Solid State Preamp to replace tube unit

@jayctoy I would but I am concerned about support since they are out of business

@marco1 ha ha thanks. I know what you mean. But I think since I wont actually part ways with the CJ, I can experiment with out going through withdrawal.

@stringreen the K x5emp? It seems there are multiple versions of this pre..

I already have the ET5 which is higher in the line than the 3 ( I think) I am wondering if a Pass XP20 or XP22 is better than the ET5...

No I have a Reflector tube (not sure what the tube designation is, maybe it is a 7dj8?_) I just installed a 1980's era American made 6DJ8 no manufacturer name on it. Sounds good.......for now lol

@vthokie83 Im not blowing the per se., they do get noisy. I only had one that was a bad failure.

@sns Im not running the tubes anything lol! I plug in the tube and thats it! Its what ever way CJ has it set up. Some of thimes I bought tubes on ebay. (I would think that is a problem as the quality is suspect). I just purchased a new EH6922 for cheap just to keep on hand. Also, I just found a tube in my collection from when I had my Audio Research SP8 in 1980's an American made 6DJ8. no manufacturer noted on it. It is quiet......so far hee hee

Hey @marco1 I dont have the EH yet, it comes tomorrow. The one I like now is the american made 6dj8. Considering it was in my SP8 in the 1980's Im not sure how much life it has left but it sounds very nice. I'll enjoy it for as long as it lasts. I do have my eye on some Tesla tubes. Not sure how they are though

@rubicon15 just bought some new Teslas. Lets see how they work out. In the past i used to buy from Andy at ATS and Brent Jessee. They are good but there is no guarantee you are getting new tubes and most are older used tubes. That may be why I get shortened life

@inagroove Would you still consider Classe? I heard they are out of business again. Also, I heard that the engineers that they had working just before they closed was to finish some work so I am suspicious that their efforts may not be their best.

@12many yes that IS a great deal. However it has tubes. Also I'd like to know what they are replacing it with... hmmmm

Just wanted to thank everyone for all the good suggestions. I am in a good place in that I dont have to give up my tube equipment. So I dont lose any of that magic. When I go to SS, if I dont like it, I can always go back to tube. I am not so sure I wont like a good Pass preamp..I think I could live with it LOL!!!

@sounds_real_audio I have a Holo Spring3 DAC. Not sure if that qualifies as upper echelon but i think it does...

Update: I just got a Tesla tube. Sounds amazing. Probably the best sound Ive ever gotten from the CJ. The only issue is when I change volume, the relays make the tube ring slightly. For now it is something I will tolerate  because it sounds so good. I now have great suggestions for SS preamps and will keep an eye out for a good deal.

All. I believe my issue is that I purchased some of my tubes on ebay and some as "pulls" from well known tube suppliers. Now the tube suppliers are not at fault because when they were tested they were fine. BUT, they were not NEW. Thats not on them Its on me. I now will only purchase new tubes and see how that goes. To Be continued

@coppy777 Last time I spoke to Jeff was about my Power Amp tubes. Jeff is a funny guy (not ha ha funny) I think I caught him on a bad day. Seemed temperamental. I had asked if I can put KT120 in my Premiere 12 and he said "absolutely not" Yest he has specifically told other P12 owners it is ok to do so. I am perplexed. Anyway back to the pre, I am going to go with the recommendation that he told another CJ owner about the Philips tube. So far the Tesla sounds amazing, definitely the best I have heard in my system so I will definitely be buying another one for my stash. 

@decooney yep I initiated that thread. Jeff did not ask me the serial numbers and as far as I know there was only one version of P12. Unless you sent it back to the factory specifically for the Cap upgrade. He does not change out the transformer in that upgrade. In fact the guy I bought the amps from ran it with KT120's in it before he sold it to me!! For some reason I am a bit nervous about putting in KT120, my luck the unit will blow up lol

@coppy777 yea I dont need more power, it would be a sound quality difference

@decooney Thank you so much. Yes I have heard others say they used kt88 as well. Some prefer 88's other prefer 6550's.  from what I know I can use the 88's without any problems.

@decooney DOH! Note the EH sound fine in my buddies system but then again the rest of his system is amazing. He has the funds to do it so...

@decooney im sure they are pricey, but HOW PRICEY ARE THEY LOL!!

I have a buddy with lots of spare kt88 to loan me to try. They are EH 88's so they are not the best but should give me an idea of the change in sound I would get.

@miker123 thanks. I also have a PS Audio power plant buty I am not going through it. Maybe I should. Also, my tubes tend not to be a catastrophic failure but get hiss or noisy.

@decooney  I was hoping to embed my response into your comprehensive post but not sure how to do it so ill try my best to answer.

I agree that I have received many great ideas for which I am thankful and take seriously.

I have a PS Audio Premiere power plant. Not sure I hear an improvement with it but I will make sure to route the preamp through it (right now it goes directly to the wall)

I have recently purchased a Tesla tube that sounds fantastic. Its a bit microphonic when I tap on it or change volume. But I dont believe it is an issue when listening to music. There is no hiss.

My buddy has a tube tester and is kind enough to test when ever I need. so that is not an issue. I feel very lucky as this guy is very knowledgeable.

I have 2 dedicated lines to my hifi equipment that I personally ran. I remember a buddy came over with some kind of noise tester but I dont remember what the results were.

Thank you for your input. It is much appreciated and want to make sure that I personally respond to the suggestions. I was at CAF this weekend and it was a ball. If anyone has the chance, do it.

@decooney I should have stated that the main complaint for my system is that the sound gets congested when playing classical music. It sounds flat. I need a open and transparent with high dynamic range. Thanks for following this.

@ghdprentice These aren't hard tube failures, mostly noise related. I mentioned earlier that may be since I am buying tubes from suppliers where the tubes are "pulls" and maybe not NOS.

@audio-b-dog I am strongly considering the Pass Labs.

@mbrusso the NAD although very good is not as good as my tube power amp. The tube unit fleshes out instruments better. the M66 is supposed to be very good, however it is a digital pre and I wanted to stay in the analog domain. SS and digital are getting better all the time. However if you are into super critical listening I think the tubes are still  better unless you spend uber amounts of money on SS

@gbmcleod I just switched over from my NADM23 to my CJ P12 monoblocks. There is no doubt the tube power amps are better. The instruments so so much more real.