As a relative newbie just getting back into audio, I set myself up with an all-digital system to work with FLACs and 320 MP3s. The main elements are an Audiolab M-DAC pre-amp/DAC with an Audiolab M-PWR power amp. I love the sound of my system and don't want to fundamentally alter it, but I would like to dip a toe into the vinyl world. I'm looking at something like the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon turntable, but since the M-DAC has no analogue inputs, I've no way that I can see of adding a turntable into my system. The M-PWR has both RCA and balanced XLR inputs. The M-DAC also supports XLR, so I've connected the M-DAC to the M-PWR using the XLR inputs. Obviously the volume control is on the M-DAC and not the M-PWR. I'm still going to be doing the majority of my listening from digital sources, so I don't want to dismantle my system and start again. If I get an additional pre-amp component, I want to avoid disconnecting speaker cables or interconnects every time I switch between digital and vinyl sources.
Questions: Has anyone got any suggestions? Do I need a phono pre-amp with volume control that would work with the M-PWR? What would happen if I connected a phono pre-amp into the RCA inputs of the M-PWR whilst the M-DAC was still connected to the XLR inputs? Would that be ok as long as only one pre-amp was powered up at any given time? Is this a lost cause? Given the components I already have, you can probably make reasonable assumptions about a 'proportionate' budget.
As a relative newbie just getting back into audio, I set myself up with an all-digital system to work with FLACs and 320 MP3s. The main elements are an Audiolab M-DAC pre-amp/DAC with an Audiolab M-PWR power amp. I love the sound of my system and don't want to fundamentally alter it, but I would like to dip a toe into the vinyl world. I'm looking at something like the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon turntable, but since the M-DAC has no analogue inputs, I've no way that I can see of adding a turntable into my system. The M-PWR has both RCA and balanced XLR inputs. The M-DAC also supports XLR, so I've connected the M-DAC to the M-PWR using the XLR inputs. Obviously the volume control is on the M-DAC and not the M-PWR. I'm still going to be doing the majority of my listening from digital sources, so I don't want to dismantle my system and start again. If I get an additional pre-amp component, I want to avoid disconnecting speaker cables or interconnects every time I switch between digital and vinyl sources.
Questions: Has anyone got any suggestions? Do I need a phono pre-amp with volume control that would work with the M-PWR? What would happen if I connected a phono pre-amp into the RCA inputs of the M-PWR whilst the M-DAC was still connected to the XLR inputs? Would that be ok as long as only one pre-amp was powered up at any given time? Is this a lost cause? Given the components I already have, you can probably make reasonable assumptions about a 'proportionate' budget.