Preamp for VPI Prime 21 turntable $300-800

declare makes a very nice tube phono preamp. You can choose MM or MC step transformers. AND - made in USA. I have had one for my MM cartridge for several years. Very happy with it.

There is also a used little loco here on AGON for $2,900.00

You might want to read Herb Reichert's write-up on the Lounge Audio Copla transimpedance MC preamp in the March 2023 Stereophile. "The Copla made recordings sound charged and vivid in the extreme but also vivid and relaxed." concluding "It behaved like someone forgot a zero on its price tag." It costs $350.00 or there is a silver-wired version that costs $485.00.

Few things piss me off more than cavalier comments about having to spend gigabucks for quality. You don't. You have to simply learn what makes quality, learn what quality sounds like, and buy it. If you want to buy industrial shelf art, be my guest, but quality design and execution are not inextricably linked to the price tag.

@panzrwagn

Are transimpedance amplifiers appropriate for all moving coil cartridges, or are there impedance/gain concerns. I apologize, but I’m not that familiar with the design.

@vonHelmholtz, 

Thanks to a large knob on the front that allows impedance matching between an MC and the Copla preamp, it appears to be uniquely capable of matching the requirements of the cartridge.

I really do recommend reading the entire article.