Preamp suggestions

Just making sure that I am following all of you correctly. With the Snell's in the mix a preamp with some at least minimal amount of gain is now the suggestion. The Schiit Freya is a good suggestion. Also found a Classe Audio DR-4 for about the same price as the Freya.  Still no phono section however. Mcreyn thank you very much for your offer on the phono stage.  That's very generous of you.  Depending on what I wind up with that would be terrific. Also, I hadn't mentioned this before but I do have a McIntosh MA6100 which I have used in the past as a preamp only.  Sadly my home was hit by lightning two weeks ago when my Mac was playing. I am trying to get repaired if possible 😦. It will power on but when I switch to select a source it trips and dies out.  Should I assume that if it can be repaired you would recommend using that as my preamp? Thank you again.  You've been incredibly helpful 

Just making sure that I am following all of you correctly.

The Saga with unity gain could be fine with your Snell's also, it just comes down to how much your source is giving, most do 2v and some I've seen can do 6v.
Give the Saga a go you may fine it fine. If you can't get the volume you know you can send it back for the higher gain Freya.

Cheers George 

One could try out the passive SYS for $50. Would serve as a great indicator of how much power is needed from a phonostage into the PA-5 amp. Buying and selling one would result in little loss.

George’s concerns are real.  A CD output should be 2v which is enough, but often phono preamps run with less output.  Combine that with a CD that is recorded at a low level or album at a low level and you could run out of volume.  The Freya addresses this with its 12 db of gain in high output (you need 1.4v to get full output from your amp, the Freya can take a source with as little as .35v and  get you full output).  

The problem is the Freya busts your budget and I am one that tries to respect peoples stated budget.  A potential alternative is an Emotiva PT-100 for $299.  Preamp tuner with a built in phono stage and bass and treble controls and a remote from a reputable company.  It is made in China, so doesn’t meet your request of US or Canada made.  While I can’t find a max gain spec for it, it is surely at least 10db.  

As far as your Mac, I believe you will be better off with the above choices.  I think it will cost you more to fix the Mac than replacing it, and while a decent unit in the 70s, is not considered one of their great units.