Pre/power combo - mix and match, any ideas/pitfalls?

[admin_exported]

Hi,

I'm considering a new upgrade philosophy by getting a neutral pre-amp and pairing it with some different power amps to bring in some sonic colour. This way I can effectively do back-to-back real world comparisons and effectively tune the sound. I could also use the pre with my existing 8000a as a stop-gap before getting a power.

Firstly, will the 8000a accept pre-inputs and will it sound any better (subjective I know but the 8000a can be a bit harsh/cynical).

Secondly, I plan to get a simple pre-amp possibly passive (e.g. NVA), valve (MF X-pre) or headphone type (Creek OBH, etc), what do I need to bear in mind? I hear cable length/type needs to be picked carefully with passives? How does a headphone amp accept multiple inputs? Can you really operate the volume control on an MF X-pre (it looks tiny!)

Finally, who makes a cheap second hand (fleabay) warm, power amp people can reccomend? Quad? Nad? lots of rotel, arcam about...?

Thanks in advance for all your help!

Rich.

 

[john dolan]

The volume and selector are small on the x-pre but they are ok to use.The pre is nothing special imo ive had one sat in its box for maybe 10 years unloved.A passive preamp can give you a taste of high end for little cash but they need to be used with care as they can suffer with impedance mismatch and cant drive long cables.Consider a tvc if you want to go passive.Its easy and cheap to DIY a pot in a box.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks.

What's a TVC?
Some kind of kit? (excuse my ignorance)

 

[Anonymous]

ok, I googled it
"transformer volume control" a type of Pre-amp I guess....

 

[john dolan]

A tvc is a transformer volume control.Look for reviews of the music first tvc.You can get kit tvc and also cheaper ready built ones.Here is a pic of my kit tvc http://dik.dolan.googlepages.com/tvc1.JPG and a pic of my passive preamp to give you a idea http://dik.dolan.googlepages.com/passivepre.jpg

 

[Anonymous]

john dolan:A tvc is a transformer volume control.Look for reviews of the music first tvc.You can get kit tvc and also cheaper ready built ones.Here is a pic of my kit tvc http://dik.dolan.googlepages.com/tvc1.JPG and a pic of my passive preamp to give you a idea http://dik.dolan.googlepages.com/passivepre.jpg

The passive looks stunning!

 

[john dolan]

They are both passive preamps.The more conventional passive uses a DACT stepped volume pot the other passive tvc is a tricky build and would test the patience of a saint to build. http://dik.dolan.googlepages.com/tvc2.JPG

 

[Anonymous]

Spaghetti!!

 

[matengawhat]

ash i did exactly that - i run a a mf A5cr pre amp (neutral) with an arcam p35 power amp (warmth) to get great results - think i suggested in one of your earlier posts when you were thinking of a headphone amp and i suggested picking up the littledot mk111 headphone amp and using it as a pre amp to add the warmth you crave and tube rolling to get you your flexability with the sound.

 

[Anonymous]

I do recall that post!
thanks

Yes maybe I got the idea from you??
I'm still not sure what the pitfalls are in using a headphone pre-amp? How many inputs (the little dot only has one, I need two)? Will it accept phono's? Are they passive?

Also what's tube rolling?

Thanks....

 

[matengawhat]

the little dot does only have one input and to be honest i have still not tried it as a pre amp but something i will do in time - i already have a pre amp otherwise would have tried it ages ago, just lazy really - yes it just accepts normal rca phono cables so you would have to swap them for each of your sources - not sure if you can buy a switch or depending on your sources use a dac that has multiple inputs and one output for example i have my cdp and squeezbox connected to my dac.

The little dot allows you to swap the tubes for different types - each tube has a different sound so you can alter the tubes to suit your taste or the music you listen to for example i have some little russian ones that are fantastic with rock as the cymbals hit hard and the bass is taught and fast - i also have some mulllards that are better all rounders - the tube cost anythin from £10 to £150 depending on their age and rarity - the best are NOS tubes - which stands for New Old Stock - for exaple the russians were from the 80s i think and the mullards the 70s they are about 30 years old. People say the old ones are better built. Also not that this is important to the sound but when everythings running the tubes glow with an amazing orange glow thats i personally find really relaxing

 

[Anonymous]

matengawhat:the little dot does only have one input and to be honest i have still not tried it as a pre amp but something i will do in time - i already have a pre amp otherwise would have tried it ages ago, just lazy really - yes it just accepts normal rca phono cables so you would have to swap them for each of your sources - not sure if you can buy a switch or depending on your sources use a dac that has multiple inputs and one output for example i have my cdp and squeezbox connected to my dac.

The little dot allows you to swap the tubes for different types - each tube has a different sound so you can alter the tubes to suit your taste or the music you listen to for example i have some little russian ones that are fantastic with rock as the cymbals hit hard and the bass is taught and fast - i also have some mulllards that are better all rounders - the tube cost anythin from £10 to £150 depending on their age and rarity - the best are NOS tubes - which stands for New Old Stock - for exaple the russians were from the 80s i think and the mullards the 70s they are about 30 years old. People say the old ones are better built. Also not that this is important to the sound but when everythings running the tubes glow with an amazing orange glow thats i personally find really relaxing

Some great ideas there Matengawhat, glad you posted!
The DAC would sort me out as i've got a TU-1800 DAB and CDP so could switch with that. It seems like a long winded approach but would certainly be fun! I need to be sure the DAC is better than my CD72. I fancy the Cambridge Audio £200 unit but don't know if it'll be an upgrade - time to dig out some old generic "hifi" mags who recently ran a supertest. I seem to recall the good ones all got about the same score, it just came down to connectivity.

So Little Dot is about £200? CA DAC £200 and second hand Arcam Alpha 9/10, or NAD, MF, etc for £200?

Nice little tuneable system for £600