softer tone but beautiful, still fast, dynamic and crisp. Plenty of detail still. It sounds like the sound stage has grown some.
In this comparison I can find no deficiencies with either set up. I would be happy listening either way with or without the preamp. I think perhaps if I didn't have tubes in the output section of my source then the preamp might be more of a necessity.
In this comparison I can find no deficiencies with either set up. I would be happy listening either way with or without the preamp. I think perhaps if I didn't have tubes in the output section of my source then the preamp might be more of a necessity.