Preamp for VPI Prime 21 turntable $300-800

Precision Fidelity C2 tube preamp. I had a C7 back in The Days of Yore - $500! The phono stage to beat then was the new PS III from Paul & Stan. The C7 sounded so much better I traded in the PS III. The C7 was a tube phono stage (cascode circuit), no high-level stage and a selector switch/pair of 5Kohm pots on the front panel. The C8 added a transistor high-level stage.

I have a copy of the Paragon 12 that Trevor Lees built in small quantities in Australia. Real nice tube preamp with two outboard power supplies - one per channel!

The designer of the Precision Fidelity preamps was Bruce Moore. He also designed the Paragon 10, 12 and E preamps. Bruce went on to found MFA (Moore, Frankland , and Associates) specializing in tube gear. I think that the Moore tube gear can compete sonically with today's expensive - and overpriced - tube gear.