Okay, so after spending a lot of time doing research and waiting for my budget to catch up with my upgrade plans, I decided to just keep it simple and add a nice quality stereo preamplifier (with HT bypass) to my system and incorporate it into my existing HT set-up. I decided on a Mapletree Audio Designs Line 2A SE preamp from Dr. Lloyd Peppard.
It just so happens that, a couple of months ago, a friend of mine gave me an iPod Nano that she didn't need anymore. I downloaded a few songs from iTunes and used the little earbud things that came with it...neat little device. Then I heard about a company called Audio Line Out who offered all sorts of mods, tweaks, and cables. Though a little pricey, I went ahead and ordered an iPod-to-RCA cable made with Vampire Wire and some nice quality parts. I figured I got the Nano for free, so why not spend a few bucks on a nice cable that will allow me to use it with my Mapletree that was on the way.
Anyway, this past week both items arrived on the same day. It's my first tube preamp, so I spent a half hour reading through the manual and what not, getting everything hooked up. I connected the iPod to one of the inputs and fired it up. At the time I'm writing this, I've recreated this process for two other people, and all three of us have been absolutely blown away by how good things are sounding. I played Robin Thicke's "Lost Without U", one of the iTunes downloads, and it was just ridiculous. Nice crisp, deep, thumping bass...clear, warm vocals...it's arguably the best sounding track I've ever played on my system, and this is a compressed download on an iPod!
Now I'm sure that the biggest factor here is the Mapletree. It's an incredible value, maybe the best value in preamps going today, though I don't have enough experience with all that's out there to say that definitively. All I know is that my system is SINGING right now, and I have what is basically CRAP as a source. My Denon 2900 Uni player won't play CDs anymore, so I had to take it out of my system. I'm going to focus on a nice outboard DAC as my next upgrade, but until then I'm thrilled with how this little iPod is playing these compressed files on my rig.
I figured that my Outlaw 950 would be embarrassed once I got a real preamp in the mix, but it's more of a slaughter than I could have imagined. I don't care how far receivers and pre/pros have come in terms of 2-channel quality, a stereo preamp makes one HELL of a difference.
Here's a review of the preamp I went with in case any of you guys want one to add to your short list: http://hollowstate.netfirms.com/hoffmanreview.pdf
It just so happens that, a couple of months ago, a friend of mine gave me an iPod Nano that she didn't need anymore. I downloaded a few songs from iTunes and used the little earbud things that came with it...neat little device. Then I heard about a company called Audio Line Out who offered all sorts of mods, tweaks, and cables. Though a little pricey, I went ahead and ordered an iPod-to-RCA cable made with Vampire Wire and some nice quality parts. I figured I got the Nano for free, so why not spend a few bucks on a nice cable that will allow me to use it with my Mapletree that was on the way.
Anyway, this past week both items arrived on the same day. It's my first tube preamp, so I spent a half hour reading through the manual and what not, getting everything hooked up. I connected the iPod to one of the inputs and fired it up. At the time I'm writing this, I've recreated this process for two other people, and all three of us have been absolutely blown away by how good things are sounding. I played Robin Thicke's "Lost Without U", one of the iTunes downloads, and it was just ridiculous. Nice crisp, deep, thumping bass...clear, warm vocals...it's arguably the best sounding track I've ever played on my system, and this is a compressed download on an iPod!
Now I'm sure that the biggest factor here is the Mapletree. It's an incredible value, maybe the best value in preamps going today, though I don't have enough experience with all that's out there to say that definitively. All I know is that my system is SINGING right now, and I have what is basically CRAP as a source. My Denon 2900 Uni player won't play CDs anymore, so I had to take it out of my system. I'm going to focus on a nice outboard DAC as my next upgrade, but until then I'm thrilled with how this little iPod is playing these compressed files on my rig.
I figured that my Outlaw 950 would be embarrassed once I got a real preamp in the mix, but it's more of a slaughter than I could have imagined. I don't care how far receivers and pre/pros have come in terms of 2-channel quality, a stereo preamp makes one HELL of a difference.
Here's a review of the preamp I went with in case any of you guys want one to add to your short list: http://hollowstate.netfirms.com/hoffmanreview.pdf
