Hi Milpay, "I have NEVER been in the tubeland" - that's where I was also, some years ago, but things have changed. To my ears tubed gear often sounds better. Now I have a pure tube chain. I am trying out a kind of hybrid preamp, a tube preamp with solid-state power supplies, the Einstein The Tube mk2. I found it used for a good price. It matches my Atma MA-1 OTL tube monoblocs well, and might be very good also in your context (see forum thread 1397501648). It seems very hassle-free, so far. You can roll just 3 tubes to get the sound you want for your favorite input.
