@tykozen I had a Primaluna Evo 400 Integrated, I also had Coda CsIB and Krell Integrated all at the same time, I was able to swap them out, compare. I also had a Krell 300xd and Krell Illusions ii Pre, Parasound A21 Amp, Zesto Leto Pre, PS Audio BHK pre, Coda 07x Pre. Along with all that gear, also have placed several different HT Receivers in the chain as Pre’s for 2 channel listening. What I found, out of all the gear, properly matched Pre / Amp separate combo tough for an Integrated to beat but, but some Integrated’s can get close or even better separates. What a well designed Integrated does is provide much more value for the $$ and maximized synergy, limits cables, can provide a great experience through simplicity. All that said, I landed on the Krell Pre and Amp separates, came down to synergy and flexibility. If you are thinking you won’t upgrade down the road, an Integrated can offer tremendous value and take guess work out of the equation. Primaluna is a solid brand, choice, out of the gear I have had in my system, it was my least favorite, for tube gear, sounded solid state. Both the Coda and Krell integrated’s outshined the Primaluna. If you are going to upgrade the pre, going with a rock solid Amp as a foundation to the electronics, great strategy and will provide more flexibility on being able to swap out Pre’s or the Amp. Picking an amp or integrated that matches your speakers is key as others have pointed out. Coda, Krell, Music Fidelity, BAT, Rogue, Cary, Aric, Linear Tube Audio, Schitt all offer great gear at various price points, they offer tube gear, SS or Highbred and many of them will take your call, offer advice on what’s your needs in their line up of gear. The other couple of learnings, the pre really does matter, makes a big difference, the HT AVR’s couldn’t hold a candle to pre’s designed for 2 channel only. Depending on the design of the Integrated units, wide range if the type of pre section, for instance, Tube Integrated preamplifier sections aren’t usually anywhere near as beefy as a stand alone Tube Pre, some solid state Pre’s will have a stand alone pre section that can function as a preamp only, won’t be identical to separate pre’s from the same manufacture but often shares the majority of design, parts. Freya as a Pre to start is likely a great choice, haven’t heard it but tons of posts about how good it is for the $$, you can get one with both SS and Tube optionally. Good luck.
