Mojo, you can't know how happy I am to hear you compare the 950 favorably with the Apt Holman. Why? Because my ex-wife got the Apt Holman in the divorce seven years ago. I always missed that preamp and have often wondered how it would sound now that I've upgraded amps and speakers. Thanks to your positive comparison of the 950, I now have one less reason to curse the memory of that byatch.