Tír Na HiFi

Looking for a preamp (would be great If IT had a dac as well) remote control....really good and really cheap :)

There’s a Rotel pre with remote and Dac on the Cloney’s second hand section. Not sure if that suits the definition of cheap?

Alternatively it might be possible to buy separate pre amp and dacs cheaper?

I am preaty sure I will go for a Cyrus 8 dac integrated and will use as pre....the speakers are 4ways with 11inch bass driver....so need a bit of power.got a nice meridian power amp (thank you John) but with the pre I have I need to go at 92-94 out of100 so maybe something with more gain....
Wanted to see if there are other options

Mmmh... to me it sounds like there is a bad match between power amp and speakers. In that case replacing the pre would not change the result too much. Rather than the number of ways and the size of the woofer you'd better check their sensitivity and impedance imho. What speakers do you have?

Best

Well, I am in a strange point at this moment...its a pair of Audio Physic Codex (and a second pair of speakers Cube Audio Nenuphar) the rest of the system is sub-budget -a Sony dvd as transport into a topping dac pre and pair of aiyima monos or meridian power At the moment all I want is build a system to help me decide on one of the pair of speakers to keep, at later date sell the other pair and use the money to build better system.i would be looking at something powerfull if i keep the codex or class a If i keep the cube audios (hope that makes sense....).
So just looking for something to help me make a decision,

The Codex are rated 89dB and 4ohm, so not a hard speaker for a Meridian power amp. The Nenuphar are even better. With both you should not have driving problems, so I am surprised when you say you need 9/10 of the amp output.

Best

Lots of interesting gear there but I’m afraid I’ve not heard of before, so I’m unable to advise.

With so many different components I’d suggest making gradual changes and experiment with how the sound changes. Don’t underestimate the importance of “the source “ however.

A very good sound can be achieved for relatively modest outlay, some great bargains to be had in the second hand section of Cloney’s. Synergy is an important factor, I heard a 8K amp powering a pair of 20K speakers and it sounded totally wrong. Swap out the 8K amp for a 2K unit and then bingo it all sounds very nice! Proof that the price is not an indication of quality sound.

Sound great sound to be had in vintage gear too, again showing that newer is not always better. Quad 57’s being a well known example.

But blind buying based on online reviews is fraught with risk, even if it is at a bargain price. You just have to trust your ears!

There’s a Quad Vena II amp with integrated Dac for sale on Cloney’s for 650 or so. It can be used as a pre amp too. Might be a good place to start wrt A B comparison tests?

Hi Paul, do you want to try the 556 with the 561 control unit I have? I used both together for a number of years driving a variety of speakers, (Meridian A500, PMC FB1, Ruark Sabre and Gale 401's among others). If you want to try the 561 you're welcome, as it would rule out a mismatch between the pre and power amp.

Thanks John, will get in touch next week