Preamp Suggestions

KrazyMofo24
KrazyMofo24 Posts: 1,210
edited April 2013 in 2 Channel Audio
I am looking for a preamp that will go well with my Vienna Acousts Mozarts Grand. I have a Parasound P/SP-1000 preamp which I want to upgrade from. They are being powered by a B&K ST-202 amp. I have a second system that I use for my PC which is the Haydn Grand's and a Cambridge Azur 550A v2. I recently moved the Cambridge to my main system to use as a preamp mainly because I wanted to be able to use a remote.

My goal is to find a great preamp for the Mozarts so I can put the Cambridge Integrated back. I don't have a set budget at the moment and just now started searching for preamps know that it seems I may get a promotion at my job soon which will finally allow to me to spend some money on audio again. :) I would say $1000 is the highest and willing to buy used.

So just wanted to see if anyone had some suggestions on preamps that'll pair well with my B&K and Mozarts and has a remote control since I will be using them for 2-channel, and movies/cable.
Setup:

2 Channel: Vienna Acoustics Mozart Grand, T+A P 1230R, Primare SPA21, Oppo BDP-105
PC: Vienna Acoustics Haydn Grand, Cambridge Azure 650A v2 , Peachtree iDAC, Denon DVD-3800BDCI

Post edited by KrazyMofo24 on
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Comments

  • falconcry72
    falconcry72 Posts: 3,580
    edited April 2013
    TUBES!!!:biggrin:

    My ARC (Audio Research Corporation) tubed pre was a big step up from the Parasound solid state pre I was using previously.

    Models to consider would be the LS-15 (no phono, both balanced and single-ended inputs and outputs) or the SP-16 (phono, only single-ended).

    Any BAT (Balanced Audio Technology) tubed pre would be good too.

    Good luck on the hunt, lots of good stuff out there!
    2-Channel: PC > Schiit Eitr > Audio Research DAC-8 > Audio Research LS-26 > Pass Labs X-250.5 > Magnepan 3.7's

    Living Room: PC > Marantz AV-7703 > Emotiva XPA-5 > Sonus Faber Liuto Towers, Sonus Faber Liuto Center, Sonus Faber Liuto Bookshelves > Dual SVS PC12-Pluses

    Office: Phone/Tablet > AudioEngine B1 > McIntosh D100 > Bryston 4B-ST > Polk Audio LSiM-703's
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  • NJPOLKER
    NJPOLKER Posts: 3,474
    edited April 2013
    You can thank me later if you buy a Anthem PRE2L

    Find one in excellent condition then spend maybe two to four hundred on NOS tubes. Then when you can replace the stock capacitors with a pair of high quality caps and you will send me a big thank you e-mail.

    The reason I say this is I did this and my PRE2L pre-amp is a giant killer. I have about a grand in it and could not be more happy. Oh yeah it also has a remote which is not the best but does work.

    Good luck
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  • bobsauto49
    bobsauto49 Posts: 973
    edited April 2013
    NJPOLKER wrote: »
    I did this and my PRE2L pre-amp is a giant killer. I have about a grand in it and could not be more happy.

    What is a giant killer? Jack from the Bean Stalk?

    By the way,to the op,3 great selections! Although,because of a small bias,I agree with Falcon very much so:cheesygrin:
    "Everything I ever did in my life worthwhile I caught hell for"
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  • polkfarmboy
    polkfarmboy Posts: 5,703
    edited April 2013
    There is a Candela tube pre in the flea market
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  • KrazyMofo24
    KrazyMofo24 Posts: 1,210
    edited April 2013
    Thanks for the suggestions so far. Definitely planning on upgrading in a couple months but want to go ahead and start researching models and hopefully will make a good choice. I have only been able to hear an Audio Research Tube preamp in person and it sounded amazing. So that is definitely a brand I'm going to keep an eye on. I'm also going to start looking at the BAT's and the Anthem's preamps as well.

    Dskip my mistake I moved my messages to the archives awhile back and just realized that it still counts against the 70 message limit. I just cleared room.
    Setup:

    2 Channel: Vienna Acoustics Mozart Grand, T+A P 1230R, Primare SPA21, Oppo BDP-105
    PC: Vienna Acoustics Haydn Grand, Cambridge Azure 650A v2 , Peachtree iDAC, Denon DVD-3800BDCI

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  • RamZet
    RamZet Posts: 792
    edited April 2013
    I like B&K. You already have some B&K gear.
    Try the B&K ref 30. This guy will make you happy. Ref 50 is dope too.
    Used on ebay is about 250-500.
    B&W CM9Classé Sigma
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