Passive preamp vs. powered

this hobby is very subjective. i own a passive and three active tube preamps. i won't say one is superior to another. rather they sound different.

there is too much hype and so-called knowledge expressed which is unjustified.

just listen and make your own decisions. this dictum applies to other issues in audio as well as the subject of the thread.

implied in mmany of the comments so far is that a is better than b. so many times this position has been taken --opinion assumed, but there has been no statements(s) as to what constitutes "better". having both active and passive preamps, i would refute the statement that actives are "better" than passives, since better is what i think is better. any comments ?

by the way generalizations are usually wrong in all aspects of life..

hi ralph:

i appreciate your specifics--denotation and connotation, of what better is. however, as audio is one of many aesthetic endeavors of life, opinion is the final arbiter.

if i say it is beter its is better for me, but perhaps not better for you. you can choose objective criteria. hwoever, within that arbitrary context which is not knowledge, someone else may create other objective criteria which disagrees with your assertions. thus, it is still a matter of opinion.