2. amps-preamps
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Eastern Electric Mini Max vs AE-3 DJH preamps

I've been looking around for a good tube preamp for some time. I've looked at new and used on Audiogon and on E-bay and wanted to keep the price around $1000. I keep coming back to these two, Eastern Electric Mini Max and AE-3 DJH. Their price new is about $1100 and I've read some good reviews on both. Any opinions about these two preamps? I need some help making up my mind.

I will also be looking for a 200 w/ch SS amp to go with one of them, if anyone has any suggestions.

thanks
winggo

Showing 3 responses by mingles

mingles
800 posts
 
What are AE-3 DJH owners using for amps? What works well and what doesn't??
mingles
800 posts
 
I've had the DJH for a few days and absolutely love the sound. I was expecting to hear some bloat (like I did with a standard AE-3), but I've heard nothing of the sort. Apparently, they have different circuit designs. The DJH is direct coupled rather than capacitor coupled. The presentation is sweet without being overly warm.

I'm concerned about the 20 dB of gain. My ASL amps have a sensitivity of 1.0v which will probably limit my volume control to under 9 or 10 o'clock. The amps are being rebuilt right now, so I haven't had a chance to verify this. Has anyone else had a problem with the high gain? If so, what did you do?
mingles
800 posts
 
Mjcmt, thanks for that testimony. The more I hear about Pass amps, the more I'm inclined to check one out. Diehard tube fans swear they sound smooth. The thought of not fussing with power tubes is appealing.

I really love the DJH. I bought it as a stop-gap measure, but discovered how nice it sounds. It's definitely a keeper. I dealt with the gain issue by using Rothwell in-line attenuators. Thanks again. -Mark
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