VT-100 MkII matches best with what preamp? HELP

I've tried several preamps with a VT50 that is similar in sound to the VT100, but lower in power. The Placette passive worked quite well as a budget choice if you use short, low capacitance cables. Transparency and resolution were high points here since the ARC equipment also excels in these areas. I know that it's a heresy of competitive brand mixtures, but a Conrad Johnson preamp (e.g., Premier 17) also worked quite well when I tried it. Other solid state preamps I tried lost some of the tube magic in the midrange and soundstage, so you might want to stay with a clean, high resolution tube preamp with good bass to keep the specific assets of this wonderful power amp.

Hi there!

I'm using ARC LS15 with VT100 MkII. Sounds very good. LS15 requires XLR (Balanced) interconnect to connect to the 'direct' input/output.

ARC LS25 and ARC Reference will be even better

Other recommendations that make a big difference to your system:
1)use 'Svetlana' valves 6550C and 'Russian' for smaller valves
2)Also I'd suggest you to use NBS Master III cable. It is relatively expensive but makes a big difference. Or at least Cardas Golden Cross. Do not use Audioquest.

Good luck!

Hello. Nice choices. I noticed another person mentioned the ARC SP9MkIII - I've had one for nine years - with a D125 tube hybrid amp (which does sound quite like your VT100MkII - I auditioned this extensively a few years ago, and found the overall musical picture similar, although your amp has a shade more detail and transparency). The pre-amp has been utterly reliable and has a fantastic phono stage. Some units have a remote too. I also tried the LS15 and that was good too - again no signficant improvement on the SP9MkIII, but it does come standard with a remote.

All the best.

First off, you have great synergy with ProAc and the ARC VT100 MKII. I have been a ProAc fan for years and have used a VT100MKII with 4 different pairs of the ProAc Response series speakers including the Response 3.8 and now the D80. I would agree with the others here that have recommended an ARC tubed preamp. I personally use an ARC Refererence 2 MKI which is a fantastic match for ProAc and the VT100. Of course you might want to spend less for a preamp but any of the ARC preamps would probably be a good choice depending on the price and whether or not you want remote control. Tube rolling also makes a difference and I use the same tubes in my Ref 2 that Woodburger uses for his LS5. I would also suggest that you use the balanced inputs of the VT100MKII since it sounds better that way in my opinion. Therefore I would look for a preamp that has balanced outputs like the LS25, LS5, or the Reference series. Good luck.