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Putting together first system... clueless.

Hello everyone, I've begun piecing together my first system, and I'm not really sure what to do in regards to the preamp. Vinyl is going to be the only source for the system.

The goals of the system are minimalism (as little as possible between the record and the speakers), and upgradeability. I figure, if I do it this way, can more easily learn about the differences in components and get a good feel for what I like and need, and upgrade accordingly.

It's a budget system and I should only spend about $3-4k for the entire system. The equipment I've bought so far is a Rega RP1 w/performance pack, and a Musical Fidelity VLPS-II. I think I'm gonna go with something from Magnepan for the speakers, so I've got maybe $1-2k left.

My question is this: Are there any recommendations for an extremely minimal preamp stage that is basically just 1 source in/out, with a volume control? If this equipment doesn't exist, is it much of a factor in this system if it's just a volume control? (As in, I could just make it myself with quality parts without introducing terrible sound?)
baliacta
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,807 posts
 
If you are on a budget and you want tubes, its likely that you will not have a lot of power to spare. For this reason you want a speaker with greater efficiency, and for that reason I feel like a Magnaplanar would be a poor choice.

Zus are popular with smaller amplifiers as they are easy to drive; I would keep that in mind.

If you want any amplifier to perform and show off its 'amplifier investment dollar' its usually best if the speaker efficiency is high enough that the amp is rarely asked to make more than about 25% of full power.
eslaudio
118 posts
 
I second the Tekton Lore recommendation. I've owned both the Lore and the Zu Omen, and can say that the Lore was far better in every way in my system. The lower cost M-Lore might also be a good option depending on the size of your room. I'd give Eric at Tekton a call to discuss options and build time. My understanding is that the current wait for Tekton speakers may be a few months due to their extreme popularity.
jriggy's avatar
jriggy
564 posts
 
On other forums and I think in the mags too, there are lots of threads and articles about putting together a killer 5k system...

If you could wait a bit longer OR buy in stages to stretch the total up to 5k, you can no doubt get a great hi-fi system...

I can recall right off hand there being a good thread somewhere on Audio Circle, where there are a ton of breakdowns of system ideas for the 5k amount.
baliacta OP
3 posts
 
Thanks for your help everyone. I ended up getting the Lores and I found a good deal on a jd302brc here on Audiogon. Can't wait to hear everything together.
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