Are pre-amps necessary

[mocenigo]

Just so you know, I'm only feeding you because of quarantine boredom.

Please name one DAC that use oversample and dither to lower noise floor.

Well, I likewise am also bored by lockdown, but I am more bored of feeding you than of the lockdown, so I just leave you with something more exciting than feeding me: find those DACs yourself.

 

[MattHooper]

Not possible with the Schiit Saga (unless I have two units) because tube mode and passive mode have different volume levels on the same pot position. The tube mode is slightly louder and that louder volume helps with the psychoacoustic effect of perceiving the sound as more engaging. The tube may or may not alter the sound but it will alter it in a way that is never objectively better (just look at measurements). Just to my subjective preferences, louder = more engaging and the active tube output certainly delivers that compared to the transparent passive mode. Hypothetically, if there are two Sagas in my system and are playing at the exact same volume, I definitely would fail DBT test with random guessing results

Fair enough.

I'm all tube - tube amps, tube pre-amp. It's plausible that I'm hearing actual deviations introduced by the tube gear, but also plausible I'm imagining it. But I like the gear so it's staying (at this point).

What kind of Tube power Amps ? Do they provide the benign easy to drive input impedance you see in most SS power Amps . The preamp may be needed .

Don’t forget if the equipment is “audiophile” enough the normal “rules” may not apply

Yeah. My amps are conrad johnson tube monoblocks. Could be they require an active pre-amp to work best.

 

[Worth Davis]

I no longer use a standalone Preamp (lexicon, denon, sonic frontiers, modwright pre amps currently in my closet)

I use a minidsp SHD straight to the amps. (Roon - MiniDSP SHD - 2 channels to Linkwitz LX 521, 2 Channels to DIY subs)

Very happy and have no intent to return to a separate pre amp. If someone developed a wireless volume knob for the SHD I would buy it.