How To Use a Vintage Receiver as a Preamp (With Photos)

A step by step guide on how to connect the preamp in a vintage integrated amplifier to an external amplifier, using photos taken from a Marantz 2270 receiver and Emotiva BASX A-100 amplifier.

My Marantz 2270 and Emotiva BASX A-100 amplifier.

Connecting an integrated receiver’s preamp to an amplifier only requires connecting a pair of RCA cables to the correct inputs (read further below for photos):

  1. Locate the Main In and Pre Out inputs with jumpers on the rear of the vintage receiver.
  2. Remove the jumpers from the inputs on the receiver and store them in a safe location.
  3. Plug RCA cables into the Pre Out input on the receiver with the red cable in the Right input and the white cable into the Left input.
  4. Next, look at the rear of the amplifier and locate the Input RCA inputs.
  5. Connect the RCA cables from the receiver to the Input RCA inputs on the rear of the amplifier.
  6. Power on the receiver first, then the amplifier and use the volume control on the receiver to adjust volume as needed.
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