VAC Owners:Outboard Phono Stage?

No worries robd2, glad you have discovered the VAC magic.My VAC gear just keeps getting better the more I use it. My latest OMG moment was after I replaced all 16 tubes in the Phi200 mono blocks with Black Treasures from Grant Fidelity. The tubes are not cheap, but a worthwhile upgrade. The sound is stunning, rich and detailed... but most of all, real and natural sounding. The system has disappeared. Dave Brubeck has arrived.

Love to hear that @alonski !  I'm close to ordering a Signiture SE preamp but can't decide if I want to get the internal phono vs buying an outboard. I'm able to in home demo the SE preamp but it doesn't have the phono. I have heard the Ren MKV preamp with phono. The line stage was great but I didn't like the phono on my system. Thoughts? My current cart is the LO MC Sumiko Blackbird.

I have the Renaissance Mk 1 with phono.  I always thought the phono stage was bland and lacking dynamic expression.  Initially, I was using mm cartridges.  Then went to high output moving coil cartridge always using the mm input.  I went through a couple of outboard units, Musical Surroundings, and a Vacuum State Jlti which I preferred over the VAC phono.
A year or so ago I decided to give the VAC another chance.  I found that a lot of break in time was required.  As a guess around 60 to 70 hours at which point I preferred it to the Jlti.  Then I went to a low output cartridge and the whole process with the moving coil input needed to repeated.
I still swap in the Jlti every so often but overall I would rate the VAC phono as being very good.
So, if the line stage you auditioned did not have the phono stage broken in, you did not hear its full capability.
Buy the phono stage within your preamp.  I don't think you will be ultimately disappointed.  It is likely you will be less than satisfied at first.
Btw I am using VAC supplied tubes.

The built-in phono stage options on VAC preamps are a great buy. They now also have a standalone Renaissance phono stage that costs $10K -- came out about a year or 2 ago, not much buzz or reviews on this one though. It does sound good. I wish it was closer to 6/7K, but then compared to the prices of their other gear, I guess 10 seems cheap... 

I was thinking about the break in as being a factor because every time I saw this pre amp setup in the store it always had an outboard plugged into it. Maybe it hasn't been used enough? Or my store knows not to demo the phono... ; ) I will say it sounds like the phono needs time to open up. The unit is 13 months old.

Another interesting factor, what happens to me is that the line stage sounds so fantastic with my Ayre CD player then I switch over to the phono expecting to be wowed further. The line stage is that good.