Hi, All,

I recently bought a new SACD/CD player (Marantz SA-11S1) and I would like to do some listening comparisons between this player and my Musical Fidelity Tri-Vista 21 DAC.

The Marantz' output level is about 1 dB higher than the Tri-Vista's (levels viewed on my scope using the CBS test CD).

I am interested in the best way to attenuate the level of the Marantz.

My hunch is that simply placing an adjustable resistor in series with the "hot" input line at the input of the preamp will do the trick. (I know that this would slightly increase the output impedance of the Marantz player, but probably only by a few hundred ohms)

Once I determine the proper resitor value I would solder up a plug-in attenuator using a high-quality fixed resistor.

Is there another, better, or more "standard" way of attenuating a signal?

Is there a web site that outlines a specific procedure?

I have done a number of CD player modifications over the years, and I've built two preamps (a-la Audio Amateur), so I am capable of building just about any resonable "active" device or buffer, but I would definitely prefer a "passive" attenuator here, for obvious reasons!

Thanks for any advice or suggestions!

Ken