Best Tube PreAmp - McIntosh vs. Audio Research vs. VAC vs. Atma-Sphere
I’m in the market for a Stereo Tube Preamplifier for around $5k-8k in a used market. The reason I want a Tube PreAmp is because I love listening to Male Vocals with smooth velvety sound of Tube.
I will eventually be integrating it into a HT setup. When I’d Parasound Halo A51 5-channel Amp, I typically listened to Music 30% & watched movies 70% of the time. You never know but the % might change after I get the Tube PreAmp.
Source: Oppo BDP-105, Nakamichi RX-505 tape deck
Amplifier: Luxman m900u
Speakers: Tyler Acoustics Linbrook System II Floorstanding (89db, 8 ohms)
My question to you is which PreAmp would you recommend & why? I would prefer feedback from someone who has done some sort of comparison with atleast two of the following or similar type of PreAmps. I understand more you spend, more you get for your money. But I would prefer to stay at the lower spectrum of my price range than the higher.
Later on the plan is to build a HT system & will add Amp for surrounds & center.
@soix : I never thought about burning through tubes & how expensive it could be while video watching. @atmasphere : The MP1 is among the top 4 of my list. What's the life of various tubes in MP1, number of tubes/ models, and how expensive they're? Does certain tubes have to be replaced in set? |
First of all, I’ll be buying them used. Secondly, I’m flexible on the budget. I initially started with $2-3k.After experiencing buyers remorse with some the selections made in the past, years of research, etc. I’ve now stretched my budget to $10-12k. 😀😀 I don’t think I can go beyond that, but you never know. 😀 |
