Looking for a preamp with XLR connections

The Freya S got an excellent review at ASR. The no tube model. Cost less, too. The first one reviewed had a defective board.

Mola Mola Makua. Upper end of your range. End game component. Maybe find one pre-owned. There was one here on agon that got snapped up. Pretty much as good as it gets without requiring a second mortgage to obtain.

The person that started this thread said "no tubes". Why all the suggestions of tube preamps??

A friend, whose ears I trust, auditioned the benchmark against multiple other preamplifiers and said that while it is quiet, it is flat and boring and without color. So be warned! I found that to be true with their amplifier as well, which I had in my system and compared to other amps, including Ayre V5xe and pass XA25. The good thing about benchmark is that you can audition it for 30 or 60 days, depending on where you purchase.  If you get it, let us know what you think.

@peter_s That is true and sometimes I like that boring base system and only want to hear the source material through that base. The following is the design goal of the Benchmark products. They say this explicit on their web site's APPLICATION NOTES section.

benchmark against multiple other preamplifiers and said that while it is quiet, it is flat and boring and without color.

At the moment, my Benchmark LA4 preamp is connected to a warm KRELL Duo 175XD amp and a warmish Mustec 005 DAC.

My AHB2 monos are connected to a warmish CODA 07x preamp and a warmish Musetec 005 DAC.

Both systems are great to my ears.

If I had a warm speaker, I would likely go with an all-Benchmark stack (including their DAC). Though, even the not so warm KEF LS50 speakers were very enjoyable on the all-Benchmark stack.