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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
jpg1975 OP
18 posts
 
@Bdgregory

one possibility for your music sources is to use your Integra as a DAC (ie leave them connected to the integra via HDMI),

Wouldn't this option have the receiver still acting as the pre-amp...so would likely not help the issue I am having? Is there some particular way of connecting the computer and apple TV to the receiver to have it only serve the DAC function?
tls49's avatar
tls49
1,351 posts
 
one possibility for your music sources is to use your Integra as a DAC (ie leave them connected to the integra via HDMI), and take an analog connection from a "tape out" (assuming you have one) to the analog input of your integrated.
Bdgregory, again you and I are having the same thoughts, however after looking at the Integra owner’s manual, I found that the “tape out” only outputs from analog inputs and not digital, so this is not an option. Looks like the solution would be to use the optical digital from the Apple TV, and USB from the computer. These could be input to an outboard DAC, with its output to the integrated amp, or the optical and USB straight to an integrated amp with built in DAC.
tls49's avatar
tls49
1,351 posts
 
Is there some particular way of connecting the computer and apple TV to the receiver to have it only serve the DAC function?
Jpg1975, that is exactly what Bdgregory was trying to do with his suggestion using the "tape out", however it will not work. See my previous post.
jpg1975 OP
18 posts
 
@Tls49...I do understand now what you and Bdgregory were saying. However, this opens up a new question for me. If I connect the computer to integrated amp, should the computer be treated as a purely music source afterward? What I am getting at is this...So I connect the computer via usb to a dac and from dac to integrated and I want to watch a streamed show on my computer. Is it possible to also have the computer connected via HDMI to the receiver and toggle back and forth between usb/hdmi based on if I am listening to music or watching something...or is going back and forth a more complex process. This is not necessarily a deal breaker...I just want to understand.
tls49's avatar
tls49
1,351 posts
 
Jpg1975, I think having both HDMI and USB cables connected from the computer to their respective components at the same time would be OK. If both outputs are active at the same time, then it would just be a matter of using the Integra or the integrated amp. If they are not active at the same time, then it would be necessary to make a selection in the computer for the one you wanted to use.
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