PS Audio Stellar Phono -vs- Manley Labs Chinook

Have a Manley Chinook and Manley Stingray integrated. The Chinook MM section is excellent. (The Stingray is beyond reproach.) The Chinook MC section is not quite as steller. With MC cartridges I use a stepup to boost the SQ.
My EAR 825 is ever so slightly better in the MC mode. The EAR uses an internal stepup. So maybe my systems just sound better with stepups for MC cartridges.
Haven’t heard the PS Audio Stellar, but have had other PS Audio amps and dacs and never liked any of them.

Correct. The Stingray has no phono section. The Chinook is a complete phono preamp with MC and MM sections. I only use the MM section. With low output cartridges, I think the sound quality is better using an outboard step-up transformer feeding the high output (MM) section of the Chinook.