Seeking Amp / Preamp Upgrades

Hi guys, thank you for the quick responses!  Budget wise I am trying to stay in line with the approximate range of each piece that I have acquired recently to start up my system again.  So roughly $4000 each for a Pre & Amp.  I could buy the used Pre's that I mentioned above in the $2300-$3500 range given their respective age but wanted input on how they effect the sound and I seem to hear a good bit now about audiophiles favoring neutrality in their preamps.  Thanks again, hifi63nc. 

@hifi63nc The Topping pre90 that one can get for about $350 is used as the reference preamp for one of the Stereophile reviewers. He is the one that wrote the review on Stereophile. Soundnews.net has a better review of the pre90.

I sold my unit because it only worked with 2 pieces. However, when it does work it is really good (neutral and incredibly quiet).

The folllowing combo is something that may work for you. I had this in the house for a month and it was really good (I listed used prices).

- Topping pre90 (used $350)

- Parasound A21+ ($2500)

The Topping pre90 also worked great for me with the Benchmark AHB2 but I do not recommend that for you. Too neutral for most people.

The A21+ is a warmish amp with power and drive. I really liked it. I only traded it in to get the KRELL 175XD which is more refined, but I was enjoying the A21+ when I ran it with the pre90. This is not reference quality sound but for the price is very good. Actually, i recommended this combo to someone else and they wrote back to me saying how much they liked it.

Thanks for that recommendation- at that price level, it is seriously worth a shot and seems like a lay up for a backup or second system one day.  Also, I am somewhat familiar with John Curl products, so worth a read for sure.  Another Amp that I just come across are the Audio by Van Alstine DVA M225 Monoblock's.  Anyone have any familiarity with AVA?  

Have you considered an integrated amp?  Many good choices, both new and used, at your combined budget.  The delta between them and separates is much less than it used to be.

This is a bit of a different option, but you could buy a used McCormack DNA-1 amp for $1200 or less and have Steve McCormack do his full upgrades and be around $4k and a SOTA amp (he’s got my 0.5 RevA in for full mods now). Add a Linear Tube Audio MZ2 preamp with LPS+ power supply and remote for $2160 and you’ll have a pretty darn good pre/amp combo under budget that’ll excel at 3D imaging/big soundstage with a slight bit of warmth from the pre and amp just as you’re looking for. BTW, my DNA 0.5 is due back in mid August and I just received an MZ2 I’m going to use as both a headphone amp and pre in my main system and will share impressions if you have that much time to wait. So, I’m looking for the same things you are and putting my $$$ where my mouth is. My previous pre/amp combo was the 0.5 RevA with a Bryston BP-6 that I really liked, so this new pairing will have its work cut out for it to make me happy. 🤞🤞🤞  BTW, here’s a link to a DNA-1 that you can probably get for around $1000 if you’re a good negotiator…

https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649873520-mccormack-dna-1-deluxe-edition/