I'll bump this up. I am on the hunt for a new tube pre as well. I was able to audition a c2600 and luxman cl38uc back to back, and the Luxman has a far better phono stage. I owned it for a while, and the bug hit me. The sold it to fund a Luxman 590axii, and immediately regretted it. The Luxman also uses much cheaper 12au7 in the preamp section. 3x nos rca clear top for $100 in the main signal spots. 12ax7 in the phono stage made little difference (stock JJ, new gold lion, and expensive mullard)
McIntosh C8 (new) vs C26/2700 (used)
After my prior post (and thank you again to all who helped) I ended up choosing the Rogue Audio RP-7 preamp. While it is well built and crystal clear, I don't think it is the right fit for my system. Music is too bright with vocals frequently bordering on, or crossing over into, harsh. It isn't fully broken in yet, but I don't see it being a long-term resident of my system and anticipate sending it back within its return window.
For a few reasons, I have decided to try a McIntosh tube preamp next. I am looking at a new C8 vs a used C2600 or 2700. I have found surprisingly few reviews of the C8. Anybody have relevant experience or recommendations? I would love a second set of balanced inputs that the C8 is missing, but that isn't an absolute deal breaker.
Appreciate the group expertise!
Current system:
Pro-Ject Carbon Evo (fully upgraded) with Sumiko Wellfleet stylus
ifi Micro iPhono3 Black Label phono preamp
NAD C 658 DAC
Rogue Audio RP-7 preamp (for now)
Parasound A21+ amp
Bowers & Wilkins 803 D3 floor standing speakers