Passive Pre - No Regrets?

"FWIW, the task of the volume control is *not* to filter noise! I would suspect that there are other reasons for a preference."

Yes I agree, I suppose it is how one looks at it. I'm not designer like yourself,but don't you use something inside your equipment to filter noise or keep it to a minimum? Capacitors or something? If you did then your amplifiers or preamps would also do the job of lowering the noise floor..correct? This wouldn't be any different from a TVC having the same ability would it?

Having preferences is fine..I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm thinking seriously of buying a tube amplifier to run with the TVC when the moment strikes. One day I may want to mix it up a bit. It is always good to have different types of gear to swap out, when you want to hear music in another light.

Can't get any better match between source nd amps than that, Jsadurni. "If it ain't workin' for ya, it ain't workin!"

The only other question is what type of interconnects are you using and how long are they? I've heard that capactance and inductance, or the relationship between both, can be a HUGE influencing factor in the performance of a passive pre.

From your August post here, it seems you have settled on short speaker cables and longer interconnects. That's what has also worked best for me.

Still waiting, but maybe they'll arrive today. Atmasphere. let me ask you a question. If you could design a passive preamp, choose an appropriate source with just the right output impedance, select the cabling to be used (for appropriate electrical properties- and lenght)and they were feeding one of your OTLs or some other quality 100KOhm load - that is you could optimze the variables that determine successful versus unsuccessful implementation of the passive approach - could you conceive that a passive, minalmist approach might work better, sound better than an active, any active preamplifier. I would accept that the passive might not be as flexible, be more fussy, and may be less universally marketable.

Unless I missed something, all of this talk of transformer vs. autoformer is pure speculation. I don't see where anybody posting has actually compared.

Neither have I, but the link I gave to Intact Audio has an active forum with people I know, and who's ears I trust, who's passion is transformers and inductors, and FWIW they say there is no contest; an autoformer is clearly superior to a transformer when used as a volume control.

I don't see this as a drawback as the issue with DC is no different if you use a resitive voltage divider of some sort.

Darkmoebius: Yes very short speaker cables I actually have built a pair to my flavor mixing copper and silver transformer wire, right now I think I am missing a couple of copper strands to give it more body. The ICs are Gabriel Gold bought here in Agon, I also have Nordost Blue Haven but they are a bit forward and shy on bass, I tried Siltech SQ80 and they were too dark, Black Mountain were too light..Gabriel mixed good in my system, 1 meter between DAC and amps. 4 inches one strand kimber blue (from 8tc) from the attenuator to the input tube inside the amp :-)
I got the PLC partly because I got a good deal and because I heard better reviews of autoformer vs transformer...since I got the perfect setup for passives I might give the transformer a try, probably the Promiteus Audio since they are affordable. (say against th 6.5k for the AudioConsulting)
Atmasphere: I find Pubul57s question very ineteresting also, If you could design the perfect source-preamp-cables for your amps, would it be passive or active?

Thanks