Pass x250, Talon Khoruses , what now ?

For a little over your budget the Sonic Frontiers SFL-2 is an excellent pre-amp and should work well with the Pass amp.

I agree that BAT may be a good choice, but if you could utilize a passive pre such as one of the placette units I am sure it would do a very nice job.

BTW I've only heard the Khoruses with a 75wpc OTL amp and they were amazing, I can't imagine the detail and sheer dynamics they much have with a larger solid state. ~Tim

I'm guessing but I would stick with a bare-bones solid state unit for that price range. High-end tube pre's may be one thing but usually low-end tubes will be something else. And if it's used, you may need to soonish re-tube which could set you back another $100 to $600.

The Placette passive may be an excellent choice and I believe you have a 30 day money back option there.

You may want to investigate the Odyssey Temptest pre for $995 at OdysseyAudio.com. Their amps are supposed to be fabulous and their pre may be cut from the same cloth.

Speak to stewart of SOS he knows more about pass labs equipment with talon speakers then just about anyone else out there. I'm sure he will know just what you need. You could also try running direct (the new shanling looks nice) and sell your rega.... I have talons too and love em as well... hope this helps ... =)

You should have a look at the Bent Audio (www.bentaudio.com)102S transformer based preamps. I realize that this is DIY, but it isn't that difficult and will give you the unbalanced to balanced conversion which other passives won't.