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Looking for a super clean tube or solid state preamp.

post #1 of 5
8/23/10 at 11:14pm
Thread Starter 

My current rig uses:

  • Storm Dac d02 (NOS. Very rich and warm sounding)
  • either stepped attenuator, or a tube preamp that i dont like much
  • Firstwatt F2 power amp (Solid state, mosfet, single ended transconductance amplifier)
  • speakers or headphones

 

So i want to replace my "preamp" stage. Of my two preamps, the stepped attenuator is 100% neutral, but my power amp is only 5w so on some speakers I cant get enough volume. I also wonder if maybe i want a bit more lushness. my amp and dac are both warm, but who couldn't do with some tube love?

 

I dont want a preamp that's TOO tubey. combined with the DAC and amp, i think it would be over the top. I just wouldn't mind a bit of tube lushness. 300b tends to be nice and clean. tube, but not too tubey

 

A solid state preamp would also be fine; but it would have to be nice, /i dont want it to be the weakest linnk

 

Anyone have any suggestions? Lets not get too wild with price either

 

Thanks

 

Hugz


Edited by hugz - 8/23/10 at 11:18pm
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post #2 of 5
8/24/10 at 4:56am

The Woo amps are said to be neutral, while retaining a hint of tubiness.  I have the Woo 3, and I have that same impression.  It's not bloated, loose, or flabby like some cheap tubes setups.  It's fairly neutral.  In fact, the only way I can tell it's a tube amp is the highs are slightly rolled off and there's a hint of mid-range bloom.  I like it a lot.  Of course, a lot of the final sound does depend on which tubes you use.

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post #3 of 5
8/24/10 at 6:49pm

How about the Nelson Pass designed Adcom GFP-750? Used price is around 700 USD for the blue board one.

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post #4 of 5
8/24/10 at 7:07pm

If you're interested in clean-sounding tubes, have a look at the Grounded Grid Preamp at Transcendent Sound.  You can get it as a kit for $500 or fully factory assembled for $800.  If you've ever wielded a soldering iron, the kit is an excellent value.

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post #5 of 5
8/24/10 at 7:29pm

Most headphone amps make wonderful preamps (similar technology - ability to drive long cables, low output impedance, volume control, some voltage gain).

 

With a wonderful amp like the F2, I would personally go for something that does a simple buffering/volume job on a decent budget.  Top recommendation would be a CKK-II, it's cheap (about $200 off the forums) and if I might say so myself, is overkill for a pre-amp, but it does an amazing job nonetheless.

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