My Fidelity Research MC201 and Ortofon 2M Black might measure better, but the '103 is less "hi-fi-sounding" and not nearly as fussy.

For such a Rube Goldberg-looking contraption, the Simplex works very well.  Firebaugh is a genius.

Perhaps the best preamp I ever owned was an Audible Illusions 2-C (and a Superphon was the best s/s preamp).  This is even better, except for the AI's eerie holographic 3D soundstage.  Ultimately I like the BA 2018 better.  I'm betting a "real" TOTL Pass preamp would make me cry.

It kills me that this preamp sounds better to me than my LTA MZ2 (with LPS+ power supply), which now sits in my office, unused.  I'm looking for cheap bookshelf speakers for the office, as I hate wearing headphones.  The LTA is not bad at all, but just not as good.  Perhaps the newer LTA gear is a lot better, as some claim.  Getting pricey, though.

Two-way speakers with sensitive compression drivers and woofers that go down to 40 Hz are more satisfying than the "full"-range Omegas.  The Omegas are excellent in many ways, but the Advent/Econowaves are ultimately more my cup of tea.  Live and learn.

I reckon I would really like a slightly bigger speaker with Radian drivers and JBL woofers, using the same general design criteria as what I have now.

-edit-

I no longer use AI's cleaners.  Now it's alcohol, distilled water, and a drop of detergent.  I paid too much for this cleaner, but I'm glad I did.  It's bulletproof.

I think DACs are the hi-fi equivalent of "how many angels can dance on the head of a pin?"  To my chagrin, my Yamaha A-S501 amplifier's DAC sounds just as good for most decently-mastered Redbook recordings.

The build quality of the Border Patrol DAC is not impressive.  The exterior looks great and feels hefty, but if you open it up, you'll see one of the circuit boards is mounted on a tiny piece of plywood.  I'm not saying that's a problem, but it's underwhelming.  I had to replace a bad switch (for the USB and S/PDIF input), and the switch was definitely a too-cheap part, given the DAC cost me almost $2k.