Look into Aric Audio. For $5k, the Transcend Push-Pull is a steal. It runs a variety of output tubes, all in Class A, which makes big difference to my ears, and it sounds terrific. I borrowed the top Prima Luna and found it decidedly substandard. I’ve owned a Manley Stingray II for a decade in second system and it’s a fine little integrated but the Aric is on a different level. Both PL and Manley are class AB. I also have a couple of high-end, low-watt SET amps that I use with high-eff speakers. The Aric is not far behind them in palpability and tonality, but puts out a robust 65 watts with KT-150s. I drive 91db, 4-ohm Perlistens easily. Aric specs his OPTs to handle sub-4 ohms. And it is dead quiet. Aric is a pleasure to work with.
Tube amps under $7500
Ready to experiment with combinations never before (or not recently) tried. Step one requires a tube amp. Now looking at Prima Luna EVO 400 which sells for 5K. Any other tube amps I should consider in this price/feature range? Must come in silver with balanced input. For pairing experimentally with various tube and SS preamps. Efficient 4 ohm Legacy speakers (and the room/setup) are the constants.