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Anyone Using A Lampizator Golden Gate (with volume control) Directly Into Your Power Amp?


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It would appear that I will be fortunate enough to purchase this dream DAC at an incredible price very soon from an original owner. I was just wondering if anyone here also owns one, and is using it via its optional volume control/preamp circuit directly to the power amp(s) and what your thoughts are on doing so. I've previously had some very mixed results, to out it kindly, experimenting with my previous system, and those of friends and others. The results we had were heavily favoring using a preamp and not connecting directly from DAC to amp. However, I have read more and more, of late, of people's success in going direct, and one of my friend found that also worked for him with his Lampizator Big 7, with volume control.

 

I'm very torn about this, as I currently own an absolutely amazing preamp which took my system to a new level that I just sit in wonder at. Giving it up to go direct would be painful and disappointing, but then there is the almost incontrovertible logic that a shorter, less complex path should always result in better audio performance. 

 

For reference, I will be using the Golden Gate with an UltraRendu, LPS 1.2 power supply, and a Sonic Transporter. 

 

JC

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I'm interested in the answer too! 

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5 hours ago, TubeLover said:

Thank you for directing me to that forum!

 

JC

I would take advantage of Lampizator's free service about getting the DAC checked out as part of the purchase.  I own a B7 with out remote.  I have never owned a Lampizator with remote so I cannot comment on it but even if you have one with preamp, you can set the volume to max and use external preamp, it you think it is lacking.

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5 hours ago, shadowlight said:

I would take advantage of Lampizator's free service about getting the DAC checked out as part of the purchase.  I own a B7 with out remote.  I have never owned a Lampizator with remote so I cannot comment on it but even if you have one with preamp, you can set the volume to max and use external preamp, it you think it is lacking.

Good advice. And, in fact, the DAC I am purchasing is already on it's way from the original owner to the Lampizator factory to be completely checked out, and will have a full, five year warranty, when I receive it. 

 

JC

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

In the end, of twenty one people I polled that owned Lampizator Golden Gates, sixteen felt that it performed at it's best when matched with a compatible preamp. In this instance, it also wasn't only being compatible, in terms of synching well, the preamp needed to be one of very high quality. And capable of passing along the strengths of the Golden Gate, the incredible clarity and insight into the music, and dynamics, but all without a hint of  brightness or shrillness. To that, the preamp needed to  bring it's own qualities to the signal. 

Of course, I did create a list of preamps that the satisfied Golden Gate owners were using. In the end, I discovered that my finances could afford virtually none of them, excepting possible one only sold in Europe which is not available for US voltage. 

 

I spent the last nine weeks researching preamplifiers to death. I talked to everyone from known audio reviewers, to distributors, to owners of prominent brick and mortar audio stores, to primary audio forum experts, to friends I had made in the industry and also some well heeled audiophiles I had access to that have bought, demoed and sold as many as twenty or more preamps each. 

 

In the end, I had a list of what, ideally, I would look for, on sale used (to allow some affordability). The other night, one in the most desirable grouping appeared, and in mint condition, original owner, all packaging, accessores etc. available, and with a new set of NOS tubes. The price was also more than fair. I quickly purchased the unit, and am having to bide my time until the owner gets back from his extended New Year's trip to his cabin in the mountains on January 6th. He will ship the next day, Monday, the 7th.

 

This is a very rarely found preamp, that also "completely coincidentally" will match beautifully with my amplifier,. The DAC in question?  The Conrad Johnson ACT2. This is referred to as, essentially, a one chassis version of the fabled, ultra limited, and ungodly expensive, ART2 preamp. I was very fortunate to have this fall into my lap, and, based on the Conrad Johnson expertise I had available to me, including an incredibly knowledgeable former CJ distributor, and people within CJ itself, it should not only be a superb preamp, but a great match with my Golden Gate. It's also, in my opinion, a stunningly attractive piece of gear, so bonus there. I can't wait until I receive the delivery and cant connect things up.

 

Review link included:

 

https://www.stereophile.com/tubepreamps/305cj/index.html

 

JC

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Hey @TubeLover, I'm using the same configuration as you. I got my Lampi GG in mid December and I'm using it connected directly to a Line Magnetic 508ia amp. The VC of the Lampi handily beat that of the integrated LM amp (no surprise there). 

 

However, like you, I'm looking to eke out as much performance from my setup as possible. I'm actually looking to replace the integrated amp with another integrated so I'm attacking the issue from that direction.

 

Glad to hear you found a preamp that could take things to the level you seek. Hopefully you find the ACT 2 commensurate with the quality of the GG, and you don't get tempted by the GAT or GAT2 down the road.

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8 hours ago, adamaley said:

Hey @TubeLover, I'm using the same configuration as you. I got my Lampi GG in mid December and I'm using it connected directly to a Line Magnetic 508ia amp. The VC of the Lampi handily beat that of the integrated LM amp (no surprise there). 

 

However, like you, I'm looking to eke out as much performance from my setup as possible. I'm actually looking to replace the integrated amp with another integrated so I'm attacking the issue from that direction.

 

Glad to hear you found a preamp that could take things to the level you seek. Hopefully you find the ACT 2 commensurate with the quality of the GG, and you don't get tempted by the GAT or GAT2 down the road.

I had a Line Magnetic 219ia in house for a while. I liked it very much, but it simply couldnt drive the speakers I was using, despite all the claims that it had the power to drive things that you wouldn't expect. What other integrateds are you considering? There are some very interesting things out there, though they can get very pricey. And honestly, other than power limitations, you do have to go quite a  ways upward to out perform the Line Magnetics.

 

And no danger of being tempted by a GAT or GAT 2. My finances simply don't extend nearly that far, even at a good used price! 

 

JC

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The one integrated amp that's tempting me now is the Absolare Passion Integrated. I just absolutely have to hear one before purchasing. I am concerned it may not have that SET magic. It's a hybrid with a tube line stage. I've heard their Passion 845 SET amp at shows and they were great. Most reviewers claim the integrated has a similar sound to the amp, but I'm still concerned about what may subjectively be missing.

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22 hours ago, adamaley said:

The one integrated amp that's tempting me now is the Absolare Passion Integrated. I just absolutely have to hear one before purchasing. I am concerned it may not have that SET magic. It's a hybrid with a tube line stage. I've heard their Passion 845 SET amp at shows and they were great. Most reviewers claim the integrated has a similar sound to the amp, but I'm still concerned about what may subjectively be missing.

I understand, that SET magic can be very elusive, and I honestly don't remember a hybrid capturing it, in my experience.

 

JC

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 1/2/2019 at 10:08 PM, TubeLover said:

In the end, of twenty one people I polled that owned Lampizator Golden Gates, sixteen felt that it performed at it's best when matched with a compatible preamp. In this instance, it also wasn't only being compatible, in terms of synching well, the preamp needed to be one of very high quality. And capable of passing along the strengths of the Golden Gate, the incredible clarity and insight into the music, and dynamics, but all without a hint of  brightness or shrillness. To that, the preamp needed to  bring it's own qualities to the signal. 

Of course, I did create a list of preamps that the satisfied Golden Gate owners were using.

 

Can you please share this list of preamps? I'm considering getting a Golden Gate and have also been wondering if I should get it with a built in volume control or get a separate preamp. I would love to know which preamps people preferred to the built in volume control. Thanks!

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The list of preamps that were mostly as follows:

 

Audio Research REF 5SE

Audio Research REF 6

Audio Research REF 10

Audio Research Reference Anniversary

Aries Cerat (either the Incito or upper model) - this was a big favorite of no less than five people, but is mostly in Europe, though there is a distributor here

Dartzeel NAB-18NS

Impera 2 REF

Impera II Signature

D'Agostino

 

As you can see, these are all quite pricey preamps, and I also personally wouldn't recommend the AT stuff unless you have an overly warm system otherwise.

 

I can add that I couldn't be happier with my Conrad Johnson ACT 2 (though they can be difficult to find). 

 

Also, if you do go for the Lampizator Golden Gate, almost across the board, the users I discussed things with felt that you simply must try the 242 tubes to hear what the DAC is capable of.

 

JC

 

 

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, TubeLover said:

I also personally wouldn't recommend the AT stuff unless you have an overly warm system otherwise

What do you mean by AT stuff?

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Thanks so much for the list and the tips! These are indeed some pricey preamps. Perhaps, you meant AR (Audio Research) rather than AT? That has been on my radar as people say that it pairs well with a Pass power amps. I have an XA30.8. One of the issues that I have though is that because I have a small room and the XA30.8 becomes a bit of a space heater in a room of that size, I don't have much more tolerance for heat in my room. So, I'm trying not to get a preamp that gets too hot, which seems like it might be the case with the AR preamps (and possibly others).

 

Has anyone tried passive preamps with the Golden Gate and found it to be better (or as good) as the built in volume control? That would give me a way of starting with passive and then incrementally going the high end preamp route. It will let me test out which preamp would work in terms of heat and would particularly help in spreading out the cost over time.

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4 hours ago, strat said:

Thanks so much for the list and the tips! These are indeed some pricey preamps. Perhaps, you meant AR (Audio Research) rather than AT? That has been on my radar as people say that it pairs well with a Pass power amps. I have an XA30.8. One of the issues that I have though is that because I have a small room and the XA30.8 becomes a bit of a space heater in a room of that size, I don't have much more tolerance for heat in my room. So, I'm trying not to get a preamp that gets too hot, which seems like it might be the case with the AR preamps (and possibly others).

 

Has anyone tried passive preamps with the Golden Gate and found it to be better (or as good) as the built in volume control? That would give me a way of starting with passive and then incrementally going the high end preamp route. It will let me test out which preamp would work in terms of heat and would particularly help in spreading out the cost over time.

Sorry, I did indeed mean AR. But, importantly, I know of virtually no preamps that will create any noticeable heat, so please don't base anything on that. Preamps almost always present a very light load to the tubes, and thus, create almost no heat. No need to consider passive at all. 

And, by the way, that is an excellent Pass amp that you have. 

 

JC

 

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On 1/24/2019 at 12:09 PM, TubeLover said:

The list of preamps that were mostly as follows:

 

Audio Research REF 5SE

Audio Research REF 6

Audio Research REF 10

Audio Research Reference Anniversary

Aries Cerat (either the Incito or upper model) - this was a big favorite of no less than five people, but is mostly in Europe, though there is a distributor here

Dartzeel NAB-18NS

Impera 2 REF

Impera II Signature

D'Agostino

 

As you can see, these are all quite pricey preamps, and I also personally wouldn't recommend the AT stuff unless you have an overly warm system otherwise.

 

I can add that I couldn't be happier with my Conrad Johnson ACT 2 (though they can be difficult to find). 

 

Also, if you do go for the Lampizator Golden Gate, almost across the board, the users I discussed things with felt that you simply must try the 242 tubes to hear what the DAC is capable of.

 

JC

 

 

 

 

 


Jeez, were you that thorough with your DACs & amplifiers as well?

Speaking of which, what were your last DACs before getting the Pacific?

 

 

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4 hours ago, ThenewGearPPK said:


Jeez, were you that thorough with your DACs & amplifiers as well?

Speaking of which, what were your last DACs before getting the Pacific?

 

 

I think you may have misunderstood. I did not personally try all those expensive preamps. They were recommended to me as pairing well with the Golden Gate DAC by actual owners of the DAC.

 

To answer your other question, the DAC I owned prior to the Golden Gate was the exceptional ModWright Elyse.

 

JC

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