Step up from NAD PP2

-Let me ask you Kbarkamian-And I appreciate all the excellent info here- What might be a good used integrated bargain here in A'gon? I see REGA Brios and Arcam A70s going for 400-500 region.....
The Arcam has a MM phono stage I believe....I cant help wondering-if I am spending 300-400 on a used phono stage -say Moon/ Pro-Ject / etc etc
Would I be better off spending say 500 or 600 on a whole new (or used as it were!) Integrated with a built in phono?
I felt the old Arcam Alphas were great-I like a decent amount of weight to the sound-do not like anything sounding thin..(I am actually a bassist by profession..!)
Any thoughts from anyone gratefully received-I like the Funk table too!
Cheers
R

I have owned plenty of int. amps over the yrs. (Brio 3, B-60, Arcam 10 and 7, Nad 302/314 and many more.) How good of a built in phono stage depends. A stand alone phono pre-amp in many cases will sound better. But you have the simplicity...If you like Arcam go for Alpha 7/8/9/10. I'm using an Alpha 7 right now w/my Krix Symphonix spks. and it drives them very easily and sounds good. I believe they are a step up, but let me say my little Nad 302 is a wonderful amp! The Alpha 7 is better though. I'd say still get a seperate phono pre-amp unless you're considering a B-60 w/built in phono stage. The Rega is nice as well. Arcam Alpha's do come up for sale here and you may want to wait for one to come up for sale. The little Creek 8 I mentioned previously for sale would be a nice unit to try and see how it would compare w/the NAD. You could always resell and lose very little and gain experience. Bill.

thanks Bill..excellent advice sir!
Cheers
Rufus

I agree with Bill regarding integrateds and built in phono stages. Except for a B60 (genuinely not trying to sound biased) and maybe, just maybe a Rega Mira 3, I'd go with an external phono stage.

Rega's internal stage is very good, but I'm pretty sure the Simaudio would be better. Something like the Dynavector P75 would destroy it. Haven't heard my B60's phono stage directly against a P75, but I think the P75 would be a bit better.

A huge advantage external phono stages have over internal ones is flexibility in MM/MC and loading. With an internal one, you're locked in to what you've got, whereas with stuff like the P75 or LP3, you've got far more cartridge options.

In regards to a buying a B60, very few I've seen have the phono option. It can be upgraded by Bryston if you bought a used one, but it's at least $350 if my memory is correct. That's one reason why I jumped on the one I bought here.

At the end of the day, it depends on your overall budget and is also a case by case basis. Some integrateds have great phono stages built in, whereas others are more of an afterthought.