Thanks for the suggestions! Any thoughts on Rogue RP-1 and Schiit Freya in comparison?
Any good solid state options with a decent dac (ideally with USB ).
Any good solid state options with a decent dac (ideally with USB ).
Suggest an entry - midrange Preamp (tube as well as SS) for a McIntosh power amp
Starting a new thread to get some suggestions on what would be a good preamp for my new McIntosh MC152 power amp. Currently its connected to my Rotel RA-12 and powering KEF LS50s. I plan to upgrade the speakers down the line to either something like the Evoke 50s or B&W 805D3 (still debating between their sound sig.).
My preference tends to be more towards warm, non-harsh top end with a little sparkle and good controlled bass. I do like the Rotel sound honestly, but it being an Integrated, I plan to move it to do duties in another room. I would prefer to have a DAC built in, but if its a good Analog only tube preamp, I’m open for it. Needs to have a remote control and preferably a sub-out along with pre-outs.
Right now on my radar are:
Parasound P6
Rogue RP1
Schiit Saga or Freya +
Given the damage I just took from the McIntosh purchase, I’m trying to get by with as low as possible price wise. So unless its really worth the extra spend, I’d like to stay closer to $1-1.5k USD range.
On a different note, is okay to use a Y-splitter on the Pre-out to feed to the sub and the power amp? Or will this degrade the signal or mess anything with the input impedence on the sub or the power amp?
My preference tends to be more towards warm, non-harsh top end with a little sparkle and good controlled bass. I do like the Rotel sound honestly, but it being an Integrated, I plan to move it to do duties in another room. I would prefer to have a DAC built in, but if its a good Analog only tube preamp, I’m open for it. Needs to have a remote control and preferably a sub-out along with pre-outs.
Right now on my radar are:
Parasound P6
Rogue RP1
Schiit Saga or Freya +
Given the damage I just took from the McIntosh purchase, I’m trying to get by with as low as possible price wise. So unless its really worth the extra spend, I’d like to stay closer to $1-1.5k USD range.
On a different note, is okay to use a Y-splitter on the Pre-out to feed to the sub and the power amp? Or will this degrade the signal or mess anything with the input impedence on the sub or the power amp?
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- 19 posts total
Suggest an entry - midrange Preamp (tube as well as SS) sr20022002 OP Your talking Schiit, pardon the pun, get the Schiit Freya you have 3 different modes to suit your mood/s, tube, SS, and passive. Tube or SS have nice low 75ohm output impedance, so they can drive even those stupid low 10k input power amps. No unnecessary high gain on the active circuits, so your volume won’t be at only 8 o’clock for loud, like most active preamps are. Also has the best mechanical remote volume control you can get, a 128 step relay-switched stepped attenuator with discrete switchable inputs XLR or SE and has XLR or SE outputs also. Ya can’t go wrong, if you need a active pre, but I bet you’ll like the passive best, if your source/amp matches >1:10 impedance ratio. https://www.schiit.com/products/freya-1 Cheers George |
sr20022002 OP On a different note, is okay to use a Y-splitter on the Pre-out to feed to the subYes if it only one one channel, but it also depends on the input impedance of the sub and your amp, together this is the impedance load the pre will see on only that channel. If you only have one sub, then you can only use one channel of the pre to feed it. I have two identical subs behind the mains (stereo subs) on my second system, this way I use both L & R pre outputs one to each sub, that way the stereo separation is not getting screwed with. Cheers George |
@georgehifi I’m super tempted by the Freya, especially at the price point its at. That being said, what are the tube rolling options with that one? Are the stock tubes pretty good, or do I need to immediately spring for Tung-sol or RCA NOS tubes? I already played that game with my Dark Voice head amp ;) ... its fun for sure, but get pretty expensive real quick. I’ll be feeding the preamp to the MC152, not sure what the impedance is on that amp, hopefully its not a problem. Another challenge I see with the Freya is that I’ll have to buy a Dac separately which will be an added cost, will most likely go with a Schiit multibut for the heck of it. Any Dac suggestions apart from Schiit to go with the Freya? Thanks for that note on the Y-splitter, so basically worst case I’ll need to crank the volume on the pre a little more than normal with the y-splitter, but it shouldn’t degrade the quality of the signal. How do you think it comes to the Rogue RP-1? Anyone have experience with that by any chance? @gone Ideally I’d like USB (DSD support), Coax and optical inputs. But worst case I can get buy with just Coax and optical. Haven’t looked at Bel Canto yet, will it match the sound signature I’m looking for? |
- 19 posts total