Hello, I agree with a few above about Audio Research Ref 6se. The preamp is the soul of your system. It is on my wishlist. I have the Ref 5se. It’s amazing! The Ref 3se phono stage is also on my wishlist. Right now I am using the Hegel v10. I believe you could have both for your price range. The amazing thing about the Hegel is it has a separate linear power supply built into the wall plug. It has balanced outputs and of course a lot of gain if you need it. For $1650 it is a steal. Please make sure your cartridge is set up properly otherwise not much else matters.
Best Full-Function Preamplifier
Consulting the collective wisdom on the best preamp with built in phonostage (MM/MC). DAC not required but OK if it has one. Below $20K retail. Must be a no compromise solution--outstanding linestage and a flexible, great sounding phonostage that would not make you wish you had separates. Thoughts?