Thanks for all the information and clarification lowrider! Talking shop with specs is still a very new practice to me, but it's great to hear from someone who knows what they're talking about that the original caution about gain wasn't completely off base!
At the moment I don't have an idea for what cartridge I'll be using, but that's mostly because I wanted to do some looking around back home in person at local shops to get a better idea (and understanding) of how they worked and functioned. Taking into account the gain of both the cartridge, phono stage, and preamp however, I'd greatly appreciate any recommendations for either that would help me get an idea of what to look for or even just flat out purchase. Like I said I'm perfectly fine expanding my budget by saving up more at the cost of getting everything up and running sooner, so at this point I'd like to assume I'm decently flexible on price points. I won't be able to throw around $4,000 for a preamp or anything of that magnitude, but I certainly am okay with moving a decent ways out of my original $300 mark since I need other components regardless.
At the moment I don't have an idea for what cartridge I'll be using, but that's mostly because I wanted to do some looking around back home in person at local shops to get a better idea (and understanding) of how they worked and functioned. Taking into account the gain of both the cartridge, phono stage, and preamp however, I'd greatly appreciate any recommendations for either that would help me get an idea of what to look for or even just flat out purchase. Like I said I'm perfectly fine expanding my budget by saving up more at the cost of getting everything up and running sooner, so at this point I'd like to assume I'm decently flexible on price points. I won't be able to throw around $4,000 for a preamp or anything of that magnitude, but I certainly am okay with moving a decent ways out of my original $300 mark since I need other components regardless.