Phono Preamp Recommendation


I recently sold my ARC SP-16 and went to an LS-26 linestage. One goal of the upgrade was to improve my vinyl playback which was then suffering in comparison to my Esoteric X-03SE. Now it's time to add a phonostage and I could use some suggestions. Parameters: $2-3K, leaning toward solid state (lower noise, no tubes to swap), low profile (3" high or less). I doubt I'll need gain enough for really low output moving coils nor do I need tons of loading and capacitance adjustments, though some ability to adapt to different cartridges would be nice. Right now I'm running a Dynavector 20XM (medium output coil with 1mv output) in a VPI Scout. I don't see this as my last phonostage but rather one to take me a few years down the road until I can upgrade my table/arm/cartridge in a big way. Basically, I'd like to end up with vinyl playback as good (or better) than what I'm getting on the digital side right now. If I can do this for less than $2K great but I'll go to $3K if the jump in performance is appreciable. Bottom line: performance and reliability are key, features less so. Anything you might suggest should be as good or better than my fallback which is an ARC PH-5 (I know, tubes and taller than 3"!).

Thanks for your assistance.
dodgealum

Showing 1 response by jb0194