Preamp Opinion

Schiit Freya +...incomparable features, 4 tubes that can be bypassed if you feel the need (solving the "should I get tubes?" question), plenty of balanced and single ended ins and outs, amazingly quiet operation...great sound, relatively inexpensive (less than anything noted here in other comments at around 900 bucks). I have the first version and have no desire to replace it. Killer preamp. Try it, send it back if you don't like it. Done.

Of the preamps you mentioned in order
Copland 301, Bryston, and the Rogue.
The Copland while the oldest design is still an outstanding preamp which lends itself well to updating. 
Bryston's are certainly not bright, but can be a little dry sounding, but work well with a lot of amps. The Rogue is very nice, but can be noisy  and has a lot of gain.
Ignore the bull about the 12auh7 tube. It's the implementation  that counts. 
I would also be pleased to quote you on a build to give you what you want.

What about the  PrimaLuna Prologue Three? I'm still leaning toward the Bryston simply because of zero maintenance and a few people on here who have had them swear by them. When I was reading the review for the PrimaLuna, people kept remarking how it gives you what it best about solid state. So, I ask myself, then why not go with a good quality solid state?

wolf_garcia

Schiit Freya +...incomparable features, 4 tubes that can be bypassed if you feel the need (solving the "should I get tubes?" question), plenty of balanced and single ended ins and outs, amazingly quiet operation...great sound, relatively inexpensive (less than anything noted here in other comments at around 900 bucks). I have the first version and have no desire to replace it. Killer preamp. Try it, send it back if you don’t like it. Done.

Ya can lead a horse to water Wolf, but ya can’t make them drink.
Tried to tell them the same thing. Especially because it’s low gain and the amp only needs 1v in for full output. And the sources have way more than 1v output.

Cheers George

I recommend you go with a tube preamp. Look for something based around the 6SN7 tube, with point to point wiring. Ideally it will have tube rectification. Even better if it has tube regulation. To ensure max value, I’d probably look for something used, although my current preamp is the first piece of equipment in many years I purchased new and willingly paid full retail for. I’ve never suffered from buyers remorse on this purchase or any of the current items in my system. 

Take your time. Read on this forum. Certain builders/companies/pieces of equipment (especially those which are relatively small operations or "boutique" builders)  consistently come up. For instance, Don Sachs, Atmasphere, Supratek, Aric Audio, First Sound, DeHavilland. Rogue & Primaluna are pretty well thought of. Before I started hanging around here I'd never heard of some of these guys. 

I don't really know what your for-real, no-kidding budget is. I found that, the more I read the more i eventually increased my budget.

Here's why that might be a good idea. If you buy right once, you don't have to upgrade. I started reading comments from some folks that once they bought a certain piece of equipment they were "done" upgrading that part of their system. Personally, I hate churning equipment, losing money on buying/selling, auditioning and fretting over my system. I just want to listen to the music. I know there are some folks who really enjoy the swapping in/out process. There's nothing wrong with that. It's just not me.

Do you need a phono stage? Or just a line stage? There are many fine builders/companies out there.

Why do I recommend this? For sheer beauty of sound. Tone. A well designed and well built tube preamp will give you this in spades. It will help illuminate the artistic choices the ensemble (regardless of genre) is making. For instance, you can hear when a vocalist is smiling when they are singing. Sometimes it seems I can hear when the bassist is looking at the drummer and nodding and they are in sync.

Music should be relaxing and beautiful. My tube preamp does this for me. My buddy, who used to be way into tubes, now is using a Luxman integrated that also sounds very, very fine. I think it’s a 590 or something like that. It also has a beautiful, rich tone.