2. amps-preamps
  3. 188876-140796

Preamp - what's the purpose?

Intentionally dumb question...

I've heard various 5-15W tube amps in my room. EL84, 300B, etc. They all have input stages and the output stage. I send them a line-level signal from a DAC.

Sitting a few meters away from my loudspeakers, the first watt alone gives me roughly 80db of volume. I think these amps are biased to expect the line level signal directly. Why wouldn't the designer do that?

So what's the point of adding a pre-amp? Why do people do it?

thanks in advance

 

clustrocasual
rwwear
2,868 posts
 

If you only have one source, no preamp is okay. As long as the source or amp has a volume control it will work. But some prefer the dynamics and/or coloration a preamp adds.

r27y8u92
46 posts
 

there was once a description of sound. American sound and British sound.

am. sound = big scale, br. sound = detailed.

americans like exaggerated sound such as boomy, more bass.

this is not true to the original music. 

cooked fish with no sauce at all = you can feel the pure taste of fish.

cooked with lots of sauce = you can feel the variety of tastes

either is ok, modified sound with pre or pure sound with no pre.

once you feel pure taste with no sauce, you will remove the preamp!

clustrocasual OP
101 posts
 

@r27y8u92 

Yes, this is basically my attitude about it...

raw fish with NO cooking = ultimate purity. 🍣

 

bolong
620 posts
 

A Primaluna EVO 400 pre-amp feeding into the AGD Audion Mk3 is the best of both worlds. Granted, many customers have probably embraced GanFET amps with the idea that this would do away with some of the inconveniences of tubes and yet still sound like tubes. That is partially true but not true enough. With the tube pre in the chain it is finally enough.

The pre-amp warms up faster, creates less heat and does not contain so many tubes to keep track of. This works fine for me.

testrun
234 posts
 

I run my AGD Audions from Cary SLP 05 and am also very happy.  

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