Makem, if we bought amps just by specs, all of us would buy QSC amps. However, these were designed for commercial use, not home use. They are totally abusable and never fail. I would bet that if you put these side by side with many 100 wpc home amps you would notice a huge difference. No matter what preamp you buy, you will be limited by the QSC. I've owned clubs and always used QSC. I did learn the hard way after melting NAD and Niles gear. Go compare your amp to a home amp before spending a dime on an expensive preamp.
Please recommend preamp
I'm new at this but am trying to put together a nice system primarily for a large vinyl collection that can also play CDs and probably either a tuner or cassette player. I will have speakers in two rooms, neither very large. I started with the JBL 4312 speakers from my youth for the bedroom and then bought JBL L150As for the living room for $950. I just got a QSC RMX2450 amp in excellent condition for $300. I think my next step is a pre-amp. What would be a good bet for around $1000? I'm hoping to get it right the first time rather than test-drive and buy and sell; really, I just want to listen to my records.