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preamplifier

American  
[pree-am-pluh-fahy-er] / priˈæm pləˌfaɪ ər /

noun

  1. a device in the amplifier circuit of a radio or phonograph that increases the strength of a weak signal for detection and further amplification.

preamplifier British  
/ priːˈæmplɪˌfaɪə /

noun

  1. Sometimes shortened to: preamp.  an electronic amplifier used to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of an electronic device. It boosts a low-level signal to an intermediate level before it is transmitted to the main amplifier

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of preamplifier

First recorded in 1930–35; pre- + amplifier

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.