first of all rotel makes fine ss gear. secondly unless you are prepared to give up a lot bass and high frequencies, there are a whole lot of options without buying cain and cain abbeys.Jaybo - I have no complaints about the Rotel gear I have, I just want something "mo' better!" As for the Abbys, I was completely wowed by their sound - and their looks - when I audtioned them. I am definitely buying them, should have them in my house the first week of November.
Maineiac - The VAC Avatar Super looks like a very nice unit. What receiver are you using?
C123666 - I have read good things about Wright Audio; their phono stage was on my short list before I decided on the Holfi, which I was able to audition locally at Teres Audio. From your comment: "I only use the best NOS/current production parts and you will love the results" it sounds as if you build tube amps....? If so, I would indeed be interested in more info. Also, what "quality CD player" are you suggesting? Either way, I am guessing that I would still need some sort of receiver/processor to match with the amp in order to use my DVD player. Or am I still confused?!? :-~
Thank you all for your responses.
Holly