Tube pre to match Theta / Snell


BAT and Sonic Frontiers have been recommended to me. I'm looking for opinions on those 2 and any others. Right now I have a Simaudio P5 which I do like a lot, but I'm looking for something a bit sweeter in the mids and highs. Is it possible to do that without sacrificing detail or bass? Any suggestions are welcome. The system has a Theta Carmen/IIIA front end, Dreadnaught-2 amp, and Snell C/V speakers. The pre has to have remote volume and switching, a HT bypass, and be fully balanced. Thanks. -Dave
dbw1
The Audio Research LS26 and REF3 mate extremely well with the Theta Amplifiers and meet all of your criteria. I listened to the BAT VK51 SE (which he owned) and the ARC REF3 in a system with the Theta Citadels and there was no comparison. The REF3 beat out the BAT in every way. Again, this is personal experience and YMMV.

The owner of that system also tried the BAT REX and decided to sell his BAT and bought a REF3. I recommend that you try to listen and decide for yourself as everyones taste is different.