Good tube preamp with Sony 5400

I have a rebuilt H/K Citation 16a that I will probably hold on to for a while. I am somewhat satisfied to think I am using a Marantz receiver as the pre right now. I am very curious to hear the difference a good preamp should make...

Anon..you are right,the other thread about the Sony was deleted.
Glad to hear from you again. I still have a little time to decide before I am ready to buy. I have been watching to see if a Doge 8 would come up on Audiogon to see what it may go for. The only one I have ever seen went for around 950 or 1000 with some extra tubes I think.
As far as it being worth it to me to spend the extra $...it would be because this will be my last purchase for a while.(im sure im the first to say that!)
I got a couple sacds in the mail yesterday and had a day off today so I tinkered around a bit. Initial impression was very crisp and detailed but maybe too bright. It may sound rediculous but I have some old Klipshe surround speakers hooked up to a Walmart special in my garage that this new "Genius Loves Company" cd sounded fantastic on. Balanced and easy to listen to.haha.
Sooooo...where is my upper region overkill coming from? I am hoping it is the preamp? Warmth and midrange is my focus. I think I have enough power with the Citation.
I guess you should go ahead and get rid of the Doge soon, I may know someone to take it off of your hands.:)
In terms of warmth I wanted to know how the preamps I was interested in ranked? Out of the Cary, Joule, Doge, and Mcintosh.

What are the characteristics of Thor preamps?

I just read that Thor audio was sold a while back and a new line is scheduled for release next year.

Thorman
When you say an original are you referring to the ta1000 as far as line stage. If so what price range are we talking?

I just read the response from Ted at Thor. He was very nice and prompt. Their new line stage will retail for around 17K. He suggested picking up a used one and upgrades can be done in stages if wanted.
He even offered to check out and clean the unit if I decide to go that route. A+ for Thor so far and I havent even heard one.haha

Has anyone heard the Doge 8 Clarity?

I think I will keep my eyes open for a used Thor.

Well well...a used Thor has popped up but way over my budget for now.:( Not sure if it would be worth it to buy an entry level tube pre to tinker around with for a while or not. The "tube" curiosity is getting to me.haha

Jolida 5t, Dynaco Pas3, or Quicksilver linestage? All seem interesting for around 500. The Jolida only has 10db gain though...is that enough?

The Thor ta1000 should be here this week. CAN NOT wait to see and hear it!

Thanks. I can hardly wait. I kinda stretched my budget, so for the sake of my marriage....it better be a keeper! This particular ta1000 has upgrades, the only drawback is they werent done by Thor.

One week into the Thor. By far the mosts progress I have made through a single component.

Chayro
I am not really good at all of the terms people tend to use in trying to explain their listening but here goes..

Going from a Marantz receiver to the Thor preamp put my system into another category. Really hard to pinpoint a single factor...because everything sounds better. My sound floor is at around step 2 out of 24, which makes for MUCH more enjoyable listening.

The midrange is super full of power as well as detail. Seperartion of instument instead of just a bunch of background jumbled up. I was really reaching to convince myself that my system sounded good before.haha I mean you have to go with what you have at the time.

I probably sound a little over the top but I REALLY feel like the Thor was a homerun. I dont even have any decent tubes in it yet.

I actually have a room of sound instead a lot of LOUD sound. I am sure there is plenty room to grow but I am grinning ear to ear right now. Mind you I am using a rebuilt H/K Citation 16 for amp. I thought before I was lacking power bc I would turn it up so loud trying to hear detail, to the point of clipping.NO GOOD!

I wish I had a better reference to compare how good this upgraded Thor is..I just know it is good.

Something else I noticed is that I really dont hear much difference between the cd/sacd playback on the Sony?? In a good way. Thanks for asking Jayson

Dr3
That has been in my plan since I bought the 5400. Do you own a Modded unit?

Today I went to listen to Sonus Faber Cremonas.
They were hooked up through a processor as the pre and sounded less than stellar.
The whole time I was thinking "Man, Im glad I got that Thor preamp!"