Do I need a Pre-amp?

R

Reptar42

New Member
Hi - I recently purchased a Dennis Had Inspire HO Power Amplifier - it is an "HO" Hot Rod model. It can take many types of Power Tubes i.e. 6V6, KT88, 7581A etc and different Rectifier tubes. I have been having a lotof fun with it trying a few different Power tubes and a different Rectifier tube.

I don't have a manual for it as I don't think they ever come with one, I bought mine used online.

Right now I have my Lavry DAC with adjustable Volume plugged into it and it sounds great. Dennis Had also makes pre-amplfiers.

I am trying to determine if I should get a pre-amp that I would plug my DAC into and then the Pre-Amp into the Power Amp. Any advantages to having the Pre-Amp? Thoughts, recommendations are appreciated! Thanks for any help in advance.

Regards
Steve
 
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I have several tube amps with volume controls on them. I've found that some sources like a Smart phone, etc., don't have enough gain to drive the amp to full output. So a preamp helps. Usually sources like CD players tend to have plenty of gain. If you want a five tone controls you might look into the Shiite Loki. It has had a bypass switch too. You can also buy a simple volume control with multiple inputs in a nice little box. I bought one and it works well.
 
You sorta know if you need a preamp if you need to turn up the volume up all the way on your input device, but it still isn't loud enough. This assumes you aren't over driving your power amp into clipping under that condition.
 
If you play vinyl at all you'll need a phono preamp anyway. I suspect you don't or you would have mentioned it.

Some DACs have multiple inputs, so if yours does, it can do the source-selection job already.
 
I have owned several Inspire amps and IME/O they work better with the extra gain of a preamp. I asked Dennis and was told that he designs them to be used with a preamp.
 
Other than what has already been mentioned, the only thing a pre-amp might offer is bass/treble tone controls. But some pre-amps omit them and some people never touch them even when they have them.
 
rothwellaudio said:
Not an opinion that's very popular with the purists. In fact, most audiophiles eschew tone controls entirely.
Click to expand...

that is most probably because tone controls get a bad rap....mainly I believe due to misunderstanding, incorrect advise, negative marketing and sometimes just downright BS!
If the tone controls are properly designed, such as the Baxandall tone control circuit (as used in our preamp), they form an invaluable part of pretty much any stereo setup. No two room and speaker layouts are the same. A lot of recordings are mediocre, so having tone controls will enable the user to tweak the sound to get the best listening experience.
 
OP: Welcome to AK.

I own an Inspire “Fire Bottle” SE Stereo Tube Amplifier HO.

If you're realizing adequate gain, adequate dynamics, and you don't need to switch inputs or play LPs, then tone controls are the only other reason IMO you would need a pre-amp.

Factors that affect whether you realize adequate volume level include the genre of music, the format of the recording, the output level of your DAC, the sensitivity of the speakers, size of listening room, and how loud you listen.

A lot of pop music is highly compressed and recorded at maximum volume level so that it stands out when played on the radio. OTOH, modern hi-res recordings of large scale classical music typically aren't compressed, and the quiet passages are MUCH softer than a pop recording.

I usually connect my Inspire amp directly to an Oppo UDP-205 universal player (i.e., no pre-amp). If I play a recording of big band music (or any music that has little dynamic range), there is adequate volume level. OTOH, if I play a hi-res recording of classical music, there isn't enough gain unless I adjust the "trim level" of the Oppo's output for the front L&R channels to the maximum level (IIRC +10dB).

With my Klipsch RF-7II (sensitivity 101dB), my Inspire “Fire Bottle” SE Stereo Tube Amplifier HO equipped with 6L6GC (my favorite) has adequate dynamics for small-scale music such as a string quartet, but not for a large-scale orchestra.

Bottom line, if you don't need to switch inputs or play LPs, and you're realizing adequate gain and adequate dynamics, and you're satisfied with the tonal balance, then I don't think you'd benefit from a pre-amp.
 
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