Let me preface my comments by saying that I live in the 26th floor of an apartment block and cannot really play music loud enough to warrant the system I brought here from the US & have been expanding since. But I won't always live here!
I also enjoy video in 5:1 and don't have the luxury of two separate rooms (or 4 ears). Thus the pre-amp is an essential part of my system. Actually a Denon 3805 AVR. Through the AVR I also drive a sub-woofer (Velodyne DD15). The sub's set up routine lets me adjust the response of the sub and blend it in with the bass of the main speakers (B&W 804s). The AVR allows the low frequencies, below cut off frequency of 80Hz to be sent to the sub. Thus the 'receiver' or 'preamp' part of the AVR deals with the 'speakers' (mains and sub). How could I do that with no 'receiver/preamp'? Sometimes too, it's a nice effect to listen to 'stereo' in 5:1 surround. The AVR also has a 'direct stereo' mode where the artifacts of the 'receiver' are minimized and you get as close as you can to the Transporter direct to the amp. I recently (it's Christmas after all) replaced the 'amplifier' of the AVR with a Rotel 5 channel RMB 1095. Bottom line to me, I need the 'receiver/preamp' part of the system. Going direct from Transporter (or SB) to RMB 1095 would give me no flexibility for movies, remove both my surround sound option and the Velodyne sub. Maybe if your system is dedicated for music only, and you'll never feel you need a sub (need, did I say, I meant want), then you can forgo the preamp. But for me it's essential. Dan -- chinablues ------------------------------------------------------------------------ chinablues's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=7955 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=30661 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list audiophiles@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/audiophiles
