Transformer volume control preamps

[jammy395]

Bollocks.............

[Dr Bunsen Honeydew]

It's not so simple....there's a reason why sales of TVC preamps have risen steadily in recent years. They will drive any power amp, assuming adequate sensitivity. They don't have the impedance matching issues which plain passives have in some mismatched systems. Often tvcs do sound better, but not always. People don't buy stuff like MF because they are dumb. And Mf don't sell their main transformers to other suppliers, they do sell rather cheaper, smaller, ones.
I sometimes us a Tisbury, which sounds fine...but a good TVC sounds quite a lot better in my particulat system. Overall, I still prefer an active preamp , again, in this specific system. There's no 'one size fits all'' guarantee here.
So, try it and see. A basic passive may be fine, and a lot cheaper, but you might find the TVC is a better match. Depends.
BTW Philador..are you a chess fan by any chance? The Modern Philador is my favourite opening. Trouble is, I lose a lot....

Why do you think a transformer output is a better match for amps that a pot or sa.

[Lindsayt]

I tried a Promitheus Reference TVC. Nice midrange, but I didn't like the bass nor the treble in my system. Prefered the sound of my Lightspeed LDR attenuator.

[southall-1998]

I tried a Promitheus Reference TVC. Nice midrange, but I didn't like the bass nor the treble in my system. Prefered the sound of my Lightspeed LDR attenuator.

Was the treble mushy?

S.

[Lindsayt]

The bass was mushy / woolly. The treble lacked clarity / focus, as if the transformers were ringing.
All of the sources I used with it were ex professional kit. I wondered if they were overloading / saturating the transformers?

[paskinner]

So, everyone who buys a TVC is a bit deaf, and presumably stupid too. Strange how so many perfectly fit and intelligent people have reached a different conclusion. They're all talking 'bollocks' are they? Lucky you guys are so much brighter. Got better hearing too. Excellent, lucky chaps.

[Classicrock]

The Music First preamps sound pretty good in the right system. It's their pricing I have a problem with. They do use some of the best transformers around.

[Philidor]

Anyone tried the Django TVC Preamps. They seem to be the cheapest passives to use transformer volume control. $600 for the basic model.
Still bloody expensive for a Volume control.

[Dr Bunsen Honeydew]

So, everyone who buys a TVC is a bit deaf, and presumably stupid too. Strange how so many perfectly fit and intelligent people have reached a different conclusion. They're all talking 'bollocks' are they? Lucky you guys are so much brighter. Got better hearing too. Excellent, lucky chaps.

This what I said, and this is what I think "They work and some people like them. I tried and I don't like them" so sarcasm not required. You have different OPINION!!

[Lindsayt]

So, everyone who buys a TVC is a bit deaf, and presumably stupid too. Strange how so many perfectly fit and intelligent people have reached a different conclusion. They're all talking 'bollocks' are they? Lucky you guys are so much brighter. Got better hearing too. Excellent, lucky chaps.

The issues I had in the bass with my TVC were similar to the same ones I had with my LP12 / Ittok / Troika. Use my TVC with an LP12, Naim Aro and possibly some lean / unextended speakers or a room with excessive bass echo for the speaker placement and the bass flaws would be somewhat masked by flaws elsewhere in the system.
The treble issues may well also be reduced with sources with lower outputs than my professional ones. And as I said the midrange was good with my TVC.