I would think that matching components by the same manufacturer would have an advantage if the technologies used are somewhat unique
and quite similar in nature, or they were introduced in about the same time period. OTOH, there may be a particular preamp that you like due to its features or ease of use, whereas amps are more or less "black boxes" with an on/off button. Therefore, the amplifier IMO should best be matched with the speakers you like; the preamp choice may have certain features or complements your source components. Mixing tubes and solid state generally takes more research and more auditioning. P.S.- of course now you have combination preamp/dac/streamers/servers, and speakers with built-in amplification,
so this makes things easier (?) / harder (?). So I tend to stay with the older 2-channel stereo configuration with which i am more familiar...
and quite similar in nature, or they were introduced in about the same time period. OTOH, there may be a particular preamp that you like due to its features or ease of use, whereas amps are more or less "black boxes" with an on/off button. Therefore, the amplifier IMO should best be matched with the speakers you like; the preamp choice may have certain features or complements your source components. Mixing tubes and solid state generally takes more research and more auditioning. P.S.- of course now you have combination preamp/dac/streamers/servers, and speakers with built-in amplification,
so this makes things easier (?) / harder (?). So I tend to stay with the older 2-channel stereo configuration with which i am more familiar...