Phono pre direct to amp, what am I missing?

I have only one source in my system (turntable) and don't plan on adding any others. I'm thinking of getting rid of my integrated amp and was curious about running my phono pre direct to a standalone amp. I guess my question is, what am I missing by not having another pre-amp in the middle? Is the pre-amp just acting as an expensive volume control knob when using only an external phono pre? if that's the case, I would rather spend more $ on the amp and maybe even upgrade my phono pre to the next level with the money I would have been spending on a pre-amp.