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

However, it must then be considered what happens between the passive preamp and the amplifier, how long are the cables, and what is the input impedance of the amplifier? All of these are factors contributing to the successful use of a passive preamp IMO.

Nelson Pass addresses this also, as I have always said with the Lightspeed Attenuator passive, interconnect to the amp should be good quality low capacitance, which nearly all are, use <100pf per foot at 2mts or less.

Nelson Pass quote:
"The output impedance needs to be low enough to drive the capacitance of a reasonably long cable. How low does it need to be? I would say that it should be able to drive a 1000 pF load out to 100 KHz.
The worst case output impedance of the Aleph L will drive 1000 pF with a -3dB rolloff at 225 KHz!!."

Cheers George

Please give the man a break, he’s earn’t his dues and his credibility, more than you, I, Ralph and everyone else here put together. No wonder he doesn’t come here.

Nelson Pass on the Aleph L preamp. "Less than <0.1% at full volume" (with active gain in the signal path).
This is minuscule and it’s probably 2hd. Knowing Nelson it’s the nice (tube like) distortion .
And it’s only when the active circuit is fully in over 3 o’clock. All active circuits have some small distortion.
At below 3 o’clock when it’s passive it’s probably zero %.

Pass Labs: Printed SPECIFICATIONS Aleph L (volume control full clockwise)
Maximum Gain 10 dB
Freq. Response +0, -1 dB @ 10 Hz and 100 kHz
Distortion < .1 % THD

Give it a rest.
Cheers George

Like so many things he’s designed, it’s a quirky component with a narrow appeal.

It’s one of his pride and joys as he’s stated, and said it’s a wonder it hasn’t made him filthy rich, not that he’s not already.

Give him a break? You’re banging on as if this thing is audio divinity.

Your searching for anything to put it and him down, and nothing is correct, as I have to post what he says and has measured in published in specs, to counter now 3 times what **** you’ve said.
The reason you don't like it and keep putting *** on it, is because your F5 only has 15db of gain and you need a preamp or source with huge voltage gain, and this is not it. 

I WOULD RATHER BELIEVE HIM THAN YOU, AND THAT’S A FACT!

Cheers George