Hi Blotto yes I started using Quad 99 as pre. I still have it and use it in my living room setup - Quad 305/99 combo, Monitor Audio R90 bookshelves)
I believe Krell KRC-3 is a great pre on a used market. I am not missing tilt because in my room with Quad 909s and Neats I have never felt the need to 'correct' the sound.
Hi Bruce30 yes I believe that Quad L / L2 series would sound as good as my Neats with Quad 909s. I may well decide to buy 4 Quad 11L Actives (powered version) once I decide to build Home Theather in my basement (one day when kids grow up and depart basement ;-)
Haven't heard any of the L series unfortunatelly. I have heard that original L series might sound even nicer than L2 (which is very good in its own right, but may sound little bit brighter to some ears, although not fatiguing or something like that). No dealers that were close are selling them (L / L2) here in Ontario.
However the Neats I have matched with power amps are really an excellent match with Quad power amps and Quad CDP2 - which is in fact having an excellent DAC built-in for the S/PDIF / Tosslink output of my Mac Mini. Very non-digital sounding set-up, even with computer as a source. Amazing - never expected such result but I believe that there are reasons for it to be better than CD player.
Now Neats are known for their coherency across the whole product range (budget and high end ones) and Quad 909s are very strong in the midrange. They match nicelly. Not sure if you know but there is saying out there that both Quad power amps and neat speakers are more made for musicians and music lovers rather than hard core hi-fi devotees...
If I had more money I would go for more expensive Neats even but I am happy listener now.
Amazingly haven't used CDP2 as a CD in almost a year ;-) Regards Milos