2. amps-preamps
  3. 1392847679

Pre-amp or cd direct to XA30.5 ?

I'm new to this, and this is my first forum.. so here goes. I have an old set of Tannoy D700's and have purchased a Pass Labs XA30.5 amp. I'm questioning
if I must adhere to traditional pre-amp (probably X2.5 or X1 2nd hand), or can I go direct from cd player with say digital inputs and volume control (say modwright oppo 105) or wadia? Any thoughts.. My reason for against pre amp is simply don't need that many inputs. Ideas pls.. and tks for any advise ..
fsyme
fsyme OP
45 posts
 
Ive around $2k right now.. and saving. Any advise on a good preamp other than pass X2.5 or X1.. (if i can find)?
zd542
5,339 posts
 
"02-24-14: Fsyme
Ive around $2k right now.. and saving. Any advise on a good preamp other than pass X2.5 or X1.. (if i can find)?"

I had the X2.5. Didn't care for it. A preamp is a very important and personal choice. Its hard to give advice on something like that. That said, if you have a chance to listen to an Ayre K5, do so. Its great all around and should be pretty close to what your budget allows if you can find one used.
fsyme OP
45 posts
 
Anyone tried PS Audio perfectwave MKII with pass labs direct and running as digital. I've never heard a dac system, but sounds appealing in theory.
fsyme OP
45 posts
 
I forgot to mention.. i've a macbook pro and have a NAS (not in use). Everything cd wise is in apple lossless format, and typically use Audirvana Plus to listen using headphones. I'm wondering about the loss in quality "bit stearing" and also the pairing with XA30.5's 0.77v max gain if the dac has no adjust for voltage. Thoughts pls... Tks again in advance for any insight.

PS reason why this caught my eye, was falls into $2K budget for 2nd hand.
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