Budget vacuum tube preamp?

I use SS into a tube amp only because I have a very low noise and capable preamp (and phono preamp), and because it's what I had when I bought the tube power amp. It sounds fabulous. I'm not sure the paranoia about preamp matching is justified though as I bet most tube preamps match fine with most power amps, but then what is the point of this forum if not to allow geekdom to engender fear and suspicion? I like it. Keeps me from becoming too relaxed. Also, I use balanced cables from the preamp (and the DAC feeding it) just because they're generally a little quieter.

Going with Unsound's questions, please list for us the input impedance and input sensitivity of your amp. If you don't know, tell us what amp you have so we can possibly look it up. Since we're on the subject, what's the output impedance of the component ABOVE the preamp (cd player or DAC)? Not to confuse you more but maybe a passive preamp will work for you. There are many to choose from, and some VERY cheap! Since it's passive, if the output voltage of your cd player or dac is at least as much as the input voltage sensitivity of your amp, you will have enough voltage to drive the amp to full power.

At this point I do not yet have an amp either...my whole setup is being driven by an Integra DTR 40.1 receiver which is not bad, but i feel can get much better for a reasonable price if I know what to look for.

Perhaps the better question after reading all the great responses would be to define a preamp / amp combo to get me started.

I would suggest matching your speakers to an appropriate amp, before deciding an an appropriate pre for your amp!

I agree. IMO, amplifer/speaker matching is the most important part of an audio system.