2. amps-preamps
  3. 177699-5587

First Watt F8, passive preamp, DAC

The F8 is comparable to other First Watt amps in terms of wattage but the gain is only 15db. The Stereophile review says to be wary of using it with a DAC volume control and presumably a passive pre. Can anyone speak from experience? My speakers are Devore, 91db, 8 ohms, and I would like to control the F8 with my DAC. 

rfprice

Showing 4 responses by rfprice

rfprice OP
150 posts
 

Aha. Would it be 1.414 VRMS unbalanced? It's the PS Audio Directstream DAC. 

rfprice OP
150 posts
 

The DAC output is 100 ohm unbalanced, 200 ohm balanced. I guess that's pretty good. 

rfprice OP
150 posts
 

OK, the F8 isn't going to work. How about the J2 with 20 db gain? Do you think 20 db is sufficient?  don't want to get a preamp. My new mission is consolidation. I may need to either stick with integrateds or find speakers with higher efficiency. Frankly, the Super 9s are too big for my room anyway. 

rfprice OP
150 posts
 

@charles1dad 

Agreed, the F8 isn't going to cut it. Besides, I want an amp that's going to drive the speakers well, not just adequately.

 

How about a Valvet E2/E3? Those are rated only 12w and 21 db gain, and supposedly are very powerful. Still, the 1.4 vrms would be a concern. 

 

I've only had a single opportunity to try the volume output on the DAC. I fed it through the HT bypass on my integrated. The result was poor, both in power and sound quality, but this one test doesn't really prove anything. Still, a DAC as preamp will typically have more noise than a dedicated pre or integrated, right? 

More to discover