Hi RAHE,

I'm back after an absence of a few years. Used to post as "Devil Ears" (a
play on the surname).

A recent burglary has left me sans amplification and while I await the
decision on "what/when/how" from the insurance company, I am investigating
the options that exist to replace the stolen amplifier set-up.

What I had was a Classe' pairing of CP-50 and CA-100 with the optional
Classe' PHCP-50 phono-stage installed in the CP-50.

The rest of the system consists of a Linn LP12/Valhalla/Ittok/AT-OC5 as
analogue source, Theta Data Basic II & DSPro GenVa as digital source plus a
Yamaha CDR-HD1300 CD/HDD recorder (busy archiving vinyl). Speakers are
Tannoy D700's.

Any pre-amp needs to have a "tape-out" fixed line-level output to feed the
Yamaha CDR-HD1300.
An optional phono stage would be nice, but an off-board unit is also an
alternative.

The power amp needs to be able to handle a reactive load that dips to around
3 ohms. The sensitivity of the D700's is 93dB/w, so output power of 100wpc
is adequate, with 200wpc ideal.

What I've looked at to date is to:

a. Stick to Classe' and go with their new Delta Series CP-500 pre-amp (with
phono stage) plus the matching CA-2100 (100wpc)
b. Switch to Jeff Rowland's Concerto pre-amp and a pair of Model 201
monoblocks (250 wpc)
c. Mix Classe' CP-500/phono stage with Jeff Rowland Model 201's

Option b. is not really viable - no tape out facility

This leaves a. and c. - a. being a virtual straight replacement for what was
an enjoyable system; c. being a switch to beefier power amps that could
bring a bit more control tha the old Classe' CA-100 had.

Any comments on the above? Any other suggestions (bearing in mind price
does play a part)?

Stewart, nice to see that you're still alive and kicking and keeping this
group honest. Does ArnyK still frequent this group? Any others from way
back when?

Dave