Spatial Audio Raven Preamp

Thanks @donsachs  I appreciate the response. Sounds like a good match for me. 

I am looking forward to hooking up the Raven to my Odyssey Audio Khartago monoblocks. The Model 2 sounds great with them as it is. However, I do plan on getting the active ATC SCM 40A v2 speakers as they have the XLR connection.

I heard the powered ATC monitors at the last Rocky Mountain Audio Festival, and they were some of the best speakers at the show. The ATC midrange driver, in particular, is a legend in the speaker industry, and ATC did a really good job with the active crossover and the internal power amps.

The Raven can easily power 20 to 50 feet of balanced cable with its 4.5:1 step-down output transformer, so it should be an excellent match for the ATC monitors. Studio-grade Mogami or Belden XLR cables should be quite good, but there’s Cardas, Dueland, or Anticables if you want to spend more. I would stay away from high-capacitance cables that look like garden hoses. Capacitance is not your friend when it comes to long cable runs.

Thanks for the information, Lynn, especially on the cable recommendations. I can't wait to hook up the preamp. 

Yeah, stay away from the garden hoses and faux snakes, no matter what the reviewer says, or in what magazine. Simple is good, less capacitance per foot is better. The studios don’t use garden hoses or faux snakes, why should you?

Many of the reviews of $5000 cables are using them as system-wide tone controls. Wrong approach. Cables just need to get out of the way, nothing more. If EQ belongs anywhere, it's in the speaker crossover, where it can do the most good.