A beautifully written and very thoughtful review - thanks.
Question: Can the Halo be used as a preamp?

Yup, it has preamp RCA outs on the back.

price? link to buy? am I confused

Out of all the pictures provided, why is there no picture of the back side of the amp? Are there XLR inputs?

@Skooks - good point! A miss on my behalf. Yes on the XLR inputs, and RCA inputs of course, as well as RCA outs & a 6/12v tube switch.

@John Massaria - you can contact Mischa @A2029 for that info. There is a 1101 Audio thread here with various related pics, talks, etc.

so no idea of prices?

Where can I buy it? I've searched and can't find who is selling this good amp!

no one knows price or where or who makes it- great review except that vital part

Contact Mischa @A2029 for that info - he is the designer and builder.

Honest question: If you want neutral freq response and low noise, why tubes? Shouldn't a solid-state amp do this to perfection?

@jshaevitz - I have never heard a solid state amp that sounds as good as a tube amp. For lack of a better way to say it; solid state amps don't sound as authentic to me as tube amps do. It can still be neutral and low noise and do something greater than a solid state amp; that is probably the tone/timbre and authenticity more than anything else. Again - my 2p. I actually started out with a bias against tubes/ for measurements driven purchasing, but my ears kept pulling me into tubes repeatedly.

@John Massaria - as @mordy said, Mischa is the designer/builder. It is a custom amplifier with options. As with other custom amplifiers, you and specify the options you want and "join the build queue". There is a lead time depending on how long the build queue is. Mine was around 2 months I believe. That was also impacted by COVID and parts going missing in the global post. I'll modify the post to be clearer on "who is 1101 Audio" and how getting a custom amp works. This is the general process for other custom build amplifiers I've had and or engaged designers/builders on.

ok understood thanks!

Does Goldpoint 47 step attenuator have enough steps for Verite headphones?

Yes it does.

Where can I order one of these, and how much are we talking about??