Machman12000:
Sorry if it seemed that my frustration was all directed at you. It wasn't. Of course, you have the right to ank any question here that you feel will help you and I don't have the right to pass judgement on it like I know everything. I have heard a lot of equipment, but, by no means, have I heard all that there is to hear. I owned a Plinius SA-100 amp about 5 years ago, and I got a lot of enjoyment from it. I have never heard the CD Lad, although it was around at that time. Here are some of my favorite preamps and linestages.
Solid state
Ayre K-1Xe
CTC Blowtorch
Dartzeel NHB-18NS
Tube:
First Sound Presence Deluxe Mk II (This is a linestage only)
CAT SL-1 Ultimate Mk I (haven't heard the Mk II)
Although some of these products are considerably more expensive than the CD Lad, they will certainly blur any lines between what solid state or tube amplification should sound like. Get your hands on any of those above for audition and you can include preamps from Herron Audio, Emotive Audio, Wyetech, Supratek as well as a new solid state preamp which I understand will be (or is) cheap from Parasound. The auditioning will keep you busy for quite a while,but I bet that you will here tube and solid state products which each satisfy.
Good luck.