IMHO the Bellari is a very nice phono pre, which has very much inspired me to get back into vinyl after about a 20-year hiatus. Regarding the "hum" issue ... the Bellari folks recognized this and addressed it in the later models. Mine is dead quiet. The one limitation - and this concerned me somewhat - is that you would be limited to MM cartridges, whereas the Pro-ject boxes work with both MC and MM. I'm running an Audio Technica 150 MLX cart ($250 @ J&R) and extremely happy with it. If you're concerned about gain, then one of the Ortofon 2M's (Blue to Black) might be the way to go. I tried the 2M Blue, but the AT 150MLX outclasses it.
Also, your tube choice can affect the sound with the Bellari. While the stock tube was decent, rolling to a NOS (1960) GE 5751 took this little pre to another level. My vinyl set-up, though fairly modest, has caused another quest to upgrade my digital front end. Now I'm looking at a number of tube CDP's. Guess that's the nature of the hobby.
Good luck and happy listening!
Also, your tube choice can affect the sound with the Bellari. While the stock tube was decent, rolling to a NOS (1960) GE 5751 took this little pre to another level. My vinyl set-up, though fairly modest, has caused another quest to upgrade my digital front end. Now I'm looking at a number of tube CDP's. Guess that's the nature of the hobby.
Good luck and happy listening!