Which would you choose for good sounding tube preamp for an audiophile new to tubes.

I owned a 1990’s Tubed CD Player… was warm but completely lacking in details. I can’t help but thinking an ancient preamp would sound similar. The VTL is equally old. The 1990’s tube equipment tended to be really warm but lacking in detail. Therefore, I am thinking look towards the Quicksilver.

I used a 1999 Audible Illusions Modulus preamp till just recently, and it seemed pretty adequate.

What is the OPs budget?

(S)/He mentioned “slam” and the tube amps I have used seem to do pretty good in that regard.
There is no obvious reason that a SS amp would be better “slam”, unless we are talking about a 5W SET versus a 400W monoblock. But the 80-100W push/pull monoblock tube units seems to keep up OK.

Supratek

@dentdog  I am heading there in a few weeks.

The Supratek ones offers a lifetime warranty.

Is a tubed preamp with an output imp.of 800ohms,a good match with a SS power amp input imp of 22k ohms.

@tmaker 
I suspect these systems with weak preamp output drives coupling into low input impedance amplifiers are the same systems where cables appear to make a massive difference as to how it sounds.

That 10:1 ratio get one into the area where cables don’t matter, and you have synergy from the electrical perspective, rather than a magical and unexplainable synergy.

I might be wrong, so YMMV.