Considering a new Phono Pre-Amp

I have the Herron and yes it will be a huge step up. The Herron gets you pretty close to the very best yet at a price that while not cheap is at least within reach of us normal working folk.

When you get into this range however its only fair to make sure you know about the Soundsmith strain gauge. While a lot more expensive than any of the phono stages you mention its worth considering because it is in effect one of the world’s finest cartridges and phono stages in one. With the additional advantage of offering essentially lifetime use with a stylus that is easily replaced and at minimal cost, as these things go.

So a lot depends on your future plans. If you plan on buying an expensive top tier cartridge to go with the Herron you would probably be ahead of the game to skip straight to the strain gauge. If a new cart will be a while, or less expensive, then the Herron makes total sense.

I never looked too closely at the others you mention but one thing I did find while researching mine, the Herron comes up "looking for" a lot more often than "for sale" and when they do come up for sale they get snatched up fast and for not much less than full retail. Also for what its worth one of the most common comments made about the Herron is its a keeper, a lifetime buy, you can upgrade everything else but not this, and so on. For me, the only thing I could see myself going to from the Herron is the Soundsmith strain gauge.

I love my Chinook. Haven't compared to the others though. 

You’ve obviously done your homework. It’s up to you now brother.

Too bad K&K Audio no longer produces the Maxed-Out or the Trio.

BTW, have you considered the Ray Samuels products?

In that same price range you should also consider the Allnic H-1202 and Modwright PH9.0. Depending on which of these you compare to the Herron (for instance), you may find some use and design features more suited to you - like use of Lundahl SUTs instead of a FET-based MC gain stage, or front-panel, on-the-fly gain and loading controls, a mono switch, or transformer-coupled balanced outputs. In terms of sound, well you just need to listen to see what suits your ears. The competition is fierce at this price point and there are a lot of really nice stages to choose from $3K-$4K.

Of the ones you’ve listed, I use the Herron in one of my systems. I can say this - it sounds far better using the MM inputs connected to a decent SUT if using a LOMC cart than using the internal FET-based MC gain stage. And I wish it had a mono switch and front panel controls. But yes it sounds very good, especially paired with a SUT - although I’d describe the sound as very neutral and clear not unlike a SS phono stage...plus it adds the slightest bit of midrange emphasis to my ears - so not ruler flat. So if you’re looking for a phono stage that delivers classic tubey sonics I wouldn’t say you’ll necessarily get that from the Herron.