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Post by scbailey on Nov 1, 2010 12:08:22 GMT -5
I would urge caution to those who think they are going to use the XDA without a pre-amp and be happy with it. Op Amps are not known for putting out a smooth sound. Harsh is more like it. I tried using my Njoe Tjoeb cd player without a pre-amp and the sound was harsh and without resolution. The Tjoebs output was changed from op-amps to tube buffered upsampler and it still was harsh. Putting it through my favorite pre-amp produced a great sound. The Tjoeb cd player is advertised that it can be used without a pre-amp.
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Erwin.BE
Emo VIPs 
It's the room, stupid!
Posts: 2,269
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Post by Erwin.BE on Nov 1, 2010 12:24:12 GMT -5
Opamps? Discrete output stages! If Lonnie claims no pre-amp is the way to go, at least try without pre-amp. My Weiss DAC2 is used without pre-amp. It produces very enjoyable sound! No tube sound obviously. Go to www.computeraudiophile.com to find out more about using DAC's as pre-amp. My wife has no clue, after more than two months, that I replaced my cheap pre-amp by the DAC2. She only thinks I added the Mac mini. But before, she always complained that the music (from the CD) was to loud. No longer. Nuff said! |
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Post by ajani on Nov 1, 2010 12:39:47 GMT -5
I use my Benchmark DAC1 as pre-amp and achieve very good results... So I would certainly suggesting at least trying the XDA-1 direct to your power amp, before deciding whether to buy a separate pre-amp...
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Post by Chuck Elliot on Nov 1, 2010 12:44:14 GMT -5
I would urge caution to those who think they are going to use the XDA without a pre-amp and be happy with it. Op Amps are not known for putting out a smooth sound. Harsh is more like it. I tried using my Njoe Tjoeb cd player without a pre-amp and the sound was harsh and without resolution. The Tjoebs output was changed from op-amps to tube buffered upsampler and it still was harsh. Putting it through my favorite pre-amp produced a great sound. The Tjoeb cd player is advertised that it can be used without a pre-amp. I would think that this might be caused by an impedance mismatch or something along those lines. If an output stage, op-amp or otherwise, has noise/harshness how would it be magically cleaned up by inserting another stage? |
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Post by roadrunner on Nov 1, 2010 13:00:11 GMT -5
I would urge caution to those who think they are going to use the XDA without a pre-amp and be happy with it. Op Amps are not known for putting out a smooth sound. Harsh is more like it. I tried using my Njoe Tjoeb cd player without a pre-amp and the sound was harsh and without resolution. The Tjoebs output was changed from op-amps to tube buffered upsampler and it still was harsh. Putting it through my favorite pre-amp produced a great sound. The Tjoeb cd player is advertised that it can be used without a pre-amp. The XDA-1 is not your typical DAC. Its output stage is not via op amp but from a discrete differential pre-amp circuit. This differential output stage is the primary reason that Emotiva recommends connecting the XDA-1 directly to the power amp for optimum sound quality -- particularly if the power amp is also a differential balanced design (like the XPA-1). |
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Post by Poodleluvr on Nov 1, 2010 13:30:35 GMT -5
I'm going to try it with a pair of XPA-1s minus my on-hand USP-1.
Furthermore, to my understanding, the XDA-1 w/o preamp was a configuration displayed at Emofest....
Last, awaiting further update and status of XSP-1 preamp....
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Post by sharkman on Nov 1, 2010 14:01:29 GMT -5
This issue has been raised a few times already on the forum. Emotiva demonstrated a ERC-XDA-XPA1 system at the Rocky Mountain fest and the system wowed the crowd. Someone has since given it a best buy recommendation. Soon enough all of us who are waiting for ours will add to those saying it works fine with an amp, the latest Webcast says we'll be contacted in about 8 days now for shipping/payment info.
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Post by rllrll on Nov 1, 2010 14:49:44 GMT -5
I am currently using a RSP-1 pre-amp with a RPA-2 power amp in my 2 ch. system. The Sub output on the RSP-1 is used for a pair of Rythmik F-15 subwoofers.
My question is, if the RSP-1 is eliminated and the XDA is connected directly to the RPA-1 can I use one set of the XDA's outputs for the subwoofers and another set for RPA-1?
Thanks
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Post by roadrunner on Nov 1, 2010 16:42:17 GMT -5
I am currently using a RSP-1 pre-amp with a RPA-2 power amp in my 2 ch. system. The Sub output on the RSP-1 is used for a pair of Rythmik F-15 subwoofers. My question is, if the RSP-1 is eliminated and the XDA is connected directly to the RPA-1 can I use one set of the XDA's outputs for the subwoofers and another set for RPA-1? Thanks Yep! |
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