2. amps-preamps
  3. 1026480619

Spectral DMC 12, 20 or 30 preamp?

My next upgrade is a spectral preamp. The DMC - 12 sounds very nice in my system (Thiel 1.6, Mcormack dna 0.5 or Golden tube se 40 (I swap these alot), arcam alpha 7 cd (will be upgrading soon, maybe to a rotel), MIT cable).

The DMC 20 used is more money, as is the 30. I'm wondering if anyone can expand on the sonic differences are between these? One of my priorities is bass - midbass, thiels have nothing in the low end, but the midbass is very nice on them. The less money I spend on this, the more is available to a power amp. Flip side is I'll be living with this for awhile, so the better I have, the happier I'll be.
robertd

Showing 2 responses by sean

sean
6,231 posts
 
Bear, it is both pretty funny and amazing how using the exact same parts but in a different layout on a board can get you very different results, isn't it ? Since i work with RF for a living, which can be EXREMELY layout sensitive due to impedance changes and circuit stability, i found this out a LONG time ago. I don't think that most audio designers / engineers pay attention to such things. In my opinion this could be the difference between a good product and a TRULY great one. Sean
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sean
6,231 posts
 
Bear, have you ever seen the insides of a Spectral ? I know that this may sound "insane" to some people ( especially at this price level ), but do they use ribbon cable in any of their designs ? As to their sonics, i would agree with your assessment i.e. very fast and clean but lacking in warmth and body. Sean
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