Tube preamp for SS amp

I totally agree....what looks good on paper might on the other hand be the worst combination that could be put together (sonically)...at least for a given system. I spend countless hours reading and researching (I enjoy this by the way) but in the end it's all guess work. I think my overall problem is that I don't know what I'm after in sound quality. Yeah it needs to sound good but what does that really mean. I could have a half a dozen preamps both SS and tube with each one having their own characteristics that rise above the others. Maybe that's why we audiophiles tend to keep searching for more...do we ever achieve "the one preamp" or is it just perception based on what we make ourselves believe is the one.

I've had many many tube pre and SS amp and agree with Kyomi_audio that output impedance is an important aspect to consider in a tube preamp.

You definitely have more tube rolling options with 6sn7 and 6922/e88cc but not all 6h30 situations sound like SS. My only 6h30 experience is with MW Transporter. I found the Reflektor NOS 6h30-dr was the best sounding 9 pin signal tube in the Transporter. It had the best of SS and tube properties.

One of the beauty of a tube pre is tube rolling so personally I prefer a 6922/e88cc or 6sn7 pre but try to demo with your SS amp if possible before purchase.

Charles1dad,

I wasn't finding fault with you in any way. Sometimes I can be a bit direct in how I word things. I kind of know what I'm doing now, but it was a long and expensive journey to get here. I've made just about every mistake an audiophile can make (several times in many cases). That's why I'm so direct. I'm really good at hearing the train coming off in the distance.

Zd542,
I didn't take any offense at all, I was just attempting to clarify my viewpoint.

Lloydelee21, I am very curious to see how the et3se would sound with my pass labs...in fact I have read in other forums that it is a good match, however I just don't think I'd like the push button volume control. Yeah there is a remote but same thing there. My experience (not with the cj gear) is that push buttons wear out. I'd rather turn a dial then push, push, push... a button. On the flip side it must work and be reliable because everything from the et3 on up has this type of volume control.