Balanced tube preamp for Class D amps

John, tomorrow I will have at home a Rowland Capri to evaluate. Capri is a fully balanced linestage voiced for operation on the current JRDG class D amps. I will have the opportunity to connect it to a pair of NuForce monos among other amps. I will report my findings here in the next few days. Unless I am mistaken the Capri retails $2795 new in black livery. Guido

The pre-amp I'm using is a little over your budget but I have been using an ARC LS26 with my V2 SE's with outstanding results.

I have also heard wonderful things about the Aesthetix Calypso which is a perfect fit for your budget.

I think a tube pre with the NuForce amps are a phenomenal combination. You may need to do some auditioning to figure out which one you like best however.

Good luck with the search!

John Audio Horizon 2.1 balanced is working very well in my system. A great match for my Ref 9 SE V2s.

Guidocorona i know you have been interested in Nuforce amps from posts i have read from you. Please let us know what your thoughts and findings are.

Guido - is the Capri a SMPS or SS? Look forward to your assessment.

Jim - thanks for the info. One constraint in my search is that my small room can't tolerate much heat in the summer (rarely listen to my tube integrated then). How much heat do the tubed preamps give off? Are some cooler running than others - tube dependent???

Siltrains - I'll investigate the AH also. Thanks.

John

I'll second the Audio Horizons TP 2.0, it sounded ultra liquid and dynamic with the NuForce.