Benchmark / Anthem / Rogue


I have an opportunity to purchase (new) one of these 3 preamps at a solid discount.   I’m looking to see who has had hands-on experience with one or more of them, and your input & feedback on each.   All commentary welcome.   Thank you.  
— Benchmark LA4
— Anthem STR
— Rogue Audio RP5

Thanks,
Jim
jhajeski
I have tested all of these all the way to the RP9. I love the sound and the power. I heard the RH5 is balanced and around the same price plus you get the headphone amp. I was interested due to the RP7 and RP9 are fully balanced. One issue I had is the home theater pass through loses 10db due to the tubes get shut off. Maybe they fixed this. The phono stage was nice and smooth in the RP5 which was a plus for me. It made my $300 TT sound like it was $1000. I am going with Ayre KX-5 preamp due to it is detailed with a warm sound, fully balanced, and the home theater pass through works great. It is twice as much as an Rogue RP-5. So it should be awesome. I also tried the Ayre KX-R preamp. By far the best you will hear if you get the right amps. Like the matching MX-R mono blocks. Too rich for my blood, but still the best of the best I have heard. If you are in the Chicagoland area and want to try these brands for your self. Ayre does have integrated amps that start at around $6k but this is my end game setup:
https://holmaudio.com/
they will let you demo before you buy except for TT and insanely heavy speakers. If you don’t need the home theater pass through Rogue is awesome!


Rogue Audio RP 5.  
Heard it extensively, owned several Rogue products.  very open, smooth unfatiguing sound.  Pair it with a nice solid state amp.  
It is the only one on your list I could be happy with.  

Following up on Stereo5's comment, definitely replace the stock JJ tubes which are okay, with NOS if you can. I did the same thing with my Sphinx V3 (NOS Mullards from Andy at Vintage Tubes), and the improvements were not subtle. It makes a real difference in the performance and musicality!
My story is very similar to stereo5. I have not heard the other two choices, but the Rogue RP5 was my main preamplifier for a couple of years. I have gone from all Rogue to all Mcintosh in that system. I am not sure that it is any better, but it is different. Originally I had the RP 5 feeding the Atlas Magnum KT 120 tube amplifier. I transitioned to the RP 7/Stereo 100 combination. Then to my current McIntosh C 2300/275 Mk VI System. Sonically, the RP 5/atlas magnum gave me everything that I needed. I liked it better than the RP 7/Stereo 100 combination. I found it to be more dynamic and full sounding than the more expensive Rogue pairing. I also used the RP 5 with several other amplifiers during the time that I had it and thought it was a very good preamplifier!
+1 on the RP-1 and Mullards from Andy.  It's what I run and been very happy with the setup.  I originally had the PS Audio Stellar 300 as the amp (tube class D combo).  Got a good deal on a Quad Artera A/B and swapped to that just to try.  Quad/RP-1 might be a little warmer for the most critical listener but the S-300 was a good combo as well, especially at low to moderate listening levels.