Recommendations for HT processor with HT bypass

@lorenc1
You will need an analog stereo preamp that has HT bypass not the other way around. So this HT bypass input on the stereo analog preamp simply would bypass volume control and internal audio circuitry in the stereo preamp and use the volume control on your Integra AV processor when you're using your Integra processor for HT use. 

O'm not sure if your SAS Audio tube preamp has a HT bypass input or not. If your analog stereo preamp has HT bypass input, you can connect your Integra professor's front channels (LR) output to this HT bypass input on the analog stereo preamp. So for HT use you simply control the volume from your Integra processor, But you still need yo turn on your stereo preamp. 

And for stereo music playbacks from your CD player and phonostage/turntable you simply control the volume on the stereo analog preamp and you don't even have to turn on your Integra processor. 

Does that make sense to you? 

Yeah @caphill has it right. You have it backwards. Even if your stereo pre doesn’t have a HT bypass, just hooking up the front L/R outputs from your prepro to an unused line input on your stereo pre is all that’s required. Set the balance for multichannel with the prepro hooked to your stereo pre so that 12:00 on the stereo pre balances with your multichannel setup (12:00 only because it's easily and pretty accurately repeatable by eye) and you’re done. Really, that’s it.

The bottom line is this -- for 2-channel listening the prepro is completely out of the loop and ONLY the stereo components are involved in playback. It’s a wonderful thing really. All you have to do is change the input on the stereo pre and your system switches completely from multichannel to a pure 2-channel system. If this is still confusing or seems impossible, just ask. It’s not an intuitively obvious thing. The only downside if you don’t have a HT bypass on your stereo pre is that when you switch from multichannel to stereo you need to turn the volume back down from 12:00 so the volume doesn’t blow you out of your chair. If you have a HT bypass this is a non-issue.

From my Bryston amp I use the balanced connections for my surround processor and the RCA's for my tube preamp. All I do is hit the switch on the amp for music or movies. Don't waste tube life on the preamp as most HT pass through's require the preamp to be on.