Good preamp for under $300

I have three Apt-Holman preamps, because its so hard to let go of this classic. The special stereo image adjustments, and overall flexibility, together with built-in fine phono stage, make it a winner. Many Audiogon members have extra units from various manufacturers sitting unused, as backups. After you get all the various responses to your posting, you are welcome to get in touch through the Audiogon member email contact system if you want to try another Apt-Holman for $200 from me, since you already know the unit so well. I currently have gone the tube route where finding a preamp with phono stage at a bargain price is not as simple.

Check out the B and K Pro 10 MC. This is a great piece for your price range, has an outboard power supply and a phono section. Great american build quality.. no tone controls and a bypass mode.
Best of luck,
Joe
Custom Audio LLC

check out the McCormack Micro-Line Drive. It has passive and active outputs and an outboard transformer. It is a very good bargain at $250. It is a gem. Salsero

Adcom GFP-565 is a nice piece in your price range

Audioman, what's a bypass mode?

Kkat,
Bypass mode is using the preamp purely as a pass thru for your source to your amp... just using the volume pot. not the gain section of your preamp. You dont get the same volume levels as when the preamp is active. It is supposed to be a more sonically pure way to listen.. I personally like the sonics of the pro 10 without using the bypass mode imo. The external power supply is rock solid and it is a good thought on B and Ks part to isolate it from the rest of the electronics.
It is just one of those nice pieces...
Best of luck,
Joe

I just got a used PS Audio 4.5 preamp for $220 on ebay. There is a 5.0 on ebay right now for about $150 and the auction ends today I think. So far Im very impressed with this pre going with my B&K ST-140. Very warm sound with an almost live performance quality. It has no tone controls, outboard power supply, straightwire mode (makes unit a passive pre) and dual outputs. Very good for the price.

I can second the recommendation on the B & K Pro 10MC. I used one for about 5 years before upgrading.

Whats the difference between the Pro 10MC and the CS 115?

odyssey has a new pre w/ht bypass for 300$
www.odysseyaudio.com

Audioman,

How does the bypass mode work for phono stage gain? Do you have to turn the volume way up?

You do have to turn the pot up quite a bit in bypass mode for phono.

I second the Adcom 565, I paid $300 used and it sounds great with all sources. I can't see a better value out there for that little $.

You will likely be very disappointed in anything less than your Apt preamp. It was and is one of the great pieces of audio equipment of the pre-digital era. Not just because Tom Holman pretty much redefined how you build a phono stage that doesn't interact with the cartridge, or that he included a proper - and necessary - subsonic filter that many current high-end phono stages lack, and not because the tone controls are usable or the genius stereo image control or unmatched flexibility, but because he incorporated all those things without compromising sound quality and without charging an outrageous price.

You should consider sending your unit to Audioproz in Watertown, MA. Vince can be a curmudgeon, but he knows the Apt preamp better than anyone on the planet https://www.audioproz.com/AP.php?Article=95 

He did my preamp a couple years ago, I opted for the Level 3 upgrade and am thoroughly satisfied. 

In the interim, while yours is being repaired, an Adcom is a pretty good bet, and they are dirt cheap. In fact I have a couple GTP-450s I'll be putting up for sale shortly.

There have been many good suggestions given herein. I purchased the B&K Pro 10 in 1985. Kept it for 25 years and sold it on AG for $225 I believe. A great budget preamp. 

There are terrific rebuild services on eBay.  I sent my Pioneer Spec to a Vietnamese electronics engineer in Brooklyn and he was nothing short of spectacular.  I think he advertises there, Etsy, and other similar sites