Ah, the old 'chicken-or-the-egg' conundrum.....as noted in several of the posts above, 'synergy' is the key-word here. The trick is finding what amp best mates with the preamp.....while many solid-state amps can have slightly different colorations, the preamp affects the overall end result more than the amp. Of course, the caveat is that the speaker is the biggest wild card in the deck, so that should be the first component chosen (IMO). I feel that most of the time,'bad' sound is a result of a poor recording, not the equipment's fault. Mass-market budget gear from places like Best Buy and that ilk is the obvious exception. Anyway, one of the most fun parts of our hobby/obsession is swapping components and cables in the never-ending search for the Holy Grail. YMMV.
Amp vs Preamp which is more important?
I am considering changing my amp/preamp combination and as I think about budget, I am wondering if one of these components should get more focus. My other question is if these components, even separates can never be considered in isolation but are always part of a pair working together.
I thought there must be a thread on this, but I couldn't find it. Feel free to respond with it here and I will shut this thread down.
Thanks!