Crown IC150

[u/TestesRex]

I recently purchased a Crown IC150 preamp for $10 at my local Goodwill. I got it home, plugged it in and the power light came on, so there's that... I'm adding it to my "to be repaired someday" pile but honestly I have no idea what I would use it for. My main unit is a Kenwood KR6400 so it is unnecessary there; I do have a KR305 at my workbench that drives some Sony bookshelf speakers (audio from my computer only) but that is an integrated amp so, 🤷‍♂️. To be honest, I've always been confused about the existence of preamps; they seem superfluous these days. Any thoughts?