really the only way other then some boutique outfits like the above is in the lower end.
you could:
Integrated amp with it all built in. so the phono is in the amp not separate.
you could do a custom table like a Garrard 301, Technics, Thorens with a custom plinth and build in the phono stage that's well with in your budget.
or get a small phono stage and hide it behind your other gear. that's actually easy to do as many good stages are rather small.
there is other tables with all built in phono stage and AD. but they usually are targeting the entry level guys at $1000 and below. I hope someone else has a suggestion for you, I have not come across anything but consoles etc.
I'm with brf. It seems that's what you want, as an alternative to the SME Synergy type of solution (where the phono stage is built in to the TT). And as someone else wrote, you could buy one of the many tiny, inexpensive, yet good phono stages now available and park them very close to your TT. Such a box could even be hard-wired to the tonearm (to avoid an extra pair of ICs in the signal path). Where have we gone wrong in our understanding of your post?
The SME Synergy doesn’t really solve the OP’s goal as there’s still an extra box to deal with. Any of the true all-in-ones are entry level units. As already mentioned, the best compromise is getting one of the small form factor phono stages and mounting it in an inconspicuous location.
*If* I were looking for a TT with built-in phono preamp the Rose Gold Shinola Runwell Turntable would be a consideration. That would be for purely aesthetic reasons and a hail mary for the VPI engineering and support.
So the OP is on the pursuit of form over function. Maybe a trip to Walmart is the solution. Maybe accepting that an integrated amplifier or receiver with a built-in phono stage is the solution?
Sadly, my integrated amp of choice has everything (dac, amp, preamp, streamer and room correction) but no phono preamp (this was an overlook on my part, I thought it had a phono built-in). I have gone a phase of separates everything (tube monoblocks, preamp, amp etc), perhaps want to spend the next few years, with the convenience of one-box that can be left on all the time and sound great instead of switching on every damn box and waiting for it to heat up and sound great.
I will listen to more music and fuss less about the gear (with a one-box solution) was my theory. And so far that is true. With one system that can be kept on all the time and play music whenever I have a few minutes, I am enjoying my music collection that much more. (I still have my monoblocks and DAC in storage for when I get through this phase and crave the midrange magic of the 300Bs)
My main reason about having all in one is that the work is done for me, I don't want to spend the time matching phono, tonearm, cart etc. I just (at this point in my life) want to listen to music, good music, crossing a level of satisfaction threshold (sure, I could do better getting separate pieces, but that 5% improvement is not worth it for me now). SME synergy sounds awesome actually (although it does have two pieces, wonder what is its price).
It seems like VPI player, and Rega P1 plus are the only options otherwise. Perhaps I might have to succumb and buy a phono and a TT, which is a bit of a buzzkill in this minimalist phase of my audiofool life. But c'est la vie.
Thank you for as usual everyone for being ever so friendly and ready to help a fellow audiophile.
VPI Player? Not quite up to budget but if a lifestyle product is your requirement and you can improve the cartridge maybe.
Build yourself a Lenco based deck, you can make space for a phonostage in the plinth you build yourself, you get to pick the arm and they run off mains voltage.
You’ll have to try hard to avoid a turntable with a ps at the level you’re thinking of anyway so what’s another box?
Adding my voice to an old discussion, but I thought it would be helpful to note the T+A G 2000 R with the Clearaudio-style tonearm and internal MC phono stage option is a pure delight to operate and sounds better than the AMG Giro G9 I had in my system (matched even with expensive external phono preamps). Among others, there is a helpful review on HiFi News with associated measurements here: https://www.ta-hifi.de/en/audiosystems/r-series/g-2000-r-turntable/
A friend of mine suggested the same. These are vintage. How do I go about procuring one of these, it needs careful restoring by someone who knows what he's doing, right?
essrand, that is a rabbit hole I don't think you want to go down given your state preference for simplicity. The T+A G2000 or the SME Synergy are significantly better and will be way less problematic. Turntables are delicate devices. Worse, they tend to weight a lot. It does not take much of a blow to damage a main bearing and these vintage tables have been bounced around god knows how many times. Even if you rebuild them idler wheel drives wear quickly producing unacceptable rumble levels. There is a reason we do not build them any more.
@mijostyn Problem is that I have yet to meet anyone who has heard either of these two plug-play high end tables. Based on that and the responses on this forum, I guess I am in the minority of people who would like an high-end plug-n-play analog system.
That is correct essrand, it is an unusual request. SME in particular makes 1st class products and you pay for it. The T+A is somewhat more of a risk. I can't imagine that you would not be thrilled with the SME. I have owned several of their products and have always been pleased.
I own both a 938 and a 948 in very clean condition. No problems at all. EMT turntables are made to last a lifetime. To find one in North America just takes patience. Or they are common to find in Europe. Both these models including the 950 have a switch to operate in all countries A/C.
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