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Need preamp recommendation

Well, the quest for the tube rolling didn't go anywhere after a quick phone call to a tube vendor who advised me that low noise tubes won't lower the background noise of the preamp. Unfortunately I need to replace my VTL TL-5.5 to something else with lower noise floor.

The new preamp must have very low noise. My amps have about 25dB of gain, and my speakers are 93dB sensitive. It can reveal small amount of idle noise too well, which was undetectable with the same speakers but with power amp of 15dB of gain. Also the new preamp must have low / no gain, or adjustable gain. My VTL has additional 20dB of gain, and it's just too loud.

Some of the preamps that piqued my interests are Aesthetix Calypso, Placette, and Sonic Euphoria. I've read some earlier models of Calypso suffered from noise issue. I'd like to hear from the owners with sensitive speakers and high gain amps if there is any noise issue.

I'd love to try the new TL-5.5 which was long announced, but I don't think it's shipping yet. Anyone from VTL reading this board?

Any other low noise preamp that I should consider? I'd like the tubes, but as tube gears have inherently higher noise floor I'll also consider solid states and passive designs. The budget is flexible, but I'd like to keep it under $3k. The new preamp will be driving Pass XA-30.5.
jylee
jylee OP
306 posts
 

-110dB in phenomenally low. About as good as you can get. Are you certain of this spec? How did you arrive at this figure?

From stereophile measurement sections. Take a look at the last graph about inter modulation test. Maybe I didn't interpret the graphs correctly.

I understand any equipments make some degree of hiss, and they are fine as long as they are not heard 8 ft away.
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jylee OP
306 posts
 
I haven't had a pleasure to audition many tube gears, but from two that I have, VTL preamp and EAR phono stage, one produces enough noise to be heard 8ft away and the other does not. Maybe you and I have different definition of noise or hiss, or maybe your ears are more sensitive to hiss if you heard hiss from all the high end tube gears that you have listed far in the sitting distance.
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mitch2
3,897 posts
 
My listening chair is 9 feet from the plane of my speakers. From the chair, I can hear no hiss, hum, buzz or anything from my system which includes the Lamm LL2 Deluxe, especially when the music begins playing. I can hear a very slight tube hiss within about 3-4 feet of my 90dB speakers, but that is of no consequence to me because of how good the Lamm gear sounds. With your higher efficiency speakers, you may hear that tube hiss further out. Therefore, if the noise level is of high importance to you, I again recommend you consider trying the Tom Evans preamp with Pulse (be sure to get a Lithos 7 model). I have owned two of these and with either I could hear nothing at all from my speakers outside of about one foot away.....nothing except when music was playing. So, if quietness is of major importance to you, I can make no better recommendation of the preamps I have owned than the Tom Evans. They have body, fullness, and a natural sound that frequently eludes SS preamps. While there may be other SS preamps that meet your needs, I have not heard them. If you get a chance to audition, try the TE Lithos 7, Vibe with Pulse.
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