amp-preamp considerations.

newbee.thanks for reply.am interested in ss pre's you would recommend?

In many cases, you will lose the tube benefits by forgoing the chance to use a tube pre.
As for heat concerns, tube preamps use small tubes and generate very little heat compared to tube power amps. Almost all have the tubes inside a chasis.
Premier 14 is older, but also nice.
If you are dead set on a solid state pre, check out the pass labs and classe. Still think this isn't the way to go.

Well, this is a unique experience for me - recommending a SS preamp, but what the hell.....If I had to buy one, and I didn't need a remote, I'd get a used Threshold FET10HL (designed by Nelson Pass, by the way when he owned Threshold). I've seen them sell on Audiogon for about $750+/- and you can't get even close to this value at that price, new or used, IMHO. By the way, what are you looking for in a preamp and whats your budget? New or used?

Conrad-Johnson Premier 18LS?

Well it is not as easy to just buy a preamp or an amp, it comes down to synergy. For example, my friend has a Carver amp and he happened to mate it with the Musical Fidelity 308 preamp, funny but they just click together, why because what the Carver lacks in the mid range the MF adds to the mid range and they kind of work well togehter, go figure. To make your system the most musical, you hae to mate strengths and weaknesses together.

My 2 cents and Happy Listening.