Do Integrateds sound better than Receivers?

All things being equal, an integrated will sound better than a receiver because there is less components in one box resulting in less interference between components. Not to mention a receiver's tuner, preamp & amp all share the same power supply. Along those lines of thinking than separates will sound the best.

I took my own advice last night just to see what sort of difference (s) sonically speaking could be determined by using a receiver as a preamp and replaced my tube preamp with my latest HT RECEIVER Onkyo's TX SR805.

I hooked everything I checked via RCA and did not use the processor functions. Hooked both mono blocks and the sub up and defeated the subs x over network using only the receivers default settings for it, and no other adjustments... defaults all around.

I didn't have many lengthy cables laying about so I used my Art Audio IC3 1.5m pair as main IC... $120 new. I was forced to use my current power cords as they would have been in play anyhow. I did also use the ICs I would have normally used off the xa 777es CDP, Synergistics Acoustic Ref active (Tesla series). that's it. Oh, and an indoor Rat Shaik $15 FM antenna.

Let things get hot and scanned some FM stations then threw in a disc... then another... and another... and another... and if I hadn't had to be up early today I might still be listening. I was simply amazed. Straight up, honestly anazed! The Sony CDP sure outran the tuner by some good bit. the sound was fascinating and involving.

Sure it was on a Sound Anchor rack, as were the rest of the conponents and some upscale cords were used but when I thought of employing the AA ICs (by necessity rather than choice), I thought back to this thread and my previous post.

Maybe these newer receivers are sounding better lately. Mine had never been attached to a component via SE cables before last night so I was completely taken aback by how well things went.

I'll still hold to saying I feel separates will prove out best if performance is the goal, BUT a likewise priced integrated (depending on ???) may be a really worthwhile endeavor given my first time audition/run of the SR805 as a preamp.

I also thought of Creek, and BAT, and Prima Luna too for myself. DK Desgin as well came to mind.

Good luck.

At present I am using a Primaluna Prologue 2 integrated .
I started my search by listening to as many different systems as I could in my area and when I traveled . I found that I liked tubes much better than SS . They provided a body and presence to the music that I had been looking for and could not find with any of the SS based systems that I had auditioned .

I started with a Cayin A88T , it provided the warmth , body and presence that I enjoyed and was reasonably priced in the used market . But due its extreme , for me , difficult biasing procedure I moved on to the Primaluna .

The Primaluna is self/auto biasing and of the 'modern' tube sound . It gave me much more extension in the top end , a clearer sound and more detail at the exspense of the more traditional warmth of the Cayin . This was somewhat of a revelation to me as I didn't know what I was missing until I had it ! I have now changed the input tubes which have given me some of that traditional tube warmth of the Cayin without loosing the features that I had gained . The PL will take quite an array of output tubes to allow for even more experimanation .

The Primaluna , as good as it sounds , may not be the ultimate amp for me but it is definately a good tool . It will allow me to experiment , easily , to find what that ultimate tube sound might be . At @ $ 1300 , to me , it is a bargain and a great tool !

Good luck .

BTW , if you don't already , you may want to pull your speakers out into the room a few feet . I see in your pictures that they are against the wall and beside some furniture . Could make a difference !

Good luck .

The primaLuna is also on my list, and I'll be able to listen to one this weekend! Thanks for the detailed account of your experimenation Blindjim--sounds like you had fun last night! Your results further reinforce my feeling that an integrated is the way to go for my purposes. BTW, Saki70, thanks for the speaker placement suggestion--I did move my speakers further into the room, but had to compromise for the sake of domestic relations. I've reached a happy medium, now, which is slightly further out into the room than the picture shows. Bass is more defined and soundstage is wider and deeper. (When the little ladies are away, I move them out further for critical listening sessions). Thanks to you all--I'll keep you updated as I get closer, sonically and financially, to making a switch to a new amp.