Stepped Attenuators vs Quality Pots
ambiophonics
Posts: 726
I threw together a passive pre w/ home theater bypass the other day out of some old parts I had laying around to see if it really made a difference in my setup. Nothing too fancy, just an old radioshack project box, some rca's, volume pot, and a switch. I like the way it sounds, in fact it cleared up some imaging problems I was having but I'm curious about using a higher quality stepped attenuator and building a more presentable solution. Anyone have any experience with this? It seems like the only place to get a reasonably price stepped attenuator is Hong Kong. The one I'm thinking about is made by Valab and is 50K stereo log.
2 Channel - Polk SDA-2BTL, Carver TFM-35, Peachtree iDAC, Qobuz streamed via Episode Lynk using bubble UPnP server
Comments
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“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.” ~ Mark Twain
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IMO, running passive seems to lift a veil off the music, subtle, but noticeable. I have a placette RVC that uses vishay resistors. I ran my benchmark dac in preamp mode for about 1.5 yrs, and ended up going back to the placette (glad it didn't sell) for volume control. It immediately projected a wider/deeper and "airer" (is that a word?) soundstage that I had been missing. Mind you the BM is no slouch as a preamp, but the placette just ticks it up one more notch.Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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"....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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Those look incredible. Seems you can spend an awful lot of money real fast on a stepped attenuator.EndersShadow wrote: »
2 Channel - Polk SDA-2BTL, Carver TFM-35, Peachtree iDAC, Qobuz streamed via Episode Lynk using bubble UPnP server -
ambiophonics wrote: »Those look incredible. Seems you can spend an awful lot of money real fast on a stepped attenuator.EndersShadow wrote: »
Yup, their passive pre-amp kit with remote volume is one I'd LOVE to own lol...
Another option for you would be this board...
http://www.tortugaaudio.com/product/ldr3x-v2-1/
"....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963) -
Well now you've got me pricing all the components for the LDR lol.2 Channel - Polk SDA-2BTL, Carver TFM-35, Peachtree iDAC, Qobuz streamed via Episode Lynk using bubble UPnP server
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Perhaps an easier solution would be to perfectly match the source, amp, and speakers so that they play at only one ideal volume level with no adjustment at all.
2 Channel - Polk SDA-2BTL, Carver TFM-35, Peachtree iDAC, Qobuz streamed via Episode Lynk using bubble UPnP server -
My Placette runs $1000, but can be found typically on audiogon for half that used. It's remote controlled, and has 256 steps of volume control---which lets you tweak the level just right. Another major plus is that it always presents the same input impedance to the amp--regardless of level; this equals extreme linearity, and isn't possible with a rotary volume control.Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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Axiom also makes a cheaper passive preamp and will build the inputs to the specs of your gear.
But no remote for it. That's where goldpoint, the placette and the khozomo options are better but cost more for it."....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
