2. amps-preamps
  3. 190477-102598

Need help choosing preamp for streaming

Greetings,

I recently purchased a new pair of JBL HDI-3800 speakers. I have an old Aragon 8008 amplifier that I would like to use with them. I would like to stream music from Tidal and also listen to YouTube videos through them. I have never streamed music, so I have no idea exactly what I need.
I would like to be able to use my iPhone 15 to choose the music to stream. I have no intention of playing CDs or LPs, so I don’t need anything with those capabilities. From what I’ve read I imagine I need a preamplifier, and perhaps a BlueSound Node. If that’s the case, I don’t want to spend much more than $1,000 on the preamp. The preamp must have a remote control. If purchasing an integrated amp is my best option, I would not want to spend much more than $2,000 on an integrated amplifier with a remote control. I don’t mind purchasing used, but I prefer new because of the warranty.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

francotirador2
francotirador2 OP
12 posts
 

Great! That’s exactly what I wanted to know. I really appreciate the help. I’m leaning towards the Freya with the Node. 

francotirador2 OP
12 posts
 

I’ve decided to go with the Freya+ and the Node. Is it recommended to purchase the tubes from Schitt, or would I do better purchasing them elsewhere? If purchasing them elsewhere is my best bet kindly recommend where that would be. 
Thank you. 

jbuhl's avatar
jbuhl
953 posts
 

For Posterity: Moon Ace is a good all in one solution for streaming and can be had for around $2K

audphile1's avatar
audphile1
4,766 posts
 

If not too late, another recommendation would be Rogue RP1. Great value on a used market and a very nice sounding preamp. You can upgrade it’s performance by rolling some nice tubes in. 

immatthewj
1,783 posts
 

Is it recommended to purchase the tubes from Schitt, or would I do better purchasing them elsewhere?

I was going to type that it would probably be shipped with tubes, but I just went to Schitt’s site and saw the same thing that I guess you did. If it was me, I think I’d let Schitt pick the first set of tubes. They ought to know what sounds good in it. You could play around with rolling tubes a bit further on down the road. Enjoy! (Those JBLs look like fun. Is that Aragon a pretty beefy amp to handle that 4 ohm load?)

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