Preamp suggestions

Bigkidz1- The Counterpoint SA-3000 is an incredible recommendation. Lets look at what original poster said he wanted:

"I would however like to have a built-in phono section and the ability to manually adjust with tone controls. I would prefer to buy an American or Canadian product and would pay up to $500. Im not opposed to a lightly used unit either."

So, breaking it down:

Phono Section- Yep, the SA-3000 has one. So far, so good.

Tone Controls- Oops, nope, the SA-3000 doesn’t haven’t them, but not big deal. I know the OP asked about them, but what does he know?

American or Canadian- Why yes they were, before they filed for bankruptcy in 1996 and went out business.

Less than $500- Well there is one for sale on US Audiomart for $1000 right now. You don’t mention how much you will charge for your upgrade, but I am guessing it is not free, nor the shipping to and from you. Lets say you are the cheapest upgrader in the world and only charge $250 and he can get shipping for both ways for $50. We are now at $1,300. $1,300 is sort of like $500, but hey again, the OP doesn’t know what he wants or needs and its not your budget, so who cares if what you like and suggest costs 2.5x the OPs budget.

Lightly Used- The 3000’s were made in the 80s, so the newest ones are 30 years old. Capacitors and other devices are old, parts may be limited or NLA. I’m not sure that qualifies as lightly used.

On second thought, why, except the fact that you happen to like and modify SA-3000s, would it be an appropriate recommendation for the OP?  I still think it is an incredible recommendation, incredibly bad, the same as someone walking into a Ford dealership saying they have the budget and need for a Taurus and being told by the salesperson they should by a Raptor.  

Thank you mcreyn for fielding the suggestion from bigkidz that intuitiveky and pragmatically made absolutely zero sense.  I like idea of the Schiit Freya but I really would like a built in phono and I do need a front facing power switch due to the demands of my physical component setup.  If I took the American and Canadian factors out of the equation and bumped up my budget by $200 what other thoughts do you have?  Thank you to George as well.. 😁

Bigkidz -  Thanks for the response.  Looking at it, I need to apologize for the snide way I presented my comments.   It is clear you were trying to help and just missed some of the information in the thread.  

Icarus12-

To help everyone hone in on suggestions, a few additional questions:

1)  What are your other sources (cd, tape, streaming, home theater)?
2)  Do you use an outboard dac?
3)  What sources do you primarily listen to?
4)  When you had your Mac with the Snells, what if anything did you like or not like about the sound?
5)  How important is a remote control?  (I can’t live without one, others could care less).

Cary 

Hello again. Thank you bigkidz for clarifying your previous suggestion.  In terms of source inputs, I primarily use an iPod directly plugged in with RCA to an an available AUX port.  I will sometimes stream music via a WiFi connection. I will also occasionally use a conventional CD player and of course I will use the turntable.  So.... Basically everything except DAC and tape.  I had no real complaints about the use of my Mac other than the lack of power and I felt I was lacking sine midrange.  I have the biwire connections on my speakers jumped.  I do not have a preference with the remote as I have never felt the need to have one. I'm quite grateful for your feedback.