2. amps-preamps
  3. 151763-96791

New Preamp arrived....

So a few short hours ago my Quicksilver Line Stage Preamp arrived. It will be replacing a Schiit SYS passive that was bought to be able to implement the first piece of the puzzle, the power amp, and be able to sell my cheapo integrated.

its been 20 months since the power amp arrived so today was super exciting.
I hook it all up (and reverse the speaker connections as it says it inverts phase) and...

Well its every bit as clean and clear as the Schiit. Bass is a little better. The volume knob can actually be turned further to get as loud as the Schiit which was surprising. The treble has some sizzle on the very top end which I’m assuming will work itself out over time. Not much different in the bass department.

My fear going in was it’d sound the same which would add a heavy dose of buyer’s remorse ($1300 vs $50). It’s got the stock JJ 12AT7 tubes and I have a pair of NOS RCA black plates coming next week.

So what kinds of things can I expect for the first few days/weeks?
gochurchgo

Showing 2 responses by atmasphere

atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,633 posts
 
My vinyl setup is so much better! Ballsy sound for the most part. Would this indicate the active preamp is exposing the DAC (Topping D30) to be thin?
@gochurchgo

Yes. This is a common comment vis a vis analog vs digital. The Topping is great for the bucks but analog shows it up pretty fast.


You've probably had people tell you this but its a bit tricky to get good bass with the speakers on the long wall as you have in your room. It looks like the short walls are out of the question so if you want more punch move the speakers as close to the wall as you can- that will allow the room boundary to help you out on the bottom end, but you may run into troubles with the soundstage. Like I said- tricky.
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,633 posts
 
Warmup and break-in are essential with any active preamp.

You can't take it seriously for the first 20 minutes or so and it really will need an hour or two to sound right (our preamps take about an hour). If its all going well you should hear across the board improvements over any passive control.
More to discover