TRL Dude or Joule 150 MKII for Major Pre Upgrade

I have owned Joule preamps in the past including the 100 MKlll. I like the Joule sound and he makes fine preamps for sure. I have not heard the 150 however. I know the Joule would be a nice improvement over your Rotel.

I have owned the Dude for several years now and can say it will deliver the things you are looking for to a greater degree then the Joule. The Dude is a champ at bass and soundstage plus in many other ways.

The Dude will cost $4,000 new and you can find used 150's for under $3,000. Is the Dude worth another $1,000 - $1500?
If you can stretch up to the Dude with your cash, then yes it is. At least is/was for me :-)

Both offer a significant improvement over your Rotel

I have a Joule lA 150II and love it. Watch the listings and you will get a Joule for much less than a Dude, plus you don't see many Dudes come up. Try the Joule for a while, you would probably recoup your money, if you decided to move on.
good luck
Jeff

The Joule is not only a champ in bass, but the very thing that made HP go gaga over the Joule in TAS. This quality was improved in the 150MKII and later product including the 150SE and the 300 and 450s, but the latter may be beyond your price point. Not sure which of the two brands you will prefer, apparently there will be advocates for both, but I personally would steer to the issue of track record, logevity, build quality, and reliability - the intangibles that go beyond sound. The TRL might be first rate at these, though it has not been around for nearly as long (if that matters to you). Sounds like they would both make you happy.

Frankly, I don't think you will know either way without listening (hard, I know) - that would be far more important than what partisans of either brand might say - but ain't it always the truth.

A brand you don't mention, but you should consider is the CAT SL1 Ultimate - I would be hard pressed to choose between it and the Joule (both of which I have owned) as the are both superb but different and who know how you will respond to what you hear?

Pubul57,
You make some very good points,and yes nothing beats a personal audition. I`m familiar with the CAT linestage but I`d take the TRL Dude if given a choice. I find the Dude more'natural' the Cat in my experience is more 'hifi' in presentation. bUT of course YMMV.

Yes TRL has been building great gear for decades an my Dude has been flawless in sound and performance since day one! Both Dudes I have owned.

Paul answers his phone and will always get back right away and help. I must say this is not true of all small "one man" companies. I have still not heard back from Roger at Music Reference and I emailed/called to actually buy his amps - RM10.I decided to buy another amp now. He is one example and unfortunately I know of many others in this business. Paul will respond to customers.