Agreed. My entire vinyl rig now (Nad C558, Clearaudio Maestro V2, Schiit Mani) costs less than a single Manley Chinook pre. I spend my vinyl money on good vinyl (although I did just send in my Hana SL to be retipped).
I've come down from a VPI HW19MK4 with a Jelco 750 tonearm and a Hagerman Trumpet pre and truthfully don't notice the difference too much except for noise. But that's all.
You don't have to spend a lot in vinyl to get sound you love.