Are higher end preamps worth the investment when you are only streaming Tidal & Spotify ?


Amp: Modwright 150SE

Speakers: Aerial Acoustics 7T

Streamer/DAC/ : NAD C658

With the goal of achieving higher fidelity, would a 10k -12k MSRP preamplifier be overkill when you only stream from Tidal or Spotify? Do higher end preamplifier applications mostly apply to vinyl and /or high end transports vs subscription streaming?

 

 

 

puffbojie

Showing 1 response by ghdprentice

Qobuz (best) and Tidal can sound as good as CDs, stored files or vinyl given the right system. The sound you get is really dependent on all your components. 
 

Your system is a sum of its parts. I have found that with careful choices topically an optimal system will have all components with roughly similar investments… so streamer = DAC = Preamp = amp.

That said, if I were going to invest more in something it would typically be the preamp. It really is pivotal in setting up the sound.