[xlracing]

Who have try the LD MKIII or MKIV as pramplifier for her hi-fi system? I have read that the DV 336I is really bad as preamplifier and i want to know if it's the same with the LD MKIII OR MKIV. Thanks in advance.

 

[Penchum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xlracing /img/forum/go_quote.gif Who have try the LD MKIII or MKIV as pramplifier for her hi-fi system? I have read that the DV 336I is really bad as preamplifier and i want to know if it's the same with the LD MKIII OR MKIV. Thanks in advance.

I use my MKIVse every day as a pre-amp. It is wonderful.

No problems to report, only good clean signal to my amp. That is the nice thing about LD and the new MK series, they get all aspects of the unit right before bringing them online.

 

[xlracing]

oki thank you very much, what's your hifi system please ? (amplifier, speakers...). You think that LD MKIV (no the "SE" version) is also very good as pre-amp?
Thank's in advance (it's very difficult to find people who use this models as pre-amp).

 

[Penchum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xlracing /img/forum/go_quote.gif oki thank you very much, what's your hifi system please ? (amplifier, speakers...). You think that LD MKIV (no the "SE" version) is also very good as pre-amp? Thank's in advance (it's very difficult to find people who use this models as pre-amp).

Right now, I'm cheating a little. I have the MKIVse dumping to my Pioneer SPEC1 pre-amp on AUX1, then the SPEC1 to my SPEC4 amplifier. I'm only doing this so I can select different sources that are by-passing the MKIVse when I want on the SPEC1. I can "tube" external portable sources thru the MKIVse into the SPEC1 for listening this way.

I did have the MKIVse hooked directly to my SPEC4 for about a month, with the SPEC1 record out to the MKIVse input. This was great also, because I could "tube" all my analog sources hooked to the SPEC1 this way. My SPEC4 is powering my extremely rare Cerwin-Vega S-1s. All in all it is great fun. I've never heard a Master 15ips Reel tape "tubed" before, so that was a treat!

I also have a very mini system with the Sonic Super T amp and I have used the MKIVse as a pre-amp for it too. Very nice and very clean!! What can I say,,,the MK series amps are great units!

The MKIV (regular) has more tube rolling options, so if you are in to tube rolling heavy, it may be your best choice. The MKIVse comes with (almost) the perfect set of tubes plus upgraded RCA jacks, locking headphone jack and a different motherboard. The MKIVse doesn't have the switches for tube type and gain like the MKIV does. Both models are SEPP (OTL) circuit designs, which puts them at the top of desktop headphone amps.

The MKIII is not SEPP (OTL) like the MKIV(s) and it has less power. But, it does support the switching of tube family's and gain. Those who have purchased either the MKIV(s) or the MKIII just love them. Top quality for sure. When I was deciding what to purchase (MKIII vs MKIV vs MKIVse) the pre-amp sections of all three are equal in sound quality to their headphone circuits and super quiet. So, the deciding factor for the MKIVse was the fact that it already contains the best, including tubes and I would only need to roll a few choices later on. It turns out that I like almost all the tube combinations on the MKIVse.

A quick note: I use Senn HD-650s and HD-580s headphones.
I Hope this helps you some!!

 

[xlracing]

Thank you very much, i think buy LD MKIV, i have read very good review about MKIV and her price is good...

 

[Penchum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xlracing /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thank you very much, i think buy LD MKIV, i have read very good review about MKIV and her price is good...

You're right. The price is exceptional and the customer service is hard to beat. Let us know how it goes!

 

[Dept_of_Alchemy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xlracing /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thank you very much, i think buy LD MKIV, i have read very good review about MKIV and her price is good...

The MkIV is pretty awesome actually, you won't be disappointed by its pre-amp capabilities.

There is a fledgling community of people that are beginning to explore the potential for tube rolling on the MkIII/IV and so far it looks like they LD amps respond very well to tube upgrades and the large number of compatible tubes makes it very fun indeed.

 

[AudioCats]

Quote:

Originally Posted by xlracing /img/forum/go_quote.gif I have read that the DV 336I is really bad as preamplifier and i want to know if it's the same with the LD MKIII OR MKIV. .

So is the 336i indeed bad when used as a pre-amp? can anybody confirm that?

 

[Penchum]

Quote:

Originally Posted by AudioCats /img/forum/go_quote.gif So is the 336i indeed bad when used as a pre-amp? can anybody confirm that?

There are posts suggesting that. There are posts suggesting other problems that would also show up in the pre-amp output. I don't have a 336i, so I can't talk to that directly. I do have the MKIVse and I can confirm to you, it has no problems with pre-amp output whatsoever. Have a good one!

 

[Danika k]

I've found my little dot amps to be very capable pre-amps in my system. I noticed that the sound of the pre-amp even responds to tube rolling which I consider to be a plus.

 

[jamca]

I know it is a liitle old thread . However i have a question if anyone is listening . I want to use the little dot mkiv se as preamp, however i read at the manual this : The Little Dot MK IV / SE is not to be used with a DC or direct coupled power amplifier. Doing so may result in damage to your Little Dot and/or downstream components!
What is a dc or direct coupled amp? if i use little dot as preamp what should i be careful about? Thanx!!

 

[mab1376]

Didn't work with my Aegir, it went into failsafe mode.

As a buffer between a DAC and preamp, it's great!

 

[jamca]

Didn't work with my Aegir, it went into failsafe mode.

As a buffer between a DAC and preamp, it's great!

Tnx!! Really useful your experience... But isn't it too much another device through the audio chain?

 

[mab1376]

Nope, just adds some gain, not a big deal!

 

[GotNoRice]

I know it is a liitle old thread . However i have a question if anyone is listening . I want to use the little dot mkiv se as preamp, however i read at the manual this : The Little Dot MK IV / SE is not to be used with a DC or direct coupled power amplifier. Doing so may result in damage to your Little Dot and/or downstream components!
What is a dc or direct coupled amp? if i use little dot as preamp what should i be careful about? Thanx!!

I used a Little-Dot II+ as a preamp for a number of years with my Yamaha M-2, which is a Direct Coupled Amp. The Little-Dot II+ came with the same warning you described, yet it was never an issue in practice.

Most power amps have an in-line capacitor on the inputs that blocks ultra-low frequencies, below what the human ear can hear. A Direct Coupled amp is theoretically capable of passing any frequency from the preamp to the speakers, all the way down to 0Hz, which would be a DC (Direct Current) signal at that point. A normal audio signal is AC (Alternating Current). This is why the cone moves in and out. When a DC (Direct Current) signal is fed to a speaker, the cone will move in, or out, and stay there. This causes the voice coil to heat up despite the speaker not producing any sound. Speakers can be damaged easily if fed significant amounts of Direct Current.

I found that the only time any relevant amount of DC (direct current) was being passed from my Little-Dot into my power amp was right after the Little-Dot was powered on. I mitigated this by always making sure to turn the Little-Dot on first, and give it a short time to warm up before I powered on the power amplifier. Ultimately, no other precaution was necessary.