While I haven’t auditioned the KX-5 20 preamp, I’ve always believed that a tube preamp should be mated to a SS amp for the best sound based on what I’ve read. Although I replaced my beloved ARC Ref 75 with an Ayre VX-5 20 and then upgraded it to MX-R 20 monoblocks, I was bit leery of SS preamps until I brought home my dealer’s demo KX-R 20 to compare with my Audio Research Reference 6 preamp. Needless to say, despite my perceived prior prejudice toward a tubed preamp, the KX-R 20 was a game changer for me and it subsequently replaced my Reference 6.
|