But with the current Foreplay version going for $369 plus another $299 for the upgrade kit, the Grounded Grid pre begins to look like a better choice if it sounds good. It also appeals to my sense of aesthetics a lot more than the Bottlehead products, which remind me of a junior high science fair project. Transcendent provides some owner comments, but owner reviews unfortunately are the least reliable reviews one can read about any product. I haven't seen any magazine reviews, which would carry more weight with me.

I'm even more intrigued by their T-16 OTL amp kit. It's only 15 watts into eight ohms, but it should drive my 95dB sensitivity 16 ohm line arrays nicely. But how can I ever justify another amp?