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ARC Reference 2 MkII Preamp white noise levels

Hi,
Just acquired a Ref2 MII preamp. The level of white noise is much higher than my BAT VK-50SE. It does not change with volume setting and is definitely not the amp noise. By muting and unmuting the preamp, you can discern the difference. The noise is quite audible from the listening position 8 feet away. For those who have this preamp, is the noise characteristic? Could it be the tubes? The difference between the BAT and ARC is remarkable. Thanks- William
classicjazz
loonytunz's avatar
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loonytunz
164 posts
 
I'm not too certain about any plug in gadgets to correct the problem. I wouldn't doubt you could Google up some sort of pad to plug in between your pre & amp.

I assume you are using the balanced outputs on the ARC? The specs state that the output impedance halves at the single ended outputs. If you have some adaptors to go SE, it might be worth a try to see if that helps.
jshaw1004
53 posts
 
To confirm whether reducing preamp gain will help, you can do a quick test by using SE (RCA) output from Ref 2, if you are using balanced IC right now. The Ref 2 SE output (12db) has a lower gain then balanced (18db). However, if you have in-line attenuators, you can place it in between preamp and power amp to confirm it as well. It's working on my system (Pass X-600+ARC Ref 2 MK1) to reduce the noise floor (humm) quite a few. Hope this helps...
jeffreyfranz's avatar
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jeffreyfranz
42 posts
 
Well, 1K input Z, as soon asI saw that...this is the most likely problem. Too low for getting the best performance with ARC tubes.
Good luck,
JT
classicjazz OP
153 posts
 
Actually the input is 10K Ohms, the balanced output is 440 Ohms for a 22x ratio...

I tried to track down the tech support agent at ARC but he was tied up. I'll try again Monday. Thanks all for your help.
reb1208
518 posts
 
The ARC uses tubes in the power supply, the Bat is SS power supply. There is your answer.
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