"If you have volume controls in your amps you stand a good chance of making it work."This can be done with any amp using Endler or EVS in-line volume attenuators, which plug directly into the amp(s). Even considering a special purity of sound with this set-up, I still prefer using a high end active preamp, which I find improves dimensionality, bass impact and dynamics. However, with mid-level preamps, and their sins of commission, things swing the other way and I would prefer the passive attenuators for their purity and absence of negative artifacts .
Is no preamp the best preamp of all?
As an experiment I hooked up my OPPO BDP-95 (which has a volume control) directly to my amp. I was very pleasantly surprised to hear a significant improvement in clarity and sound quality. Typically I have the analog outputs on the OPPO running through my preamp in Analog Direct. I have heard that the circuitry within preamps can cause cross-talk in the analog signal, deteriorating the quality of the signal. So, would having no preamp (and therefore no other circuits to interfere with the signal) be better than an expensive analog or digital preamp running in Analog Direct? I am not really interested in Room Correction or DSP of any kind. I was considering purchasing a Bel Canto PRe6 (which I've read is excellent for multichannel analog), but would it be better to just have the OPPO running directly to the power amp?
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- 58 posts total
- 58 posts total