Preamp upgrade ARC LS5, SF Line 3, others?

I use a SF Line 1 with an ARC D200 and really enjoy it. I think there's definitely something to be said for combining a tube preamp w/ SS amplification. And the SF Line series features are very nice- I particularly enjoy the headphone amp w/ my Sennheisers.

Hi Tom,

Keep me informed as I currently using the Balanced version (LS-2B MkII). I've been thinking about upgrading my preamp which would have both balanced and single ended inputs/outputs as I am using balanced input for my digital front end and single ended input for my analog front end. That rules out the Hovland, but the top contenders are the ARC Ref series, BAT VK-50SE, and the SF Line-3.

thanks for all the responses

I looked into a number of those pieces mentioned, wow, quite a few interesting options.

Now how does one audition the less available pieces?
I'm in New Orleans and we are a bit limited in Audio. My friend sells AR, but Hovland and Sonic Frontiers are not that widely carried outside major audio markets. I've always felt the only way to evaluate the subtle differences in preamps is to experience it within your own system and room dynamics. Word of mouth and rave reviews are great, but in the $3-5 k range, you'd really like to go on more than that.

Yes, you start looking to improve and the next thing you know, you've doubled your budget

thanks for all the insight

tom

Klyne 7LX3.5B will be a great one! Too sad you have to
run balance otherwise Hovland is just beautiful!

I replaced my LS2B with a contrad johnson premier 14.
The CJ presented more detail with a warm sound