Fatila;424121 Wrote: > Interesting, I assumed I would need an integrated amp as a power amp > would also need a pre amp to be a complete unit as it were. I am looking > at a minimal, but also high quality solution. I was not aware the > Transporter could output directly to speakers, but would probably want > the option of adding a component if needed later on. Would Transporter > > Power amp > Speakers be best option for quality then? Pat has already explained the bit about power amps and powered speakers.
I'll address the statement that you might want to add other components later. Presumably you're talking about things like DVD player, PVR, etc. If these other components will have digital outputs, then you can use the Transporter as a "digital preamp", and you can still get away with just a power amp + speakers, or powered speakers. If on the other hand you're referring to analogue sources (eg. FM tuner, LP turntable, etc), then you probably would be better off getting an integrated amp with multiple analogue inputs. In another posting you say that you're not sure what a preamp actually does. Well, it allows you to switch between multiple sources (it has lots of inputs) - this is probably the most important facility that many preamp users need. Preamps also often include processing circuitry such as tone controls, but quite a lot of people never make use of those. A preamp is likely to have a little bit of amplification capability - enough to bring quiet sources like cassette decks and FM tuners up to the level required to drive a power amp. In the special case of LP turntables, you also need a circuit called a "phono preamp" - some ordinary preamps include such a device on one of their inputs. Modern digital sources like CD players, Squeezeboxes, etc. already have a high enough output that this amplification is largely irrelevant - indeed most preamps spend most of their time *decreasing* the level of the signal that passes through. An integrated amp is simply a preamp and a power amp in one box. So if you only need a power amp, you can (a) save money by not paying for the preamp that comes in an integrated, and (b) avoid passing the signal through a preamp's circuitry (which, unless it's a horribly expensive state-of-the-art device, *will* degrade the sound quality to a certain extent). -- cliveb Transporter -> ATC SCM100A ------------------------------------------------------------------------ cliveb's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=348 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=63433 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/audiophiles
