iPod with Belkin's Tune Stage

Here's my two cents: Get an iPod Universal Dock with the matching remote and a quality "3.5 mm jack to RCA cable" from Crystal or Kimber. Skip the preamp and plug the whole setup straight to your amplifier. You can control the volume, play, pause, and skip songs with the remote. The resultant sound is unbelievably good! If you have a receiver, just turn the receiver's volume pot all the way up and use the remote to control the level. Short of getting an Airport Extreme and a dedicated DAC, this is the best sound you can extract from an iPod.

Regards,
Aisip

If you like the remote with a screen, check out the Sonos system. the controller is awesome - like an ipod in use, but with a bigger screen and some dedicate buttons. Well designed and very high fidelity.