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Using a receiver as a pre-amp...many questions

I have totem sttaf (8ohm, 88db sensitivity) l+r, a totem tribe II (6ohm,88db sensitivity) as center, and the totem storm sub. I use the system for both movies/tv and l+r and sub for music...music being the most important to me soundwise. My receiver is an integra 40.3. Ok so here come the questions...

In order to have the system sound good for anything (movies/tv or music) I feel like I have to turn the receiver up too high (around 68-75 out of 100)...otherwise the sound is flat/boring. Do people agree that this is a problem, or I should just turn it up and be happy? Keep in mind that once I do turn it up I am very happy with the sound it produces...overall I like what I have.

What I am thinking about doing is buying three red dragon audio m500 monoblock amps and connecting from the receiver to the amps. Should I expect this to improve the sound at lower levels, or the high volume need is just a function of the way my speakers work and nothing different will happen?

Another option I am thinking about is buying a two channel amp (I am thinking of tube hybrid) to connect to receiver, and using it to power just the l+r speakers to get possible improvement there.

Ultimately I would like to get away from the receiver altogether as everything I read says that a real pre-amp and amp improves sound dramatically...however all of my connections are HDMI (computer music, movies, and cable) and until someone starts making an HDMI dac then I think I am stuck with the receiver.

Sorry for so many questions but as you can likely tell I am a rather new audio person and need advise. Any comments on the questions above would be great...also setup suggestions that I may not have thought of would also help.
jpg1975
tonyangel
309 posts
 
If playing music is important to you, build a system for playing music. I went the same route that you're looking at taking and it was a waste of time.

Just get yourself a nice integrated or separates and be done with it. There's lots of nice used equipment for sale here. What made the biggest difference for me was getting a preamp. I found an older NAD C162 here for something around $300. Not hi fi, but sounds good nonetheless.
tonyangel
309 posts
 
Oh, I also meant to ask whether you've had any experience with any other gear? I've always found Integra gear to be a bit thin in the sound.
jpg1975 OP
18 posts
 
@Tonyangel...Thanks for the advise. I am considering doing that, the problem is I have only one place to put everything. So if I dedicate everything to music then I will probably just end up with some crappy soundbar for TV/movies...and while they are not the most important they are still at least a little important.

To your other question I have not tried any other equipment. This is my first real stereo/home theater. Up to this point it has been Bose or soundbars.
tls49's avatar
tls49
1,351 posts
 
Hopefully we agree that adding an amp to your receiver is not a great idea, although it may improve sound, it will still be dependent on the receiver's preamp. I know you said all your sources were HDMI, but could you give more detail about them, especially the computer music, and movies. I assume cable is just a cable box with HDMI. Also, when listening to music, is that just from the computer?
tonyangel
309 posts
 
I understand that watching movies is important to you, but I noticed that you are only running l+r, a center channel and a sub. Due to limited space and not being able to place surround speakers, I was doing the same thing that you are. Just running a 3.1 system. Although not real surround, it still beats the heck out of the TV speakers.

In the end, I just decided that stereo music quality was the most important thing to me, so I'm now running the C162 preamp, with an Aragon 2004 amp and an REL sub. My speakers are Paradigm Studio 10s. The size of my mains should give you an idea of my space constraints. My wife just insists on having an entertainment center.

Now that all is said and done, I just watch movies using the 2.1 system and to tell you the truth, I don't miss the center channel at all.

Both my TV and Bluray player have digital outs, so I have those hooked up to a DAC which is plugged into the Aux in on my preamp.
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