processor that could serve as a good preamp


HI everybody
I wonder after how many years does processor start having troubles, like lost of channel, stop working, etc.

What's your personnal experience: which processor and after how many years did they start giving you trouble, if any?
Or maybe you have your processor since many years and they have been flawlessly since then.

It could give me a guidelide about which used processor to look for.
should I look, or stay away from Classe ssp-60, moon attraction 7.1, krell hts...

I don't really need hdmi, I can still connect my dvd's hdmi to the tv set.
My Oppo dvd player does have an HDMI output, and my tv set too.
Right now, finance does not permit high price processor with HDMI and I don,t want to go back to low end component for the sake of HDMI input-output. I suppose I will eventually, maybe in a few years, buy a blue-ray player. Wharn this happen finance will permit to buy whatever processor I wish, brand new ( no more car payment or mortgage.
Application:
Watching lcd tv ( not a 1080) and dvd,
listening to cd ( sometime) and vinyl.

I don't need a phono preamp, I already have a lehmann phono preamp.
It's ok if there's also a tuner, but I don't really care if it's there or not.

Other components:

simaudio amp
B&K reference 20 preamp (defective, no surround, only stereo. This is the one that would be replace. So it must be an upgrade, not a side step).
Oracle delphi 4 turntable, claraudio cartridge.
oppo dvd player (also used as a cd player).
Martin logan Vantage loudspeaker.

I'm interested in any suggestion that you can provide.
Thank you
Dan
ph0361
Noble Electronics can install an extra 7.1 analogue pass-through that utilizes the RCA analogue inputs. They can also configure them to be four separate stereo analogue inputs that bypass all of the digital circuitry. These use a very high quality silver internal wiring harness and sound much better than the db-25 based analogue pass-through. Last time I checked this upgrade was only $250, but you would have to check with Noble for the latest pricing. They advertise that they can perform upgrades on both EAD and Moon pre/pro's.
The Cary 11 is stellar, as are the Anthem's, especially the D series. Used the Parasound C1 and C2 are great if you don't really want or need HDMI, although they do have a cool add on for that.

The McIntosh processors sound stellar too.

There's really a lot of good ones.
One more thing,

I prefer to stick with North American made products, Canadian or American.

p.s. There's quite a lot of tempting products right here among your suggestions.
So how would an older higher end processor like the Cary, Anthem or HTS2 compare to a new model like the Integra DTC 9.8/9.9?

Is decoding the high res formats and room correction software mostly an advantage for movies and not music?

I am also looking for a processor to go with a Sony 9100ES, Linn multichannel amp and Ninka/Trikan speakers. The Linn offerings are either old (5103) or expensive (Kinos/Kisto).

I've also considered a multichannel analog preamp like a McCormack MAP-1 or Linn Exotic using the DVD player's multi channel output. Anyone going this route? It seems like this would be a trade-off between the DACs in my Sony and the DACs in a processor.

My concern is mostly 2 channel performance.

Thanks

Bmdduck