Need reasonably priced balanced preamp

"Unfortunately no local dealers so can't listen to any of these. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!"

The single biggest mistake you can make in audio, is to pick the wrong preamp.

"Would like to have balanced outputs since I have those cables."

That's not a good enough reason to buy a balanced preamp. And that's assuming your balanced cables are really balanced.

Some people will recommend a tube preamp, while others will tell you to get SS. Others will recommend balanced, while others will say its a waste of money. Feedback vs 0 feedback... And the list will go on. My recommendation is to just get the right preamp, regardless of design. If not, your system will never sound quite right, and you'll end up spending a lot of money, only to walk away from audio due to frustration.

There is a nice Classe CP-60 with phono and balanced outputs listed here for $1600. I've ownd Classe gear and it is real nice stuff. BTW, I agree with Zd542,balanced should not be a make or break deal in choosing a preamp.

Bryston BP5 ,BP 20 . BP 25

+1 re the Classe CP-60, although the $1600 price seems a bit high. Seven years ago I purchased one here for $1350, in perfect condition, and with the original remote control (in contrast to the one that is presently listed). And the $1350 was the asking price.

Among solid state preamps, at least, I doubt that you can do much better in that price range than a CP-60, assuming it is in top condition. I should add, though, that during the 6+ years I owned it (I recently replaced it with a much more expensive DEQX model) I only used its unbalanced outputs. So I can't attest to the sonics of its balanced outputs.

Also, of course, it is a line stage preamp, so you would need a separate phono stage for the vinyl playback you referred to.

Good luck. Regards,
--Al

Hi Al, The one that is listed has a phono section ,that's why I recommended it !