Your Nominations: Top Phono Stages under $1,000

Thanks for the shout-out Stonedeaf!

another vote for Croft - I have the RIAA-R in a vintage system with Apogee stage and i have to say it works incredibly well with my Grado.
I much preferred it to a Phenomena II+ ( yes I know it is 2x the money)

The phono stage without ability to change load resistors (not only for MC , but also for MM) is a waste of money. If you have never changed the load resistance for MM cartridge then you don’t know the sound of your MM cartridge. The best buy would be high gain MC/MM JLTi phono stage from Australia, everybody missed that one in the comments. User can change loading via resistor fitted RCA plugs (amazing feature). The price in USD is something like $750 (in Australian dollars it’s 990). This is the first phono stage i would recommend for anyone with limited budget! It’s the simpliest circuit based on "diamond" transistor. The older "premium" version was $1750 and review is here http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue28/jlti_phono.htm But the new version sounds even better, but looks not so "premium" to save cash in your pocket. 

Lehmann Audio Black Cube SE II used.

Just to throw another one out - Leema Acoustics Essential.
I've had it about a week and a hundred albums or so and I am very happy with it.
One reason the I got it was Art Dudley's review in Stereophile and his use of a DL-103D - probably my favorite cartridge.
I've got it paired with a 103D on a VPI Aries 2 on a RB900 arm and I can't find any weaknesses with it - quite and detailed with a big sound stage - it has a lot of everything.
Compared to any of my other preamps (Vincent PHO-8, ATA - Aural Thrills, Yaqin 23B and a custom build), it's in different league.