OK, most audiophiles would say I shouldn't need tone controls, but I have a good system that plays QUALITY recordings beatifully, so much that it makes me not even want to listen to many of my 70's & 80's stuff. This comprises the largest part of my collection. So I've been looking at McIntosh preamps...great tone controls/equalizers, etc. Any others out there of audiophile quality???
The Accuphase Pre-amps are just the thing. I had the C-2850 which has not just bass/treble controls but also a loudness compensator. To this I also had the DG-58 Voicing Equalizer, these units go together like peas and carrots. Working as one this may be one of the best solutions around for room correction and sound wave tailoring. Using the HS-Link to hook them together and everything stays digital, along with an A/D section that is truly top notch, mated to a world class D/A section. The problem is price, but if you find a used C-2800 and DG-48 I am sure you will be more than satisfied.
If the OP is talking about 70's and 80's vinyl, I use a different cartridge (or stylus if I'm in a MM mood) for my older stuff that is of less than desirable quality. It is preferable to me because I'm very happy with my preamp on good quality recordings. Room acoustics are the same for both types of LPs. For instance if I've got my Shure V15 mounted, would use a SAS stylus for well recorded LPs in good condition; but switch to a HE stylus for those with more surface noise or too sharp on the high end. The MR seems to bring out more bass when needed. Just another approach you might be able to try.
This may not be an option, but here is what I’ve done. Since I purchased a new amp, minor things like noise really stands out ( zu omen def speakers). Before, I had a Pioneer EQ in my chain for night time listening ( minor low end boost...mainly used as a loudness switch). With the new amp, however, the EQ is a hissy noise machine. When I hit the EQ bypass switch, everything becomes quiet and pitch black. I took the EQ out of the chain altogether. The new amp has better bass than previous amp. Low and behold, the Bluesound Node and Roon both have tone controls within their apps under settings. Plus, the node has an analog in, so I plugged my oppo into that. The sound is really good and I can switch on and off as needed. If you do mostly hi Rez, streaming or Roon, there is an option within their apps.
Many options out there, but i've heard the octave Hp700 in which it's an option & The AVM ovation 8 series pre. Both are very good, although the HP700 is expensive but top notch stuff.
FWIW, I bought a used McIntosh C220 tube preamp from Audio Classics in 2010. I remain very pleased with this preamp. I rarely use the tone controls, but they are well implemented and defeatable. Finding a preamp with all the features of a Mac is possible, but few offer all the features, like a balance control, remote, tape loop, etc. My only criticism is that it is needlessly difficult to remove the case cover, and the strain of long ICs from the preamp to the amp killed one of the three pairs of main RCS output jacks. Not a big deal, I just switched to another output. But I would suggest supporting the ICs so as to relive the strain from the output jacks, like I did.
Tone controls notwithstanding and as a tube example, I've heard the A21 paired with a Conrad Johnson PV-10BL and it sounded great. A bit high on the gain but otherwise excellent. Switching from an SS preamp really warmed up the tone nicely.
Thanks for the tip audioman58! Spread Spectrum stuff is very notable gear, never thought to look there. There are so many brands, ya know...can't think to check them all. I will take a look!
Depending depending on your Budget .The Ampzilla,and Son of Ampzilla Spread Spectrum Technologies .the Ambrosia, is one of the preamps . the late great designer Jim Borgiano ,believed all preamps should be able to adjusted to compensate for recordings as well as taste. These preamplifier do a fantastic job of that. Just look up the reviews .
I'm currently using the NAD C-352 integrated as my preamp, lot of flexibility, but it definitely feels like it's holding back all my Halo A21 amp has to offer. What I really need is to try boths preamps I truly want in my home, the McIntosh C-50/52 and the C-2500. But I don't know how to do this without paying some restocking fee or more shipping costs.
To be fair, a large part of is that I just don’t listen to that many preamps anymore! :) :) :)
The P7 is not perfect. The output of the Mytek Brooklyn direct to amps is better by a smidgen. What the P7 is for me is a good compromise for a combined HT/music system, at a reasonable price.
But yeah, parts quality matters a great deal to me, especially compared to the P5.
I started really looking at the P7 and I can see why Erik continues to recommend this time after time in multiple threads -- as a good priced preamp. In this budget area, I would choose the P7 over the P5 or 2100 every time, even though you don’t need 7 channels!
P7 has an extremely good linear power supply architecture (which is core to sound quality in my opinion). It uses resistor ladder circuits for volume control.
P5 and the 2100 looks to have switching power supply and uses a carbon film or plastic film potentiometer for volume control. Local power supply filtering for analog circuits is also not as good as P7.
The Class CP-800 is going to be a much better preamp than P7, but significantly more expensive too. Both the P7 and CP-800 are towards the high resolution transparent character, so they would not be "softening" your sound.
If you want a softening effect, McIntosh is the way to go. The NAD c165Bee might also be a good option as I have read NAD tends to be on the slightly warm side.
Be careful with tube preamps as tube devices could easily go into a way different sonic signature, such as being chimey or lush or bloomy. This is an entirely new area of personal preference where I don’t have any experience, so I cannot comment.
What is your source/DAC? Are you listening to vinyl or CD? Sometimes a soft/messy preamp can seem to sound harsh, where a very clean/transparent preamp can improve overall clarity and remove harshness. An inadequate power supply in preamp can also cause it to sound shouty and harsh. It also depends on system synergy and can be influenced by other things such as interconnects and speaker cables.
A friend owns one of the gigantic Vincent integrateds (SV 236) which Fremer reviewed some years ago, and it's a beast of 150 watts per side with tubes in the preamp stage (seen through a little window)…cute. Sounds great, and I've seen these listed for under a grand…makes any NAD seem like a relative (or actual) lightweight.
There are many preamp out there with bass/treble controls. Some of the Vincents do have them. Don't know which NAD integrated you have but NAD c165Bee preamp has controls and is pretty decent. It's very detailed and neutral but some may consider that clinical and dry. I've owned one for a couple of years and like it.
+ to the Luxman preamps thier ( most of the good ones) tone controls have cut off freq as well so you can tailor the frequency you want to cut or boost leaving the rest alone.
Yes, I have the 802s, all drivers are in great shape. I bought the Parasound Halo A21 under many recommendations. Very happy with it! Currently using an NAD integrated amp for the preamp. It has tone controls, is probably the last item stopping total sound refinement. I agree that 70s and 80s music is the golden age...at least for me. Thus the desire for tone controls to correct room acoustics and poor recordings. The Parasound J2 would be my first choice if it had tone controls. I am looking for that level of quality, but used from Agon/ebay, or store demo pricing. I haven't seen tone controls on Vincents either, which model/s? Classe CP800 also has them but I'm not very fond of how those look...too retro-futuristic, allhough great performance and quality. I like the idea of trying a tube preamp to soften, a bit, the sound of my entirely solid state system.
I found somewhere you have B&W Matrix 802 which should be absolutely fine unless you have a very undamped room or the speaker has developed a problem - is the tweeter Ferrofluid dried out or could a driver be damaged and distorting?
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