Best Preamp - NO preamp... (?)

I have tried direct to amp with PS Audio direct stream memory transport and PS Audio DAC to various amps and was underwhelmed by the results in all situations.

My current thoughts on this are to start with a very neutral amp that you like, class A, class D, personally I like the new purifi class D's and generally all of the new class D's but I wouldn't worry about that, it's your hobby( my suggestion), just make sure it is very, very clean and neutral and has a decent Signal to Noise ratio like the MSB, Benchmark, CH Precision products etc. Then, remove the pre-amp at all costs and buy a better dac with all the money that you save and run direct!! I can't state this loudly enough, get that pre amp out of the picture. Then use the digital filters that are available too you to create whatever sound you want, analytical, soft, warm, tubey, crisp, fast, slow, whatever,  heck you change the filters once a week, every other song, whatever you feel like and you can actually create the sound you want instead of relying on a pre amp designer to give you a sound that you get stuck with based on his ideas on negative feed back and how that creates soundstage/ or lack of, what tubes are perfect etc. etc.  When you hear it, you will know, otherwise you'll never get off the merry go round, spend your money on a better amp/dac, ditch the pre and you will be happier in the end, I surely am.

Of course none of this rant is relevant if you still spin those black things
 and actually need  a phono stage.

Don

Of course none of this rant is relevant if you still spin those black things
and actually need a phono stage.

There is no preamp like NO preamp!