If you’ve wondered what a preamplifier is, what it exactly does, and whether your audio setup is missing one, we’ve got the answers—as well as some of our top recommendations.

Krell just announced their flagship Illusion and lower-cost Illusion II stereo preamplifiers. The $15,000 Illusion preamp separates the power supply from the audio circuitry, while the $7,000 Illusion ...

The Rogue Audio RP-9 tube preamplifier sets a very high standard in the category but is it worth the high asking price? Indeed it is. The Rogue Audio RP-9 is the latest flagship preamplifier from the ...

Ex-movie theater projectionist Steve Guttenberg has also worked as a high-end audio salesman, and as a record producer. Steve reviewed audio products for CNET and worked as a freelance writer for ...

Parasound has announced details of its latest stereo preamplifier, the P5. The P5 has a built-in DAC, USB and S/PDIF inputs, and a phono stage to allow the connection of a turntable. The phono amp ...

Back in June, Boulder Amplifiers rejuvenated its midrange offerings with the introduction of the 300-watt 1160 stereo amplifier, the first product in the brand’s new 1100 series. Now, squeezing in ...

The Ayre KX-R Twenty costs as much as a car, but its designer claims the Pono Player will sound almost as good as the preamp! Ex-movie theater projectionist Steve Guttenberg has also worked as a ...

British hi-fi brand Exposure has added a preamplifier and stereo power amplifier to its 3510 series of hi-fi separates. First announced in 2021, the 3510 integrated amplifier kicked off the new series ...

Retro stereo amplifier in black with silver handles. A preamplifier, or preamp for short, is a device that connects and amplifies the audio signal from various audio/visual source components, such as ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Technology journalist specializing in audio, computing and Apple Macs. America’s venerable audio brand McIntosh has just announced ...

I recently had the opportunity to build a lavalliere microphone. The goal is to have a lavalliere microphone drive a small audio amplifier with an appropriate signal level. Technically, the lavalliere ...

The most recent installment of [Dino Segovis’] Hack a Week covers the construction of a simple NPN transistor audio preamp. Some time ago, he built a small audio amplifier using an LM386 which worked ...