I'll expand my comments a bit having read the previous posts. Back in the '90s I used to visit George Merrill's Undergraound Sound store in Memphis. I was in graduate school at a nearby university and although I didn't have the funds to make any significant purchases, George was always gracious enough to let me spend a lot of time in his Spectral room. I must have gotten to listen to every Spectral product and I liked them all. I don't recall any emphasis on a particular part of the frequency spectrum. I enjoyed listening to music through all of the systems, and a soundstage that extended beyond the room walls.
I didn't get to know all of George's staff, but the ones I did get to know were all tube guys. I found their banter with George amusing although I was too inexperienced to understand it. One of the staff took me to his setup where he had a Spectral preamp (I don't recall the model number but I think it was a model 20 - I do recall that it was the $7500 preamp - the same one George had on his big rig). Anyway, he had the preamp connected to some recently released Marantz commemorative tube amps. I didn't listen to his system long, but I recall that it sounded pretty good.
My present home system is an all tube rig, but I still think about that Spectral preamp/tube amp setup. I doubt I'll ever get to try it, but the idea of the big Spectral preamp driving a VAC Renaissance 70/70 amplifier (if that is even possible) and my Silverline Bolero speakers resides in the back of my thoughts.
One final comment, however, is that I would not be inclined to buy a component at the price point we are discussing without hearing it first, at least in the shop, whether it's a "controversial" pairing or not. And whenever possible, I want to hear the component in my home.
