P8i Users - Survey

Just wondering what other P8i users find in their systems:

Filters 1,2,3 or 4 ? - I find 2 suits me best - 1 is a bit sharp, the others are a bit rolled off

Balanced or unbalanced - I find unbalanced gives me a magical result - balanced perhaps gives me more detail, but does not integrate the sound stage as well or naturally as unbalanced.

Upsampling on redbook – I definitely (!) prefer non-upsampled – much more dynamic, clear and clean.

Burn in – mine seemed to take forever (ie say 2 months of daily use (1-hour average) to settle in – left on all the time). Fresh it was not pretty and I wonder if this might be the cause of some negative comments about the P8i?

Direct or via a pre (my ulterior motive here)? Presently I'm using mine direct to a Pass X350.5 and B&W 801Ds with Ridge Street cabling – it seems quite excellent. I haven’t tried it with a pre yet but would like to so that I can add vinyl again.

What pre if any would you suggest as a good match?

I’d be really interested to learn what other owners have found.

Thanks

Murray