Pre amp

[Joao Paulo Martins]

Just bought my ECD-1 and i'm searching a pre amp on his level, any suggestions ?

 

[Music Alchemist]

Why not just get a passive preamp like the Schiit SYS or Saga?

It doesn't alter the signal aside from attenuating it, so you get the highest degree of accuracy.

 

[Joao Paulo Martins]

I want a balanced one, they have just freya and for the price .... i think have better ones. But like I said i want a pre amp good enough for de ecd1

 

[Music Alchemist]

Why balanced? It's just attenuating the signal. You don't need anything fancy. You could use RCA to XLR cables like I do.

Isn't "the highest degree of accuracy" good enough?

 

[Joao Paulo Martins]

I thought the balanced improves one something futher output power

 

[Music Alchemist]

Are you looking for a preamp for a speaker system? (I forgot to ask.)

To clarify, passive preamps do have high output impedance, which can be an issue for some amps. With my power amp, I did not hear a difference with or without my passive preamp when I used even more technically accurate DAC/amp/preamps such as the Chord Mojo. And when I used amps/preamps with active electronics, it often colored the sound to a significant degree.

Volume capability shouldn't even be a factor if your amp has plenty of power. Mine has more power than I would ever dream of using.

Balanced connections only have an audible benefit when the designer skimped on the single-ended section.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

I thought the balanced improves one something futher output power

A passive preamp does not produce power. It just takes a full 2v+ signal and then attenuates it - ie at max setting the output is still the same 2v+, not higher. It just controls the voltage of the input signal before it gets to the amp.

 

[Joao Paulo Martins]

Are you looking for a preamp for a speaker system? (I forgot to ask.)

To clarify, passive preamps do have high output impedance, which can be an issue for some amps. With my power amp, I did not hear a difference with or without my passive preamp when I used even more technically accurate DAC/amp/preamps such as the Chord Mojo. And when I used amps/preamps with active electronics, it often colored the sound to a significant degree.

Volume capability shouldn't even be a factor if your amp has plenty of power. Mine has more power than I would ever dream of using.

Balanced connections only have an audible benefit when the designer skimped on the single-ended section.

Yes, its for a speaker system, i'll use with a ecd-1 and bel canto ref1000s monoblocks, actually I bought one already, ec4.7

 

[Joao Paulo Martins]

A passive preamp does not produce power. It just takes a full 2v+ signal and then attenuates it - ie at max setting the output is still the same 2v+, not higher. It just controls the voltage of the input signal before it gets to the amp.

I understand now. But it has differences considering that its just for control ?

 

[ProtegeManiac]

I understand now. But it has differences considering that its just for control ?

It won't boost the signal, so if your amp has a low input sensitivity (very rare; or really only a problem if your input signal voltage to the passive preamp is much lower than 2v to begin with), the benefit of not having any active components coloring the sound far outweighs that.

Unless you prefer using a preamp like an EQ, like how people use tubes.

 

[biosailor]

Hope someone is still following this thread. I am also thinking along the lines of a passive preamp. Until now, I used my GSX-Mk2 headphone amp as pre-amp to feed my Odyssey power amp. I'd like to free my GSX-Mk2 to use it for a dedicated headphone system in my office. I was thinking of Tortuga Audio's balanced LDR1B.V25 Balanced Passive Preamp (https://www.tortugaaudio.com/products/passive-preamps/ldr1b-v25-balanced-passive-preamp/). Not the cheapest solution. Has anyone auditioned it or has experinece with the system. They also provide a buffer stage.