Lowend Preamp on a budget.

At $300, the Sumo Athena (No Remote) is better than all Adcoms except the GFP-750.
The GFP-750, Muse 3 (non signature) or BelCanto Pre 1, might be had at that price, all great pre's, balanced and have a remote.
Muse 3 signature should be $800 - $900.
I hope this helps,
Tim

A Bottleneck or used EE Minimax.

I concur with Schubert. The EE Minimax posted here on Agon is a no brainer for $600. I had a TAD Signature 150 preamp which is also a great preamp for its price point. I sold my mint unit several years back for $675 if I recall correctly. There's one currently posted on Agon but at $925 its over priced. The EE preamp is a great choice. Worse case you try it and flip it for close to the same price if you are not satisfied with it.
Good luck

GEorgelofi,

Good stuff, as usual!

b&k has been my my go-to for inexpensive preamps--i've owned at various times the cs117, pt5, ref30 and pro10. i find 'em less colored and more transparent that adcom/rotel/nad and better built as well. can be had really cheap. per georgelofi, if your system allows a passive can be very cost-efficient--i liked the luminous audio axiom.