Preamp to Match Odyssey Stratos

You either need to use a tube preamp or a passive with the Stratos. I have used the stereo Stratos and then upgraded to the monos. Have tried several SS and tube preamps. The best match I have found so far is the Music Reference RM-5. I have also heard great things about the Musical Designs 2B as a good match with SS amps. I also have an Anthem Pre-2l and it works fine especially with NOS tubes and you get the extra benifit of a remote.

check out the audible illusions preamps. they mate well with ss amps. not terribly expensive and quite a few on the used market. i use an ai l1 linestage with a mccormack DNA1 and am very happy with it. i would definitely go with a tubed preamp. hope this helps

Hi, I wanted to touch on something JackD stated. He said he heard that the Musical Designs SP2B worked well with ss amps. I haven't heard the Odyssey, but did a head-to-head comparison between the Musical Design and Rogue Audio 66 preamps. While the MD was very clean, it was very dry and etched sounding compared to the stock Rogue (even after I did some tube rolling with the MD). In fact, I wanted to like the MD better, but ended up purchasing the Rogue. I have now had it upgraded to the magnum version, and with some tube rolling, it is not even a close contest -- the Rogue stomps all other preamps in its price range (and I've compared it to quite a few -- Conrad Johnson PV10AL, Golden Tube SEP1SE, Musical Design, Cary -- don't remember the model -- and VTL 2.5, just to name a few). Good luck and let us know what you decide.

I have been using a 777ES Sony CD directly into the Stratos and it sounds very nice. If you are looking for the cleanest way to your signal and you don't require a preamp, then you can try a cd player with a variable output. It has enough gain to power the ever so hungry Platinum Solos I just purchased, to fairly loud levels. I also was using the Musical design 2b with the stratos but needed the money for the speakers so I sold it. It sounded very good with the amp. I will purchase something in the future maybe the Tempest if Klaus can get the time to make one. He is too backed up with his amp orders coming in left and right, due mostly to mine and other peoples recommendations. I am tempted to try his Tempest, though I think Klaus leans a little bit more towards the solid state and tube combination philosophy.

Check ot the Blue Circle BC-21.