I have the Starkrimson and it's paired with a Holo pre. I really like it and I think it' may be as neutral sounding as you can get. A friend has the same amp and is using a Black Ice pre and he love's that as well. He's driving Cornwalls. Basically I think that if you get a good quality pre you should be ok.
Preamp for a GaN-FET amp...
Hello everyone... I'm thinking of replacing my Belles Aria Integrated for a GaN-Fet amp. I would have preferred to purchase an integrated GaN-Fet, but they are either too expensive or of questionable quality. I therefore resign myself to opting for an amp/preamp combo. My question is the following :
Which preamp do you recommend for a GaN-Fet amp?
I haven't made my choice yet, but the only GaN-Fet amp within my reach is the Starkrimson (used). Please note that if I opt for GaN-Fet, it is to avoid tubes, so I would prefer a preamp WITHOUT tube (and not a class A).
My speakers are Altec 620A (100 db efficiency) and I mainly listen to digital sources through a Metrum DAC. I also sometimes listen to records on my Garrard 401... That's basically why I need a preamp.
Note: the Belles Aria Integrated is a superb machine with astonishing sound, but I'm looking for an amp whose midrange is as good as a tube. The Altec don't do any favors and they are a little harsh in the midrange, especially at high volume. For those who would like to understand what I am trying to express by "as good as a tube", I suggest you listen to this interview with Ralph Karsten who explains the limits of transistors much better than me.
Thank you ! 😎
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In you price range I would look for a Wyred4Sound STP preamp, it is passive to a point and can be upgraded, even their mPre is supposed to be good preamp. I owned one for a while, loved it, very neutral. I just did what you are doing, I wanted to get away from tubes so I became a beta tester for the new PS Audio Stellar Gold preamp and Dac, the preamp is as good or better than the BHK that is is replacing and does not have any tube hiss. I also sold my PSA M1200 mono amps and bought Leos dual mono Ultra top model amp, it sounds as good as the M1200's, again no tube hiss |
If you do not want a preamp to adjust the sound, then the Serene and Benchmark LA4 are the best I have found for that role. I would be interested to see Guttenberg review the new Schitt Mjolnir preamp. I have that and I like it for the Class A color it gives to my headphones. I wonder how it compares to something like the ModWright LS99 that was mentioned in the review. |
Jason Stoddard of Schiit Audio posted this on Head-Fi (link): I don’t know if it’s actually true, but it makes sense to me. A preamp handles low level signals and there is no concern for issues such as heat generation. Class A is the simplest, most direct circuit design and running in any other class would make it much more complicated with only disadvantages. |
My GaN amp is a LSA Voyager GaN 350. My preamp of ~ 3 years is an Audio Alchemy DDP-1(pre/dac!) + PS 5 outboard power supply. Excellent match. I saw one for sale on US Audio for $1250, which IMO is a bargain, especially since the it and the amp have XLR inputs and outputs. Hurry as they rarely come on the used market. Do a search for it and find a review which is quite thorough HTH |
