Dusty Chalk
07-12-2004, 04:01 PM
Just got a pair of Dynaudio Special 25's, which are pretty power-hungry. I sold off my MF A3^CR pre and power, and now I'm regretting it. I'm thinking of getting an A300^CR (the big brother of the A3^CR) power, but not sure what I should do for a pre. I'm thinking of either the A3.2 or the A308, but am also somewhat considering the CD-PRE. I've pretty much ruled this last one out, except that it says that it (just talking about the analog pre-amp section, not the DAC/ADC or CDP sections) is a step up from the A3^CR, which was pretty darn good, and I'm guessing not as good as the A3.2, which, in turn, is not as good as the A308. (In other words, I think they go like this: A3^CR < CD-PRE < A3.2 < A308, and the prices almost reflect this -- if the CD-PRE really is cheaper than the A3.2, then it might be a way to go.)
Here's the thing. I'm currently running them from a Manley Stingray, which is pretty darn good, but I need to put something in between my sources and the Manley Stingray, because I miss being able to switch my source for my headphone setup (which I ran out of the tape outs of the MF A3^CR pre). I've seen a couple of A308's on Audiogon for US$1.7-2+K, which is only about US$500 more than the A3.2 (US$1.2-1.5K). Since I'm doing that, I'm thinking of just putting the pre-outs onto the A300 and be done with it. I can always do that part later. Yes, that means I'll be running the signal through two attenuators (the one in the pre, and the ones in the Manley), but the ones in the Manley are pretty transparent, so I'm not too worried.
That said, are there any other pre's I should be looking at? I like the full-ranged and very smooth yet transparent sound of the MF's. Would prefer to spend between US$1-1.5K (the A308's are just outside of this, so they are absolutely at the top of my range).
Here's the thing. I'm currently running them from a Manley Stingray, which is pretty darn good, but I need to put something in between my sources and the Manley Stingray, because I miss being able to switch my source for my headphone setup (which I ran out of the tape outs of the MF A3^CR pre). I've seen a couple of A308's on Audiogon for US$1.7-2+K, which is only about US$500 more than the A3.2 (US$1.2-1.5K). Since I'm doing that, I'm thinking of just putting the pre-outs onto the A300 and be done with it. I can always do that part later. Yes, that means I'll be running the signal through two attenuators (the one in the pre, and the ones in the Manley), but the ones in the Manley are pretty transparent, so I'm not too worried.
That said, are there any other pre's I should be looking at? I like the full-ranged and very smooth yet transparent sound of the MF's. Would prefer to spend between US$1-1.5K (the A308's are just outside of this, so they are absolutely at the top of my range).