Using a XDA-1 with a tube amp.......good or bad?

[jvs1670]

Would this make any sense at all or am I defeating the whole point of using a tube amp? Has anyone done this? I want set up a 2 channel system with Klipschorns.

[Cogito]

Everything from the source to your speakers will affect the sound. It all depends on what you expect from the XDA-1. Try it and see if you like it.

[garbulky]

You won't defeat the point of a tube amp. Depends on the sound you are after. The XDA-1 may give you a bit of glare on the treble which is my main critic of it. But it has a presentation that makes everything sound very airy and open which is nice. There are better DACs out there but you may end up paying more for it. If you just use a PC only, a audioquest dragonfly 1.2 is also a very competent dac.

[brubacca]

There was an early review of XDA-1 that stated it was a very good match for a tube amp.

I have tried it with my Cronus a year ago. It didn't stay that way, but I had a lot going on at the time with my system. Can't say I specifically remember why I changed it. It certainly worked technically, but I remember being underwhelmed, but that may have been my source into the dac.

[lehighvalleyjeff]

I currently run a tube pre amplifier to solid state amps with great results. This is the opposite of what you are proposing.




As an experiment I took my preamp out and ran the CD player to an Emotiva Control Freak volume control then to my amps. The thinking was to bypass all the electronics in the preamp stage.

The result was awful to say the least. Highs were metallic and thin, everything sounded homogenized and it sounded cold and accurately analytical. Needless to say I was very disappointed.

Next I tried using an old Marantz sr4600 recieved preamp out between source and my amp. This proved to instantly make an obvious improvement overall. Bass was there transients were fast and sounded much more natural. I listened for a few hours.

Then I took the marantz receiver out and inserted my dedicated preamp. Pressed play and waited for the cd to start......

Holy Smokes!!!!! Was like a completely different system entirely. The instruments were leaping out at me and the dynamics were a night and day difference from the receiver.

The conclusion that I drew from this was that while on paper the theory says source to amp no preamp should sound the best it doesn't always. Secondly all preamp outs are not created equally. I very much underestimated the value of the preamp stage and it's impact on sound quality.

I've never had an xda-1 but my suggestion is to try it and then compare it with the xda-1 through a dedicated preamp and see what sounds best.

I always believed the preamp stage to be irrelevant unless we are talking about phono. Well, I disproved this with digital today.

Cheers

[AudioHTIT]

I liked the XDA-1 and better yet the XDA-2 with my VTL tube amps, I don't think there is anything 'defeating the purpose' with this combo. Give it a try.

[jvs1670]

The glare and treble is what I'm trying to control, these speakers can sound overly bright as it is now. I guess you guys are right that I can just try it and see, my XDA-1 is just sitting idle waiting to get fired up.

Jeff: That is usually the combo people go with it seems, having a tube pre amp and ss amps is much more common than what I'm suggesting. Thanks for all the info. Not sure what to do.

[AudioHTIT]

My thoughts are that you pick a tube or solid state amp based on how well they drive (and mate with) your speakers. Once you've paired those up then you look at preamps that meet your requirements for inputs, outputs, and features. Finally you look at the designs within your budget (tubes, SS, passive, DAC/Pre), do your research and give one a shot (since you have the XDA-1 that part's easy).

[vcautokid]

I think the XDA1 is a great compliment solid state, or tube wise. Like many say here try it out, see how it all sounds to you. I think the Dragon fly is super duper as a portable solution on the go, but I like the flexibility the XDA1 gives you. Coax, and Optical inputs, AES/EBU too, so the digital sources you have are not left out. Just my 5 cents. Yeah, inflation you know.