attenuators

If you're a purist, you owe it to yourself to hear attenuators directly connected to your amp. Separate attenuating components i.e. Creek, Mod Squad etc. are less good. They require an extra set of interconnects, which is most definetly not desired for the cleanest signal transfer.

I might consider selling the B&K in favor of a Placette or an FTAudio(no remote) passive preamp if your setup will work with a passive pre. I know you can try the Placette for 30 days risk-free(and maybe the FTAudio too), so it might be worth a try to see what kind of improvements you get. These units fall between active preamps and attenuators in terms of transparency, so I guess I'd think of them as a convenient compromise. My guess is the improvements will be substantial assuming your source puts out at least 2 volts and your amp isn't a bear to drive. Best of luck.

Tim

What about Virual mode dual mono? What kind of unit is this? A local shop has one for $170.00.
Tim