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Shunted Step Attenuator

lordsummit

lordsummit

Moderator
I’m considering having a passive pre made for me, and I’m pondering what sort of attenuator to use. I have one at the moment that uses a little Valab attenuator, and it sounds very good indeed. The box is very flexible though, and it’s very easy to move the RCA sockets by accident.

The builder has suggested so far either a Dale stepped attenuator, or a Khozmo unit. The Dale is £30 and the Khozmo £160. I’m wondering what else I could look at, is the Khozmo really worth coughing for, or is there anything else to choose from? I’ve seen the Glasshouse ones, they come in the middle somewhere, are they worth considering? I’m not convinced the Dale wouldn’t be a downgrade on the Valab, I could get another Valab, but maybe there’s something better out there! Could the same be a bit boring!?
 
Valab do an excellent Ladder attenuator. I use them in two home built pre-amps and am very pleased with the results.
 
I’d maybe look at the HiFi Collective Takman as a middle-ground (link). There is a review on the site (carbon is a little warmer than metal-film, which would likely suit). By the time you have gone stereo and got them to build and added VAT it you are looking at £80 odd. The advantage the Khozmo has over it is it is 48 step so way more range.
 
I (maybe wrongly) assume the ‘blue’ one is a no-name switch of almost certainly Chinese origin, wheras Elma and Seiden are both known high quality brands. The difference in price is significant but my instinct is not to compromise as once built a passive attenuator pre should last for the rest of your life and assuming the rest of the system matches is unbeatable IMHO. I’m sure I’ll have my pair of Audio Synthesis passives for the duration.

One thing I notice is that it is a couple of quid cheaper to go dual mono, which gives you a balance function. I love that about my ProPassion, though that is quite clever in that the steps are finer in the area you are likely to use, plus it has a few more steps to start with (31 IIRC). I’d be very tempted by two monos anyway.
 
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