Help me choose a phono pre

A good recommendation is the Schiit Mani 2 for $160. Michael Fremer of the Tracking Angle likes it. Yes, you can spend 10, 20, 30 X more for a phono stage but diminishing returns for sonic improvements set in quickly. 

Another recommendation is the Moon 110LPv2 for $599. This also features loading options.

The Moon is nice.   I picked up a Sutherland KC Vibe , they can be found for around $600 used.  Also has gain and loading jumpers.   

As with other components, phono preamps come in many different flavors and system synergy is always in play as well, so It really depends on what specific improvements you’re looking for and what sound characteristics are most important to you, and are you looking for new or used?

I picked up a Pro-Ject Tube Box DS2. They now make the DS3. It’s very versatile and sounds great to me. There are a great many choices but it has already been mentioned it’s best to match your TT and cartridge to the appropriate phono pre that will marry up the best. That is good advice.

SPL Phonos https://spl.audio/en/spl-produkt/phonos/

Whatever preamp you choose, make sure that you can select 0 picofarads of capacitance, or at worst case 100 picofarads, or less. The AT has a rising high end response and that can be exacerbated by high capacitance phono stages. And your phono cables and tonearm wire are already adding capacitance. 

The rest is just personal preference and any modern phono preamp should accurately follow the RIAA curve.

This - SPARTAN 20 MM & MC Phono Stage by Michael Fidler - Michael Fidler, Classic Audio Ltd

Order by sending mic an email here - order@michaelfidler.com

He's more of an expert for turntable synergy stuff so send him the email and he'd help you immensely @dcp20124 

I used to have the Moon. Really liked the sound and multiple settings. Only draw back was the settings are made under the unit. It just got unpractical to find the optimum settings.

Buy the best one you can afford.  It will be with you thru multiple cartridges, probably stay with you as you upgrade your whole system.

@dcp20124: Look at the Schiit Skoll F$399 or Stjarna$1699 

Mike

I know a half dozen experienced vinyl heads who swear by Darlington Labs phono pres. If you’re open to buying used the Parasound JC3 Jr. should be in your price range, and it’s a very capable and flexible piece. 

If you are looking to try low output moving cartridges, you will be looking for something that can do about it 65 db of gain.  You could also do a MM phono stage then later add a step up transformer (SUT) when you get a low output cartridge, but that would mean purchasing both the SUT and another interconnect cable).  Although I prefer tubes, at this price range, particularly if you plan to buy something with around 65 db of gain, stick with solid state.

Schitt Skol is nice, truly, but if your gear is in a rack, just say no, as the on/off switch is tiny and fairly inaccessible on the rear.

Clearaudio Smart Phono V2 - has gain control, setting options for MM and MC

Review link below should you be interested , it includes brief comparison with the aforementioned Schiit Mani

https://pt.audio/2023/04/14/clearaudio-smart-phono-v2-review/

TMR has a PS AUDIO STELLAR MM/MC Phono Pre for $1600.....I use one in  a 40K System....with a Rega P8. That's how good it is. Grab it quick. Nothing at that price is even close. Records sound as dynamic as digital.

You can't go wrong with a Herron VTPH-2a if you can find one. A brand new black faced one was just sold to somebody in NJ for $2850. It came from the estate of an audiophile that hadn't even had an opportunity to try it in his rig before he passed away...

I also would recommend the Sutherland KC Vibe.  I bought a demo model from my local brick and mortar store about 3 years ago and I am very happy with the sound and quality.   I also have a Shiit Mani 2 for one of my systems and it is a bargain. 

I ordered a Gold Note to stay below $1000 at the recommendations of Ryan at TMR. But it was stuck in Italy so I bought a used Rega Aria MK 3 for the same price and couldn’t be happier.  Great match to Planar 8 and Apheta 3 cartridge.

Hey guys,

thank you so much for your inputs. I did some research after reading all the comments and sort of settled on the MM Pro by Mr Fiddler.  However, he’s on vacation for a week and will be placing the order once he’s back. In the meanwhile, I stumbled upon this video on YouTube by pearl acoustics, who talked very highly of the Fosi Box X5. Since I had the time, figured I’d order one off Amazon and see how it works.  Strange option but given its price, I have little to lose. I can always return it. It’s arriving today and will post my impressions in a day or two. 
 

Just so you know, I had narrowed it down to the Sutherland Kc vibe,  Mm Pro and Darlington labs. I’m sort of excited to try the Fosi. Let’s see!

Hey guys,

I'm at a loss of words for how good the Fosi sounds. The soundstage, imaging, details.. it’s almost like it has breathed a new life into my records. 
 

But while I’m super impressed, this is also my first experience with a phono preamp. Makes me wonder how much better the likes of Sutherland, Darlington and Michael Fiddler be.. 

im really confused. I feel like I complicated matters by ordering the Fosi. What would you do?

If The Fosi sounds so good to you then keep it. That said the only way you will know if it offers equal to, or more or less SQ, functionality, etc . than the others you identified is to try one or more of them yourself. Time to make your own decision.

@facten Thank you! It was a brief listening session and sounded really really good. For background, I have a 15 month old, so don't get much time to listen in the first place. Its gonna be hard to spend hours of fiddling around with the setup and/r run extensive A/B tests.  I'm going to spend a few more hours with the Fosi across diff albums and make a call.

One other question regarding placement of the gear (TT, Phono and Power, etc).  What i see on a lot of forums is that the TT and Phono Pre Amp must be on a different rack away from speaker, amplifer, etc.  But at the same time, it says the interconnect must not be too long.  So what is the ideal placement if space and cables were not a constraint?   I'm thinking of getting a record storage and can potentially move the TT and Phono Preamp to it.. right now I have everything on one rack between my 2 speakers.. 

@dcp20124 lol you shouldn't be confused the Fosi is pretty awesome. If you've got that, no need to worry then. You're set

@kofibaffour That's very reassuring. Thank you so much. 

@dcp20124 one thing you might consider if not now but for the future is that other than some degree of gain adjustment the Fosi doesn't offer any cartridge loading adjustments,  at least none that I can see, to potentially better dial in cartridge matching and therefore SQ

Hey guys, apologies for the radio silence. Got a bit tied up.

i ended up getting the Michael fiddler’s spartan 20 and returned the Fosi. The spartan 20 is dead silent, literally no sound at all. Fosi albeit great value for money, had this constant noise. Also, it sounded a little bloated in the mids and mid bass.. everything was a bit exaggerated.. the spartan 20 sounds extremely natural.. a bit unexciting at first but the clarity, and naturalness has definitely grown on me. 

@dcp20124 glad you reached out to Michael Fidler for the Spartan20. It puts to shame Phono stages 10x it's price 

@kofibaffour is the spartan 20’s MC good enough for LOMC carts? I’m considering upgrading to a Hana ML. Currently using an AT540ML. 

@dcp20124 I'd say send Michael Fidler an email. He'd be more than happy to answer and is gonna give you a better answer than my vinyl retired ass will ever do lol.

Email - order@michaelfidler.com

@dcp20124 Teac PE505 (S/B).. excellent RIAA perf., plenty of professional level features from Teac/Esoteric house..