Pre + Power amps on $500 budget. Which?
- Thread starter 34dean
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lattiboy
Well-Known Member
I would recommend a used Crown power amp (XTI or XLS) and a DAC/pre like the Maverick Audio D1+. You could get both for under $500 and be set for some time.....
I’m pretty far into this hobby and that’s my setup. Couldn’t be happier.
I have both and they are great preamps. Both will require a few updates to sound fantastic. I also have a 535 power amp.
The C2 has a fragile balance pot. You can read all about it over on the kenwood manufacturer forum. Plus many posted updates to make this a great preamp.
For the hafler 101, some don't like the RCA jacks and switches. I haven't had a problem.
I like both and you can improve them with a few choice updates. Lucky for you, each preamp has a huge following on AK and have great restore/update threads.
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Spe@kerBox
Addicted Member
Yes, outstanding phono stage!
The Hafler amps and possibly some others mentioned here are MOSFET which I have found I really love the detail and balance of. I have a Sumo Polaris MOSFET that was under $200 shipped. For a pre, I'm using a Rotel RC1070, which seems very clean and was also under $200 shipped. The combo drives my efficient Klipsch kg4.2s very well with 100 wpc. This gear is really a step up from the mass-market stuff (not to trash anything else mentioned in this thread). Especially on the amp side, I found it was a quantum leap over the vintage silver faced receivers I had been listening to. Just make sure you don't go sideways, there is a lot of sky overhead.
Great suggestion for digital but there's no phono stage in the Xiang Sheng ..
And it has far more gain than most amps need ...
It's a good sounding piece, but mine is sitting in the corner because I haven't come across an amp that requires that much gain.
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Good stuff. I currently have a Luxman R-1070 and wonder how much better the performance/sound would be from decent separates.
Superphon was a bargain and a legend when it was new specifically because of it's phono stage ..
The fact that it sells today for as much, or more than it did when new, says a lot about it's qualities ..
It can be beaten but only with carefully chosen, and typically, far more expensive gear .. and it's worthy of fine cartridges, turntables and amps..
A lot better ..
More flexibility, too. When my garage-system receiver gave up the ghost, I replaced it with separates. If one my “A” home system components fails, needs service, etc. I just pull its counterpart from the garage to fill in temporarily. Thing is, it sounds so darn good out there now, my spouse threatens to have a missing-person report filed on me!
For digital sources, I'd recommend starting with a really good used high end power amp and an inexpensive passive preamp ..
You can achieve amazingly good sound quality with a used high end amp and a $100 passive pre ..
You can always add a separate phono stage if you add vinyl to the mix ..
If you search a bit you can find $400 amps that are a cut above the Haflers and Adcoms .. I recently picked up an Aragon 4004/ii for $400 ..
kydog
Super Member
Move up the Adcom preamp chain for better results. The ones you mentioned are fairly basic sound wise. Do a quick “ Best Adcom preamp “ search.
hatrack71
distracted by everything
Certainly nothing wrong with the APT. I liked the one I had.
I've heard great things about them. This one is in pristine condition and was just recently recapped, serviced etc. What is the "going rate" for a nice one like this?
An excellent preamp if you make the move to vinyl ..
And I will be shortly.
62vauxhall
Addicted Member
Something worth knowing about Holman pre-amps.
The input selector switch is or can be persnickety. Despite using contact cleaner, a channel could likely disappear from time to time. I have two of those units and each one. exhibits that anomaly. In the case of mine, it’s been on both phono 1 and phono 2 inputs.
The first pre I got began producing spurious noise a couple of weeks after my doing a fair bit of parts replacement including all 41 electrolytics. Not being able to find fault with any transistors, my most suspected culprit, I sent it to Audio Proz. The cause was actually two of the four op-amps.
The preamp came back with a note saying they cleaned all the switch contacts but that I should exercise them frequently. That proved to be excellent advice.
Now, even if only 24 hours have passed since last listened through, I rotate the input selector end to end about 15 times before playback of anything.
I’m very fond of APT Holmans. They sound wonderful and are geared towards turntable enthusiasts. I consider the extra step of input selector exercise just a cost of owning/using a great audio component.
The input selector switch is or can be persnickety. Despite using contact cleaner, a channel could likely disappear from time to time. I have two of those units and each one. exhibits that anomaly. In the case of mine, it’s been on both phono 1 and phono 2 inputs.
The first pre I got began producing spurious noise a couple of weeks after my doing a fair bit of parts replacement including all 41 electrolytics. Not being able to find fault with any transistors, my most suspected culprit, I sent it to Audio Proz. The cause was actually two of the four op-amps.
The preamp came back with a note saying they cleaned all the switch contacts but that I should exercise them frequently. That proved to be excellent advice.
Now, even if only 24 hours have passed since last listened through, I rotate the input selector end to end about 15 times before playback of anything.
I’m very fond of APT Holmans. They sound wonderful and are geared towards turntable enthusiasts. I consider the extra step of input selector exercise just a cost of owning/using a great audio component.
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