How much difference will a phono stage upgrade make?

papafrgog, I’ve been using an Aesthetix Rhea for over a decade and I bought it used.

I initially struggled with tube rush and I guess that’s why the original owner unloaded it.

I’d tried all sorts of 12AX7s to tame the tube rush, but to no avail.

In the meantime, I tried several other phono stages, including ARC PH7, Pass Labs XP-15, BAT VK-P10SE with Super Pak, plus a few others I don’t recall.

Although all of the above phono stages are very reputable and were very quite in comparison, but none had the magic I was looking for in my system. So I was stuck with the Rhea.

Not to give up easily, I contacted Aesthetix and asked to sell me a set of selected tubes for the V1 and V2 positions (in your case, it’d be V1 and V2 for phono). These Sovtek tubes were very quiet in comparison to all previous tubes that I’d tried, although the tube rush was still audible with my ears a few feet from the speakers, but I could live with that.

However, the Sovtek tubes were somewhat lacking in terms of body and dynamic (the magic I was after). After reading so much about the Gold Lion B759, I took a plunge and replaced the Sovteks in V1 and V2.

Now the body and dynamic are restored, although at the expense of very slightly increased tube rush.

I went even further as to replace every 12AX7 with Gold Lion B759.
Tube rush is slightly audible at listening position (~12 feet away from the speaker plane) at quiet nights with the needle lifted, which is much better than before.

I am pretty content now.

YMMV and happy listening!
P.S. My best buddy has a regular Janus and he replaced all 12AX7s with Gold Lion B759s. He is happy.

I have a Primaluna HP Integrated and Revel F208s.  I did a big evaluation of phono stages a year ago (over a period of a year), and ended up with the Chinook.  I had the PhonoBox DS in the house for evaluation, and this is my first-hand experience.

I started years ago with the Jolida JD9, had it for several years, and modded several times.  Then went on the upgrade path.  Listened to these:  Chinook, Project PhonoBox RS, Musical Fidelity Nova II battery, TubeBox DS, plus a few others.  I had the MF for 6 months, and then brought back the DS, RS, and later the Chinook to compare.  I really liked the DS.  It had a nice balanced FR, and easy to listen to, but by comparison (especially to the RS) it was a bit noisy.  Better than the Jolida, but still had tube rush in the background.  The RS was far quieter, and the loading options are fantastic.  Next to the MF, the RS was easier to use,  much more musical and easier to listen to... but somehow it was a bit clinical and dry.  So after all was said and done, we ended up with the Musical Fidelity.  But 6 months in, I wasn't happy with it.

Then comes the Chinook.  It was no comparison.  Yes, double the cost, but wow, the improvement.  Even my GF who thinks I'm crazy completely agreed.  It has a more natural sound, never fatiguing, plenty of detail, fantastic separation of the instruments, great soundstage.  Love it.  When I put NOS tubes into it, it was just the perfect icing on top of an excellent cake.  I have the NOS tubes that now come in the Upscale Audio SE version.

One day, a local guy contacted me and asked me to bring the Chinook over for a comparo.  He had the Allnic, Herron, Sutherland 20/20 in house, and we listened to them compared to the Chinook on a VERY fine system... $25k TT, for example.  My evaluation (blinded as best we could) I liked the Chinook most, then Herron, Allnic and Sutherland.  The Herron was a bit more forward in his setup than the Chinook.  All sounded excellent.  But, I liked the tone and balance of the Chinook best.  Of the 7 or so who voted, Chinook was the winner, but only by one vote.  Herron was second.  

Now, to answer your question, we could probably agree (or not) that Herron could be better in some systems, and Chinook in others.  But, the Herron costs double.  So, for me, moving up from $800 Jolida to $2500 (retail) Chinook, I don't see a reason to go up to almost $4k for the minimal difference in sound quality.  For another $1500, I'd expect to be blown away, and I wasn't.

The difference from the $1k MF or Project RS, or even the $800 TubeBox DS... the step up in sound quality was definitely worth it.  After evaluating and comparing phono stages for a year or more, we've settled on the Chinook and have had it over a year.  

Long answer, but yes I did this same upgrade as you are considering, and yes, it was worth it.

By the way, I don't think Chinook is over the top for your setup.  The Primaluna and the Chinook are a fantastic match, and will support what you have as well as many future upgrades.  IMO, with these two components, you have a long term system.  Tweak tubes or cables, change speakers or turntable, but keep these two components.  They are a good team!

I have both the Manley Chinook and the EAR 834P. FWIW, here are my impressions.
Both are excellent overall. I prefer the Chinook with MM cartridges, and the EAR with low output cartridges. Maybe it’s because the EAR has step ups for mc.  With the Chinook I alway use an outboard step-up for mc cartridges.

I have both the Manley Chinook and the EAR 834P. FWIW, here are my impressions.
Both are excellent overall. I prefer the Chinook with MM cartridges, and the EAR with low output cartridges. Maybe it’s because the EAR has step ups for mc.  With the Chinook I alway use an outboard step-up for mc cartridges.