Two different preamps for same speakers?

[gcmarshall]

Two different preamps connected to one amp

is it possible, safe, acceptable, etc. to have 2 different preamps connected to a single external amp? for example, i currently have a yamaha rxv2500 in my system. the left/right preout from my 2500 are connected to an external 2 channel amp, which powers my front left/right speakers.

could i also have a separate stereo preamp/tuner (such as the B&K Reference 5 S2), connected to the same amp? i guess i could installed 2 y-connectors on the back of my amp (each y-connector would be of the 1 male/2 female variety). then, the preout cables from my yamaha could connect to one side of the y-connector for each channel and the B&K could connect to the other Y-connector for each channel.

the idea would be to use the B&K preamp for 2 ch music (sending signals to my front left/right speakers) and, then when i want to watch movies, turn off the B&K preamp and use the yamaha rxv2500 to send signals to my front left/right speakers also.

first, is that a doable and safe setup? any potential complications?

second, i have read that preamps can make a difference in quality. would using the B&K preamp for music give any improvement over using the yamaha as my 2 channel preamp, as i am doing now? or, is this a giant waste of money?

 

[gcmarshall]

clarifying my own lengthy question

a simpler way to ask my question is:

is there any reason to think a B&K stereo/tuner preamp connected to a B&K amp will provide better 2 channel music than my yamaha rxv2500?

it is my understanding that my yamaha has a good preamp section, but i have no idea if the B&K preamp (B&K Reference 5 S2) would be noticeably superior or a wash compared to the yamaha.

secondary to that would be how i would connect both the B&K and yamaha to the same 2 ch amp?

 

[mulester7]

the idea would be to use the B&K preamp for 2 ch music (sending signals to my front left/right speakers) and, then when i want to watch movies, turn off the B&K preamp and use the yamaha rxv2500 to send signals to my front left/right speakers also

.....GC, with a CD player connected to the B&K, and a DVD player connected to the receiver, I see no reason this would not work fine considering you're only going to have one or the other even turned on at any time....kind of like a poor man's switching center, haha....I suspect you could even have both units turned on only raising the gain on the one desired at the time, but I would continue your thinking of only powering one or the other as per possible noise factors....the difference here is you're talking millivolted pre-amped signals before amplification, and not amplified watts with any paralleling of two amp sections at speaker or crossover terminals....you can do about anything with unamplified signals......

 

[jmanlp]

doesnt the 2500 have a pure direct mode for 2ch music? It seems like what you gain from the extra preamp wouldn't be worth it, but thats just me. On the other hand if you already had one you could try it, but personally I would just setup a nice 2ch dedicated listening system somewhere else.

 

[W_Harding]

preamp + preamp

Connecting preamplifier outputs together through a "Y" connector is never a good idea. Each preamplifier would see the output of the other. This may, depending on the particular design, cause distortion due the unusual load presented to the active preamplifier by the inactive one.

A better idea is to use a simple switch box that allows you to switch between either one preamp or the other. Such switch boxes can often be purchased for less than thirty dollars. Whether or not using a separate preamp for two-channel listening is worthwhile or not is something that you will have to find out by trying it to see if you can hear a difference. Good luck and good listening.