All good suggestions - buy a nice condition BEL power amp and send it to me for upgrades and then you will be dome with all of this.
Happy Listening.
Best upgrade: amp or pre-amp?
Of course, it depends...
So here is my setup:
I was thinking to upgrade to an integrated (McIntosh, Hegel or Pass Labs are on top of my list), but I might decide to go for the long game: get the best amp/pre-amp for the same budget as the integrated (max 10k CAD) and update the other half later, in 5 years-ish..
So I'm open to suggestion! But remember a suggested a pre-amp, must match the MC7100 and an amp must match the C712 as I plan you have them together for a little while.
Thanks for the hive mind. I realize this is a tricky question!