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I've tried passive pre-amps before, and also some DACs that offered volume control (e.g. an old Meitner DAC and my current Benchmark DAC).
Whenever I ran a DAC directly in to my amps (monoblock tube amps) instead of whatever pre-amp I had on hand, I was always struck with the sense of clarity and smoothness...the impression of very "direct, uncolored" sound going straight in to the amps to my speakers. Problem is I always gravitated back to an active pre-amp because for whatever reason the direct signal to my amp from a DAC seemed to lack the same body/density of sound and I found it unsatisfying after a while.
Problem is that just remains subjective anecdote and there was no easy way to blind test between the DAC using volume control directly in to the amps vs using my pre-amp.
Whenever I ran a DAC directly in to my amps (monoblock tube amps) instead of whatever pre-amp I had on hand, I was always struck with the sense of clarity and smoothness...the impression of very "direct, uncolored" sound going straight in to the amps to my speakers. Problem is I always gravitated back to an active pre-amp because for whatever reason the direct signal to my amp from a DAC seemed to lack the same body/density of sound and I found it unsatisfying after a while.
Problem is that just remains subjective anecdote and there was no easy way to blind test between the DAC using volume control directly in to the amps vs using my pre-amp.