Looking for Tuner/Preamp combo


Hi,

For a second system that will send sound throughout the house.

My criteria are: 1. Cheap (under $500 new or used), and 2. full-function remote.

I've considered the Adcom GTP-502 or GTP-506 (latter is not cheap enough unless I get lucky) and the B&K PT3. Does anyone have experience with these?

Are there other units available that I can consider?

I do see a lot of older AV pre-amps for sale cheap (local dealer has a Nakamichi and a Rotel RTC-970 on sale for $200 and $300 respectively), because that stuff gets outdated so fast. Will all those extra features get in the way of a music-only system?

Thanks!

- Eric
ehart
Someone here recommended a Hafler 945 to me, so I went out and found one. Its a remote controlled preamp/tuner that delivers great sound, has defeatable tone controls and costs about $200 used. I would recommend you find one of these, but the only thing is that there is only 1 set of outputs so if you are feeding many amplifiers you may need to think about it a little. Good luck.
Hi Eric,

I have owned an NAD 1600 preamp/tuner combo. I enjoyed it very much. Not much for sound stage compared to a good stand alone preamp, but very good tone. Comes with a remote. Matches NAD monitor series amplifiers and receivers for cosmetics.

Regards,
Paul
I have a Harmon Kardon Citation preamp and tuner (the model numbers are 21, 23, or 25...I forget which and I'm at work). The preamp is remote controlled and has a ton of useful features. It's not the MOST transparent (compared to my Pass), but it does sound good and it's very well made (it was around $900 new in the early 90s). The tuner is also very well made and it sounds great. Both units stacked are probably the same height as one normal preamp (5"-6" high). I'm pretty sure that I'm going to be selling them, but I haven't done any pricing yet. Let me know if you're interested and I can give you more details.

With the exception of the above, I haven't had any experience with other pre/tuner combos in that price range.
Eric, i don't see any problem with using an older AV tuner / preamp for a "whole house" type of system. The reason that i say this is that you're not going to be able to get the ultimate in fidelity due to the length of wire runs and (probably) the type of speakers that you'll end up using. Most "decent" components would be up to that specific type of task ( in my opinion ).

I would think more about the amplifier, its' ability to drive multiple speakers, some type of speaker distribution network and the cabling that you will use. Sean
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