IMO, go for a used tube preamp from a well know manufacturing. That way you could save a lot money for some NOS tubes to tailor up your sound reference and maximize its performance. As far as reliable, I haven't got any bad luck with all the used tube that I bought on this website. Go luck on your quest.
Which is a better choice? New, or used preamp?
So I've been doing a lot of research, and am interested in people's opinions about a new vs. used tube preamps...
I'm looking for a good quality tube pre, maybe around $1500. People have recommended some new products (Doge an YS for example) in that price range, but I can't help but wonder if I'm not going to get a better performance with a used pre in that price range that used to sell new for maybe $2500-$3500?
That would be a 10-15 year old pre probably, so has the quality advanced such that the YS could present a better soundstage, for example?
Thanks,
Michael
I'm looking for a good quality tube pre, maybe around $1500. People have recommended some new products (Doge an YS for example) in that price range, but I can't help but wonder if I'm not going to get a better performance with a used pre in that price range that used to sell new for maybe $2500-$3500?
That would be a 10-15 year old pre probably, so has the quality advanced such that the YS could present a better soundstage, for example?
Thanks,
Michael