ITRocks

I am now the proud owner of a used Audio Refinement Pre-5. The eBay auction just ended.

Semona

CONGRATS

Reading the reviews on the Audio Refinement pre-5 sounds like an excellent product for those wanting audio excellence without the need for HT.

It seems like there's great product products for solutions aimed at just HT or just 2-ch enthusiaists but when it comes to middle ground it's still a bit of a grey area. To get the best of both worlds in one setup a compromise is the only way out. But, the Sony TAP goes a long way in bridging that gap but surely since it's retirement, other products have popped up to take it's place. Anyone wish to elaborate on this?

Would be nice if Sony released a 7.1 version of the TAP, would be a killer.

TechBoy

I am also interested in getting a multi-channel pre-amp with an excellent 2-ch bypass like the TA-P9000ES. However, with 7.1 DD-TrueHD and DTS-HD coming, I am not sure if it is a good time to jump into a 5.1 pre-amp. Will we see 7.1 pre-amps in a year or two? I am about 50% HT and 50% 2-ch audio.

What do you think?

Cyborg

Sounds like you're in the same boat as I am. If you're listening to 2-CH at least 50% of the time then you can justify buying a pre 5.1 such as the Sony, especially when they're sought after and hold their value so well after 7 years being out of production.

There will always be a market for high quality pre-amplifiers and if in a year or two 7.1 variants of the Sony or any other products were released, come time to resell your pre 5.1 you will have no problems in retaining most of what you paid for it originally. Buy something now and enjoy the benefits of what pre 5.1's can offer until 7.1 solutions are readily available.