Tube phono pre amps

He can get a Hagerman Trumpet MC (better than Cornet, though I'm sure that's a great value too), still well under budget at just under $1300. Stupid good, fun sound for the money. Responds very well to tube rolling (not all tube phono stages do).

OP - Congrats on your TT purchase.

I had the Resolution Mk4 and an Illustrious arm for a spell and they’re excellent.

Also, Mark and David are good to deal with if you need any support.

You’re on the mark thinking about a tube phono for the Resolution as I found mine to err towards detail retrieval and dynamics, perhaps at the expense of a little body in the mids and heft in the bottom end. Very minor quibble and I found it easily addressed by having tubes in the chain, and of course, the right choice of cartridge.

There’s an Allnic H1201 floating around for $1400 which is a good deal. I have one of those and it worked really well with the Resolution/Illustrious. I also ran a Manley Chinook with the Origin Live deck and that has even more warmth and body.

I think a used Chinook is in your price range..

I love the Softone Model4. Listen mostly to jazz.

Congratulations! A seriously cool looking table.

Tube phono stage good idea. Spend as much as you can, they really make a huge difference. I don’t know that price range so I can’t make a recommendation for a new one. I would recommend used… Audio Research, Conrad Johnson, VAC, or Presto.

For a couple of reasons I am temporarily back with my Quad 24p (four 6111 tubes). It handles MM and MC carts and has both fixed and variable outputs (so you don’t have to use a pre-amp if you are vinyl only!)

It is warmer and richer than my NuVista Vinyl, but doesn’t have all the various loading options. You have to trust Tim deParavicini (RIP) to make the right choices, and I think he did. Even though I use a 4-way switchbox to use two MI and two MC carts with it, it makes me wonder why I bought the NuVista. It’s about $1700 new, so a used example should be in the right range.