Need suggestions on preamp


I’m mainly a headphone listener so when I got the chance to purchase a pair of Magnepan LRS speakers near my home town, I ran with it. I love Maggies and their midrange smoothness and live performance feel. I was able to find a used Parasound A21 for $1200 on Marketplace which was replacing my Adcom 545. I’m now running into a dilemma where I think the Adcom 545 sounded more detailed to me. I listen to a lot of instrumental music that I know well and I’m not getting the same level of detail as I’m getting with my headphone setup which is running balanced from my RME ADI-2 DAC. I’m using more expensive Audience AU-SX interconnects on those but even when running the RME direct into the amp (since it has volume control) I’m not getting the level of resolution I’m used to with my headphone setup (Hifiman HE1000 with a Serbian Audio HSA-1B amp).

I think the issue might be related to my preamp. I bought a Schiit Saga+ and despite running good NOS tubes or trying out passive mode I’m not getting the resolution I’m looking for. I’m looking for a recommendation on a preamp that costs between $1,000-$2,000 that will max out the resolution of the Parasound while keeping it’s effortless flow and naturalness in tact. Maybe the problem is the speakers and I really should have gone for the LRS+ or 1.7s? I know the room plays a huge role with Maggies but I live in a small apartment so for now I’m looking for any suggestions that can be fixed with gear. Thanks for any help!

128x128hikaru126

@hikaru126

"By ’removing’ the jumper I’m referring to taking off the back panel and disconnecting the leads but then the tweeter wouldn’t function."

I think that may be a bit too far to take it on the LRS - plus - it might make it more difficult to sell them. I’d upgrade to the LRS+ first. And... I wouldn’t mess with the internal crossover. I’d use an external crossover as he suggests. Or, get the GR Research upgrade and build it as an external crossover and leave the internal crossover in place - just disconnect it / route around it. But... again... that may be a bit too far to take it with the LRS.

"The jumper is relatively easily to make, just a solid core piece of silver and bend it to shape."

That’s what I used (about 1/8" gauge) - works fine and inexpensive.

"It’s the fuse replacements he’s making (solid copper rod that he fills with something, not sure what material he’s using for that.)"

I just bought the copper tube (about 1/4" gauge) - works fine - don’t think the filler is necessary - shouldn’t make any difference.

"Do you know if the Class D website still sells the SDS-470C or if GAN amps are his new iteration? Ideally like to buy used (not so much for cost savings but because someone else burned the amp in for me lol)."

You could contact him to see if he would build one for you - but - I’d just opt for the newer GAN model - about the same price.

"I think the +s are probably worth the extra money (not sure how long you’ve had your pair) but I’ve heard they lose their amazing detail at first when they mellow out with burn-in."

I’ve had them about a 25 hrs of use - maybe - not fully burnt in. I hope they don’t mellow out - they’re superb as is! They sound a lot like the Quad ESL 57’s, at this point - which is "about as good as it gets!"

 

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@bassdude - it looks like Tom will be releasing a new model called the 'Silk' soon that will be an upgrade from the Mini GAN amp. I'm probably going to wait on that and see how those tweaks help the clarity and resolution department.