already checked the fuse...replaced it in fact. both fuses power up the pre. I did have a bad fuse once and the pre wouldn't even power on...
It seems to me that the signal is not being amplified, whether it's the pre or the amp I don't know, and I don't have any other gear to swap in.
as I mentioned previously there is music that can be heard very faintly with my ear up to the speaker, so I guess the signal is passing from the cd to the dac ok, from the dac to the pre,and then to the amp. It's just not being amplified somewhere....