[ChrisBo]

Hello Everyone, this is my 1st post in this circle!

I am looking to possibly purchase a tube pre amp to go along with my Bryston 7BSST2 amp's. I am currently using a Bryston BP25 although, I've been toying with the idea of moving over to a tube/solid state mix.

Today I went to have a look at the Mcintosh C-2300 and Copland CTA 305 and I will be going back for another listening session.

This is my 1st time looking into a tube purchase so any help or recomendations would be greatly appreciated. I am sure there are a few people with this type of mix out there and it would be great to hear from you.

Take Care

[drummermitchell]

Welcome to the circle.
I auditioned a Arc ref 5(6 months ago) with my Bryston 28s and I liked it quite alot.
I use a BP-26 pre,if I had too much coin I'd have both,just because of the different qualities the preamps have,just like a cdp and TT.
There's alot of folks out here that say ARC and Bryston have great synergy,I know I enjoyed it.

[ChrisBo]

Welcome to the circle.
I auditioned a Arc ref 5(6 months ago) with my Bryston 28s and I liked it quite alot.
I use a BP-26 pre,if I had too much coin I'd have both,just because of the different qualities the preamps have,just like a cdp and TT.
There's alot of folks out here that say ARC and Bryston have great synergy,I know I enjoyed it.

Great Unit ... This is the top of the food chain!

Right now my budget is about 4k and it may go up with the right unit.

I

[ChrisBo]

Any thoughts on a Copland 305 with the Bryston's?

[Diamond Dog]

Hi Chris : When I re-did my system this year, I also considered mating a tube pre-amp with solid state amps and ended up with a Manley Jumbo Shrimp ( all-tube ) and 7B SST2's. It turned out to be a really wonderful match and I couldn't be happier. Sonically, the two work well together- I think they share a similar kind of sound: clear, transparent,lively and neutral. The Jumbo Shrimp also offers great bang for the buck, too. If someone were looking for a really "tubey"-sounding pre to take all the edge off their SS amps, the Manley might not be your best choice but if you like what your Brystons do, the Manley doesn't get in the way of that. Plus they look pretty cool too !

[Levi]

I currently use a Balanced Audio Technology VK-51SE with Bryston 7BSST amps.  BAT is the cheaper alternative to ARC Ref 5.  They use the same 6H30 Super tubes, dual mono configuration and a true balanced topology from input to output.  You can probably get a used VK-51SE around $4K.