Does the Transport make a significant difference

11-21-14: Ricred1
What are the thoughts on removing the preamp and connecting the DAC straight to the amp?

As Charles and Rja indicated, this is best determined by trying it both ways. And before reaching any conclusions, you should preferably try both the balanced and the unbalanced connections which are supported by each of the three components.

FWIW, though, after looking at the specs and descriptions of the PW DAC II and your Parasound A-21 power amp, and measurements of your Aerial 7T speakers (the sensitivity of which will affect what part of the range of the volume control that is used), in this particular case I see no technical reason for a preamp to be necessary. Whether or not it would be subjectively preferable to include one is another question, of course.

FWIW, my own instinct in cases of doubt is to keep the signal path as simple as possible, by not including in it anything that has no clear basis to be included. And if that turns out to be the alternative that is less preferable from a subjective standpoint, to try to determine the reason, and to correct the issue by changing a component rather than by adding a component.

Good luck, however you decide to proceed. Regards,
-- Al

I'm trying DAC straight into the amp via balanced cables and report my observations tomorrow. Thanks for the food for thought!

Ricred1, I have eliminated the preamp in my own system since last Winter: currently I have Esoteric X-01 transport via SPDIF into Rowland Aeris DAC.... into Rowland M925 monos via XLR.... into Vienna Die Muzik speakers. The sound is marvellously refined... And not at all edgy. All wiring is Nordost Valhalla II.

Guido

I connected the DAC directly to the amp and listened for a couple of hours. I strongly prefer the sound with the preamp. With the preamp, the music is simply more musical, detailed, and effortless. Trying to get a home audition of a decent transport to hear if it makes a difference in my system. In addition, I'm going to listen to a couple preamps and compare them to what I hear when I change transports. I'm really trying to determine the best way forward. I only want to spend 3-4K.

Hi RicRed, not all DACs are well suited for direct-to-amp operations... Hence, your mileage may vary.

you can also try a subtly different strategy... Combine DAC and preamp into a single box. E.g. Jon2020 has reported astonishingly good results with his Rowland Capri S2 preamp combined with its DAC card. Total investment just below $4K list. See this short thread:
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?ddgtl&1413730895&openmine&zzGuidocorona&4&5#Guidocorona