Disregard anything ASR says.
I think we need to understand more about what you are trying to do.
In general, the more expensive the better sounding the equipment. Schiit is great budget gear… but is not going to stack up against a $10K audiophile preamp.
If I were writing down requirements for a preamp it would be a long list of sonic characteristics, with my musical preferences, associated equipment… in this scenario technology would not enter… and particularly not the connector… as it is likely to be such a tiny difference in comparison with the other characteristics.
Definitely, Ayre, Pass, Mark Levinson, Krell.
Many of the best preamps are tubed. Unless you have a very compelling reson for discounting them I would recommend searching on sound characteristics and then choose a preamp, regardless of technology. The preamp is so central to the sound characteristics of a system and high quality tubed preamps are very reliable, not producing the heat of tubed amps.
If you care to share your current system, components, and venue there is a place to put photos of your system under your ID. We can be more helpful the more we know. You can get a very good preamp for $10K. Worth a lot of thought.
