Do preamps enhance sound quality?

Neve.

hello, what rosewood speakers are those behind you?

If you go for vinyl get a good RIIA pre-amp. If all your music is digital go for a good DAC. I have a Rega DAC before the signal goes into my NAD C272, and from there to my JBL LT 100. No pre-amp is needed, lots of power, and good sound. :)

Before even watching the video, YES.
I just ran 2A3 mono blocks with their own volume knobs.
Very short signal path.
I then tried them with a Sonic Frontiers SPL-2 as good a preamp as has ever been made.

The dynamics were better, and the sound stage was bigger.

Trust your ears , sometimes the short path logic is proven wrong.

going to *ADC, coming from the preamp

I don't even use a preamp, I run my headphone 6.5 jack straight into a power amp. It sounds awful. I've never been happier.

Every single time I have a question about audio, I Google it, and end up watching one of your videos. Thank you for what you do for us audiophiles! In this case, I had answered my own question and just wanted to make sure I wasn't crazy. My story: For several years I had been using a Universal Disc Player, which has a digital preamp, as a source in my A/V system, and running it straight into a power amp. It sounded ok, but truly lacked pizazz. A few days ago I decided to put an old headphone amp (from another system) between the two, and the results were absolutely astonishing. It was actually just dumb luck; the headphone amp I am now using as a preamp is Class A, balanced, with XLR inputs and outputs. So yes, preamps can make a HUGE difference. But as everybody knows, it all depends . . . .

Rotel 1582mk2 + topping d30pro + SPL phonitor 2 as preamp
This first ever try with preamp i found the preamp make shadow cloudy in background. 😢

Cheers Paul. I'm a pure digital user now and feed my Auralic G1 directly into a Naim 250DR power amp, but I'm tempted to try some Pre amps. You've just answered my question - I need to try it, but I'm not taken with Tubes, mainly due to how quickly they degrade. I'm not a rich man and cannot buy something that will need lots more attention throughout its life which is what tubes do..... 10000 hours maybe in a pre amp, but in my house that means changing them every 4 or so years and that's an absolute no go. It will limit the sales of your preamp too....

Yes. 👏👏👏

Totally agree on the need for a good pre-amp. Back in the late 80s/early 90s, there was a push for passive preamps. I came close to building one until I heard one demo'd at CES. It sounded dull... A good pre-amp provides a vital gain stage to the signal, especially in analogue.

I HOPE YOU DRIED OUT FROM ALL THE HURRICANES LOLL AHHAHHAHAHAHHAHA

So the pre-amp was not flat 😶.

Hi , even if I have a integrated tube amp do you think a tube pre will make a difference? Thanks

Never understood the of zero-distortion sound systems.

Somehow we all enjoy videos and photos enhanced by creative filters of different complexities. We add spices, flavours and flavour enhancers to our food, yet making a sound a fuller, richer and more enjoyable is considered to be a mortal sin for so many.

Can anyone explain our differences in attitude towards enhancing visual art, food and enhancing sound?

Thank you! i was just wondering if that would make a difference, im making a handmade Bluetooth speaker and i went for ever to find a good amp for it, so i came across a TDA7492 (It's a D class amplifier), this one has a NE5532 pre amp on it. For what i investigated the NE5532 it's from philips and it's used on motherboards for the audio card that is mounted on board, and sounds pretty nice i would say, (for something that comes with a computer), so this clarifies me a lot of things, thank you.

my preamps down at present and im now listening to the dac only. it appears that the dac makes for a better image and throws the sound around better.the bhk pre sounds better than the bhk dac but it sounds like its taking something away from the dac's image / sound when its inline. anyone else come across this?

When recording a mic, yeah, sure.

Paul, why do you look like your yelling at me in the thumbnail haha!

I dont get this. Pure preamp without any post processing, changes the sound?
Why?

Yall just came out with the fr 30!!!!! Congrats

That is why i got myself a Parasound PLD 2000☺️

There's only 1 way to find out... do a blind test

I respect such elegant explanations. I always wondered why can't I feed a power amp directly through DAC, which never sounded better than with a high-end preamp. Thanks.

I have nothing high end,it made a difference

Quality is subjective though. What sounds good to one may sound artificial to another.

If you have a pre-amp you probably have several devices you listen to. The pickup devices from various sources have different amplification requirements and a switch on the Pre=amp can address this. If you have an inexpensive portable cassette player, the pre-amp is built into the amp, if it has a line in it has a Impedance check before and will automatically perform line mode overiding the tape head input when the Jack is used.. thats one type of preamp funtion. Just remember, more components is a chance for distortion

100%

I don't know, but i love use preamp input to play my preamp tube or Handphone.
Its has better sound and full range bass until the lowest bass in detail.
Better tan use aux in to play my tube preamp or my handphone.

Wow that explanation seals the deal Mr. Paul always explains it better, thanks

Hi Paul, you are the best presenter for amplification choices ever. Wonderful!

How do you define a "Good" Preamp?? Is there such thing as a "Good/Quality" $200-$500 preamp for a music streamer like the Bluesound Node??

Hi Paul it does a different job than an equalizer, what you just explained sounds like an equalizer, but I'm also thinking there's more if a preamp does that to music if you add an equalizer and a preamp what happens.

I was using an integrated amp as a pre for years. It worked on standby, so I don't think it was doing anything other than connecting two signals through a volume control. Didn't detect a difference pre-less. Recently replace that with a dedicated pre and wow. Tighter and better controlled bass, more detail and dynamics and the instruments have more attack. Some signal gain too it seems.

Now as for a speaker system. Too many speakers is in fact TOO many speakers! This is a secrete, so listen to me. Years ago, Fender supplied a 12 inch speaker in their Twin Reverb guitar amps that had almost all the frequency response that was needed. Only the top of the top frequencies were lacking. No crossovers required. Get the replacement speakers for Fender Twin Reverb guitar amps and build your 2 cubic foot cabinets. Then purchase a set of tweeters for the very top audible frequencies, and you're good. That's my system. She's perfect!

If all your audio amplification is done by solid state transistorized or integrated circuitry; you need a tube preamp in the frontend! That is all it takes to make your system sound absolutely wonderful! That 2nd harmonic is the key. She sounds beautiful.

I don't put effects in the few amps I have built. I feel like the more you put in an amp, the more to go wrong.

This guy is senile and ready for shady pines retirement home he never gives you a straight answer about anything so why even ask him a question

This man never answers the question he goes around with these long speeches gets right back to the question that has been asked without answering it's sad.

I've found that a premium preamp can transform a lower quality amp into something more wonderful than a premium amp alone. The same preamp with a quality amp makes a marginal difference that starts to minimize the cost/ reward investment... at least with the equipment I've gotten my hands on.

It’s a professional parametric EQ equalizer

ART pro channel professional equipped with two gold lions ECC 83

I'm relatively new to tube amps. Just got a Yaqin MC84l. I noticed how holographic it is and how airy and spacious it sounds. I am noticing the mid bass is balanced but seems to drop off around 100hz.
Not sure if this is the amplifier being at its limit, or if the tubes being rolled may help.
My question is, which side should I try first. Preamp side, or Power side? Which do you think makes the biggest difference in sound?

No. They do not. Its all about the signal from the get go. Preamps simply shape a waveform (to what the user thinks tickles his ear bones right) , amplify it enough to go to phase inversion...and to the poweramp. They add nothing.

Crown D 150 Pre Amp

I have a Crown Pre Amplifier it's good like hi Fi like High End Audio

Do equalizer enhance sound quality?

A well designed pre-amp will have a low output impedance to drive whatever load is presented to it by the cables to the power amp and the power amp itself. Source devices are not designed to have that "we can drive anything" capability. I see the three functions of a pre-amp as source selector, level matching and control, output driver and a good quality pre-amp does these things well without introducing distortion in the frequency and time domains which can rob the music of the finest textures.