2. digital
  3. 161086-150037

High end stereo preamp vs mc preamp?

So thinking about spending $10-15k for a quality stereo preamp for bypass use with ht system. Have a middle of the road avr, which is now used as a preamp, which sounds fine for ht.

now wondering if a hi end ht preamp, 5 to 7 channels, exists that achieves a level of quality offered by a high end stereo preamp. Seems same level of spending toward a stereo preamp must provide opportunity to get an amazing ht preamp with a great stereo capability



emergingsoul
6 responses Add your response
emergingsoul OP
1,133 posts
 
I don’t use my chord tt2 dac’s volume control (not using headphones).  I do use streaming and don’t use phono or CD player.


antigrunge2
1,404 posts
 
If you look for digital playback, save your money and either buy a DAC with an analogue volume control or a passive attenuator. The Pre will only act as an attenuator given modern DACs’ high output voltage.
emergingsoul OP
1,133 posts
 
Someday when aliens arrive they will show us the way.

so happy I didn’t buy a $6k ht preamp.  Now I am planning to purchase a vastly more expensive stereo preamp.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
No such thing as high-end HT preamp. Expensive, yes. But high-end is defined not by price but by the quest for excellent sound quality.  

Sorry but I had to take a different tack because jond and soix already covered the obvious. You want good quality sound, you go 2 channel all the way. You want some noise to go with your movies, your AVR has you covered. 
soix
9,456 posts
 
Seems same level of spending toward a stereo preamp must provide opportunity to get an amazing ht preamp with a great stereo capability
+1 @jond — and no, spending the same on a prepro in general will get you lower parts quality for stereo as a lot of $ in the prepro needs to go toward electronics to handle processing and the other channels.  Plus you have a bunch of noisy digital electronics in the same box as the stereo signal, which is suboptimal.  If you’re happy with your HT as it is but want improved or optimal 2-channel performance, just get a stereo preamp — period. 

jond's avatar
jond
5,798 posts
 
The answer is no there is no multi-channel HT preamp that's going to sound as good as a stereo preamp. You could get a really good stereo preamp with a HT bypass and do multi-channel that way giving you the best of both worlds.
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