View Full Version : Advice about pre amps wanted
I would like to add a different pre amp to my system, the Nakamichi will be kept purely as a phono stage but due to my limited mobility I really would like to be able to control the volume by remote. I had thought of having a motorised pot retro fitted but there really isn't the space inside the Nak for the extra giblets. Budget is up to £500, any ideas would be gratefully received.
Beobloke
13-11-2018, 04:48
Last time I saw one for sale, a Musical Fidelity A1 FBP would cost less than £500 and is a stonkingly good preamp with a fine phono stage.
You could always get a dcb1 turbo and add the remote
There is no phono board but it wouldn't matter if your keeping the Nak
I've tried this combination and it sounds great
Steve...
You could always get a dcb1 turbo and add the remote
There is no phono board but it wouldn't matter if your keeping the Nak
I've tried this combination and it sounds great
Steve...I've also tried this combo and it wasn't up to much in my particular system. Also I would be concerned about gain as the Nak phono is designed to feed a stage with gain. You'd probably be wise to look for a pre with some gain so there would be wiggle room on the volume control.
Personally I'd be inclined to save a lot of quids and try a simple op-amp pre, you could be surprised! No bragging rights of course but it might just show the Nak a clean pair of heels...
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Hi Ian
When I've finished the dcb1 I'll bring it over and hook it up to your system you can decide yourself.
Looking forward to popping over with Jamie to hear your Signifiers
Steve...
jandl100
13-11-2018, 10:49
After Alan Firebottle brought one of these round to my gaff a couple of weeks back for a listen I bought one straight away.
Arrived a few days ago.
Ridiculously transparent and detailed.
Remote volume, mute and source selection.
It's a passive, though - so all depends on your system gain and personal taste if it will go loud enough.
£110 delivered from China. Stunning.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Volume-Remote-Control-Relay-128-Steps-Exponential-Constant-input-impedance-4-CH/142811721459
Stryder5
13-11-2018, 11:43
After Alan Firebottle brought one of these round to my gaff a couple of weeks back for a listen I bought one straight away.
Arrived a few days ago.
Ridiculously transparent and detailed.
Remote volume, mute and source selection.
It's a passive, though - so all depends on your system gain and personal taste if it will go loud enough.
£110 delivered from China. Stunning.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Volume-Remote-Control-Relay-128-Steps-Exponential-Constant-input-impedance-4-CH/142811721459
I'm having the one Alan has, heard one at his home
Gary
I think for the money the little chinese job delivers in spades, however it was beaten by my dcb1.
Even when it was modded by Alan
I'm sure oliver and Alan Would agree.
Steve
bungalowbill
13-11-2018, 13:10
Last time I saw one for sale, a Musical Fidelity A1 FBP would cost less than £500 and is a stonkingly good preamp with a fine phono stage.
What he said. I'm on my second running Balanced with a Lyngdorf SDA2175 Power. Only negatives.
Remote is terrible and there's two boxes. Prices have crept up, I paid under 400 squid for mine. For the dosh it's a bit of a bargain.
Bigman80
13-11-2018, 13:13
I think for the money the little chinese job delivers in spades, however it was beaten by my dcb1.
Even when it was modded by Alan
I'm sure oliver and Alan Would agree.
SteveI absolutely agree Steve. In ab tests here, whilst I do rate the Chinese preamp for the money, I do think in comparison to a well built DCB1, it was obviously not as good.
The problem is, a well built DCB1 Is going to cost approximately £400 minimum.
jandl100
13-11-2018, 13:45
I've heard differing opinions on quite how big the difference is between the Chinese RVC and the DCB1 arrangement.
One thing I do know is that I prefer the RVC without a buffer (Jez Arkless made a ss one for me and reckoned it was as good as you were going to get), so our opinions on such matters differ anyway.
Bigman80
13-11-2018, 13:55
I've heard differing opinions on quite how big the difference is between the Chinese RVC and the DCB1 arrangement.
One thing I do know is that I prefer the RVC without a buffer (Jez Arkless made a ss one for me and reckoned it was as good as you were going to get), so our opinions on such matters differ anyway.It's all relative mate. Whatever it is we hear is only important us. It's only an opinion at the end of the day and as long as you're happy, it can't be bad!!!
Beobloke
13-11-2018, 14:18
What he said. I'm on my second running Balanced with a Lyngdorf SDA2175 Power. Only negatives.
Remote is terrible and there's two boxes. Prices have crept up, I paid under 400 squid for mine. For the dosh it's a bit of a bargain.
The only downside I had with it was that the volume on the unit itself is adjusted using up/down buttons and the steps weren’t very well judged. Then again, I am of the opinion that the only company that gets the steps right in a stepped volume control is Bang & Olufsen!
This is all brilliant stuff gentlemen, I'm new to the pre/power thing so I'm learning a lot. Please keep the information coming.
ijrussell
13-11-2018, 15:27
I think that the Chevron Audio Paradox pre amp is remote controllable and should be just in budget.
hifinutt
13-11-2018, 15:46
good call there ian , i do love the bel canto pre 3 vbs because it has a superb remote with 200 increments and sounds pretty good. but its above budget just
the chevron would be good i am sure
http://www.chevronaudio.co.uk/html/preamplifier.html
Lawrence001
13-11-2018, 22:19
After Alan Firebottle brought one of these round to my gaff a couple of weeks back for a listen I bought one straight away.
Arrived a few days ago.
Ridiculously transparent and detailed.
Remote volume, mute and source selection.
It's a passive, though - so all depends on your system gain and personal taste if it will go loud enough.
£110 delivered from China. Stunning.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Volume-Remote-Control-Relay-128-Steps-Exponential-Constant-input-impedance-4-CH/142811721459Intrigued by this pre, I discussed it with the ebay seller in China and bought an upgraded version. It has a larger case to keep the transformer and active components away from the passive, an upgraded branded transformer and high quality RCA sockets. It set me back nearly £180 after duty and fees. Although I echo Jerry's opinion on the pre, I have too many of them and am going valve for a while. If anyone wants it I can do it for £150 plus postage. It's only been used for a few hours.
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I wish I'd seen your post earlier Lawrence, I've ordered one from China now lol, that will teach me to keep an eye on things. I'll share my thoughts once I've used it a while. Thanks to everyone for their input.
Bigman80
20-11-2018, 19:46
I wish I'd seen your post earlier Lawrence, I've ordered one from China now lol, that will teach me to keep an eye on things. I'll share my thoughts once I've used it a while. Thanks to everyone for their input.I rubbished this chinese preamp a little bit Ian. Admittedly, I do the think the DCB1 I had was better BUT using the Chinese RVC, I am warning to it daily.
It really is amazing that £100 can buy such a good performer.
It's hard to imagine how they make any money but when they are churning out good pieces like this, you may as well take advantage.
I'll stick with the DCB1 build as I fully expect the next one to be even better than the previous but yes, the Chinese RVC must be considered a serious bargain.
It will be interesting to experiment with it and the Nakamichi and the MF tube buffer. I don't listen at high volume levels so I'm not too worried about the passive aspect, also although the Proton is only rated at 50 WPC it has the secondary circuit that boosts the output when needed.
The Chinese passive arrived today and I'm very pleased with performance. Obviously it's not in the same league as Steve's DCB1 I was lucky enough to have in my system yesterday but it does do it's thing very well. I started this thread because I was looking for a pre amp with a remote control for at least the volume and the Chinese one fitted the bill, great I thought, sorted. Imagine how annoyed I was to find that the bloody remote doesn't work!. I've sent a message to the seller so hopefully they will send a replacement. Sods law I guess lol.
Been thinking about the Chinese one myself,how is the build quality? Has anyone heard the chevron audio or the khozmo passive?
Firebottle
04-12-2018, 07:43
.... to find that the bloody remote doesn't work!.
It says on the web site that they are shipped without battery, you need to fit one, a CR2032.
You do need to remove the pcb after the back panel to get to the battery holder.
@Lee. The build quality is good. The Khozmo is better, but the remote for it is expensive and large.
The Chinese passive arrived today and I'm very pleased with performance. Obviously it's not in the same league as Steve's DCB1 I was lucky enough to have in my system yesterday but it does do it's thing very well. I started this thread because I was looking for a pre amp with a remote control for at least the volume and the Chinese one fitted the bill, great I thought, sorted. Imagine how annoyed I was to find that the bloody remote doesn't work!. I've sent a message to the seller so hopefully they will send a replacement. Sods law I guess lol.
Hi Ian
Enjoy your little chinese job, its really quite good for the money
Cheers for you comments on the Dcb1, can't really compare the dcb1 to the Chinese job as its 4 times the price.
At least you got your remote mate .
S.
Been thinking about the Chinese one myself,how is the build quality? Has anyone heard the chevron audio or the khozmo passive?
Hi Lee
As Alan says, the Khozmo is better but i would still speak to Alan and get him to fit a buffer, it makes quite a difference to the sound. Still, you can't complain how the Chinese pre sound, very good for very little money!!!
S.
It says on the web site that they are shipped without battery, you need to fit one, a CR2032.
You do need to remove the pcb after the back panel to get to the battery holder.
@Lee. The build quality is good. The Khozmo is better, but the remote for it is expensive and large.
I was all prepared, new pack of batteries and a mains lead as it doesn't come with one of those either. I've tried several batteries, just in case, but no joy. The seller has got back to me already and is happy to sort it out one way or another, can't say fairer than that.
Hi Ian
Enjoy your little chinese job, its really quite good for the money
Cheers for you comments on the Dcb1, can't really compare the dcb1 to the Chinese job as its 4 times the price.
At least you got your remote mate .
S.
Your DCB1 is way better and I will be the owner of one soon, hint, hint. In fact if I could have got my paws on it Sunday I would have motorised myself and not worried about remote controls :D
julesd68
04-12-2018, 14:34
Looks like we have bought the same amp - whilst I'm pretty happy with the amp itself, the remote control was DOA and must be the most poorly designed piece of crap I have ever seen!
Imagine having to remove the PCB just to change a battery - what on earth were they thinking? :doh:
I am hoping to get a replacement sorted soon.
Looks like we have bought the same amp - whilst I'm pretty happy with the amp itself, the remote control was DOA and must be the most poorly designed piece of crap I have ever seen!
Imagine having to remove the PCB just to change a battery - what on earth were they thinking? :doh:
I am hoping to get a replacement sorted soon.
I've had a very close look at the remote's PCB and found where the battery holder is attached there is no actual electrical contact, it's just glued in place. I'm going to try soldering it in place to the PCB connections. The seller Min is being very helpful though so hope fully we will get working handsets eventually. I have to agree with you Julian it is a piss poor design that needs the PCB removing to change a battery, strange when the actual handset is made from a solid piece of aluminium and not a plastic cheapy.
julesd68
04-12-2018, 15:24
I've had a very close look at the remote's PCB and found where the battery holder is attached there is no actual electrical contact, it's just glued in place.
Yes I found that out this morning when my battery holder just came clean off when I was taking the battery out!
I'm hoping for a replacement asap but with the time difference it isn't the quickest communication.
I've reattached the battery holder to the pcb and gone over the other joints, I can't find anything obvious but there seems to be no signal after the ic. I'm not an engineer so all I can test for are the physical joints and tracks, these seem ok to me but I could be missing something. Let's hope the seller gives us working replacements.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20181204/108b067bdb7ea1a874a2d5447b2c57ed.jpg
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julesd68
05-12-2018, 10:16
This is getting tedious now. The seller has sent me a photo of how it should look and has asked for one of mine in return. Firstly it looks like our LEDs are missing from the PCB. Also according to him the pin inside the bottom of the battery holder should be above the battery, not below.
I have asked for a new one that has been tested to be working but of course another day goes by waiting for a reply.
any idea how well this chinese RVC would work into 10k or 20k impedance ?
This is getting tedious now. The seller has sent me a photo of how it should look and has asked for one of mine in return. Firstly it looks like our LEDs are missing from the PCB. Also according to him the pin inside the bottom of the battery holder should be above the battery, not below.
I have asked for a new one that has been tested to be working but of course another day goes by waiting for a reply.
I've had exactly the same message from him and my PCB is missing the LED. I'll send a similar message to your's asking for a tested working unit. Like you say the 12 hour delay is a pain.
Regarding the non working remote. Why not try use your smart phone as a remote? There are various apps available for IR control. I see the Chinese amp uses NEC codes which I assume can be set easily in a phone app.
Firebottle
05-12-2018, 15:48
any idea how well this chinese RVC would work into 10k or 20k impedance ?
It will work but there will be slightly more attenuation. Works better through a buffer on the output.
PM replied to.
I've had another dig around with it and also bent the battery terminals as suggested by the seller and it now works. I did have to clean the bottom of the terminals and the PCB track to solder the holder back in place though, rather fiddly but seems to do the trick. I hope this works for you too Julian.
Whilst the remote control is working why not grab a cheap remote and duplicate yours so you have a spare. Something like this (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0046H5RV0). Under a tenner. I have one and it works great.
jandl100
05-12-2018, 17:18
Whilst the remote control is working why not grab a cheap remote and duplicate yours so you have a spare. Something like this (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0046H5RV0). Under a tenner. I have one and it works great.
Good plan, Edward. :thumbsup:
My remote for the RVC pre is working fine - but who knows for how long? Good idea to get a spare laid in.
Good idea Edward, the supplied remote is rather a Mickey Mouse affair so a reliable alternative would be great.
julesd68
05-12-2018, 17:25
I've had another dig around with it and also bent the battery terminals as suggested by the seller and it now works. I did have to clean the bottom of the terminals and the PCB track to solder the holder back in place though, rather fiddly but seems to do the trick. I hope this works for you too Julian. Well done Ian! I don't have any soldering skills so I'm hoping the seller is going to send me a new one asap ...
julesd68
05-12-2018, 17:26
Yes a spare remote is a great idea, thanks Edward. :)
jandl100
05-12-2018, 19:26
Julian - I've ordered one of those universal remotes from Amazon as a spare.
Assuming I can program it up with the RVC pre remote OK then you are welcome to borrow it until you get your own sorted.
julesd68
05-12-2018, 23:10
Thanks Jerry! Ian hatched a plan earlier to get me sorted out so am hoping to be 'with remote' before too long ... :)
Whilst the remote control is working why not grab a cheap remote and duplicate yours so you have a spare. Something like this (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0046H5RV0). Under a tenner. I have one and it works great.
Thanks for the steer Edward, I ordered two of the Seki Slims and they are now programmed and working well. I shall post one off to Julian and that will be the remote problem sorted.
Thanks for the steer Edward, I ordered two of the Seki Slims and they are now programmed and working well. I shall post one off to Julian and that will be the remote problem sorted.Cool
I should tell my wife I've at last suggested something useful. It will be a surprise for her. :)
§
julesd68
15-12-2018, 13:20
Thanks for the steer Edward, I ordered two of the Seki Slims and they are now programmed and working well. I shall post one off to Julian and that will be the remote problem sorted.
Many thanks to Ian - have just received my programmed remote and it works beautifully!
clive7164
17-12-2018, 11:50
I have just picked up one of these from the post office,the remote did not work initially but looking at it found there was no battery in it.
Just put one in and all is working fine with it,perhaps its just luck of the draw with them
Clive Smith
I have just picked up one of these from the post office,the remote did not work initially but looking at it found there was no battery in it.
Just put one in and all is working fine with it,perhaps its just luck of the draw with them
Clive Smith
Glad yours worked in the end, just be very careful when you change the battery as the battery holder is not fixed to the PCB very securely.
walpurgis
17-12-2018, 13:43
I'm fairly sure I've seen remotes identical in appearance to these, offered by Chinese sellers on ebay for around three quid. You have to wait a little while to receive them obviously.
The aftermarket remotes Edward suggested are very good and although programming was a bit hit and miss once set work perfectly. For less than £10 it solves any issues.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20181217/eb2c964460334b55e875d653fe934523.jpg
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Remote control has been a required option for me as well. I’ve had a few remote control preamps. I had an Adcom GFA500 tuner/preamp that was remote control. And I thought it sounded very good, even the phono wasn’t bad. Used they are quite affordable. But! Adcom will not supply replacement remotes.
I presently have a Parasound Halo 3, I paid $300 for it without the remote. It is amazing how much used equipment for sale has a lost remote. But Parasound was happy to sell me a new one for $60 and I find it a very well made, decent sounding and very flexible preamp. It is by far the least expensive component in my rack, but I don’t feel it to be outclassed, punching above its weight class.
Russell
Lawrence001
19-12-2018, 21:16
I'm currently using a P3 too, nothing wrong with it at all and I rather like the sound with my IMFs. With more revealing modern speakers I did prefer my Django passive but I'll revisit that with my next pair once I've sorted these pesky crossovers out.
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walpurgis
19-12-2018, 22:18
If anybody is interested, there's a decent looking one on ebay with remote at £340 or offer: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Parasound-HALO-P3-Balanced-Preamplifier-with-Remote-in-Outstanding-Condition/153296333062?hash=item23b12c6906:g:uSsAAOSwkHFcDL1 M:rk:4:pf:0
Pepperamip
20-12-2018, 10:38
Intrigued by this pre, I discussed it with the ebay seller in China and bought an upgraded version. It has a larger case to keep the transformer and active components away from the passive, an upgraded branded transformer and high quality RCA sockets. It set me back nearly £180 after duty and fees. Although I echo Jerry's opinion on the pre, I have too many of them and am going valve for a while. If anyone wants it I can do it for £150 plus postage. It's only been used for a few hours.
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Hi Lawrence, are still looking to sell this unit? If so I'll PM you.
Lawrence001
20-12-2018, 10:51
Sorry it sold a while ago. The buyer is very pleased with it [emoji3]
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Pepperamip
20-12-2018, 11:05
Lol it helps if you pay attention to the posting dates ;)
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