OK folks, what the best pre for under 10,000?


Excluding "statement" preamps like the new Naim pre that I'm sure is wonderful, but was never really designed to sell, just stand as an example for the rest of their "trickle down" line. Or the Levinson #32 at, what is it? $15,000. Also, must be a relatively newer model. Examples: Levinson 380S, Pass Labs X1, Bat , audio research, your favorite ______ ? And, if your feeling verbose, why you feel that way.
sjh32
Yeah,(Essentialaudio) I've thought about that myself. I guess my thinking was, to get a system using balanced vs. single ended. I'm always willing to believe there's audio bargains out there and was hoping the A21 might be just that after I tried the balanced thing. Now I'm think about keeping the the A21 and getting something lower powered like a Pass Aleph for the top 2/3's of the spectrum. My speakers would undoubtably be better off bi_amped anyway and it would save a lot of time with the crossover. For anyone who's done it, 3 crossovers are a step beyond in difficulty.
I've heard great things about the JC1's, but I couldn't audition them because Denver, especially with this economy, does not cater to that level of high end, from what I've seen anyway. Funny considering we have Rowland to the south and Boulder to the north. I'm not going to waste someone's time at an "appointment only" shop when I can only afford their stuff at used prices. So if an of your guys are listening to this you can relax.
Even the local Levinson dealer only has one pair of 436 amps, and they weren't hooked up the last time I was there. On that subject, I once had a salesman accuse me of listening at his shop an buying online, not to my face ofcourse, but I could hear him in the next room and he meant for it to be that way, the coward. It really wasn't the case. That actually where I ended up buying my current pre which brings me full circle and now I'll stop this ramble. Hey, he was depressed, they were going out of business.
I strongly recommend the Symphonic Line preamplifier as one of the very best I have heard -- at any price. It is dynamic, and musical. Sounds from it seem to float in a sonic space without edges. It is also beautiful and ergonomically minimalist in design.