Hello,
I am not sure if you would be willing to try solid state. The Sutherland Little LOCO is really good. It’s quiet, has great dynamics at low and high volumes, the mids are nice and smooth. This is a current driven phono stage instead of voltage driven. This is one of those companies who have not raised their prices yet unlike all the rest of these companies. Plus, Ron Sutherland cares about the consumers happiness even over the money. If the little LOCO is out of the price range at $3800 there is a little brother to the Little LOCO called the TZ Vibe. Still current driven for $1400. I just tried this with the linear power supply intended for the Sutherland 20/20 and it was smooth as silk with more than enough gain for everyones needs. It doesn’t need the LPS to sound great but it did of course improve the sound. So for $1850 to have a fantastic phono stage with a linear power supply you can’t go wrong and definitely not at that price for a current driven phono stages that usually start or will start at $4000. BTW, Nice job on the cart. One of those really great carts on the market. If you live near the Chicagoland area you should visit
HolmAudio.com
Also, You can check out the new Acoustic Signature turntable. It is so good you will sell your car to get one. That Acoustic Signature Tornado turntable on the Ayre separates and the KEF Blades playing through the Sutherland TZ Vibe will make you question your past audio purchases.