Hi Robert,
If it is going to cost anything in the area of $2,500.00 I'd forget the Spectral and find a used NYAL Minuet in A, send it to Stephen Sank, and be perpared for a 6 to 8 month wait while he works some serious magic on it.... I have heard Spectral with the Thiel 1.6's, using a GCD-750, and while it is impressive, Sank's moded Minuets sound like Spectral's on steroids due to the 6DJ8 tubes! Spectral WITH warmth, bass, everything. Just do not let him use anything but the standard case for the preamp. He'll make up a seperate power supply which is fine, but my Minuet is now in a wooden box, not it's metal case, which I would have prefered!
Remember, my advice is worth every penny you paid for it! :-)
Lou