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Phono preamp upgrade price/performance

Im wondering how much I would have to spend on a phono stage that would be better than the built in one on my amp?

amp - Arcam Radia A15

TT - project debut carbon with 2m blue 

so i think it sounds pretty good but I recently tested a different amp (Marantz model 50) and I thought ithe phono sounded better than the Arcam. I didn’t keep the Marantz for a bunch of other reasons, but it got me wondering, how much better can things be with a “better” phono stage and what would it cost.

mattldm
noromance's avatar
noromance
9,967 posts
 

A friend did the same thing with the same turntable. They ended up with a tube phono amp. If that’s not an option, the $249 Pro-Ject Phono Box S2 could work.

overthemoon
444 posts
 

Can you audition phono preamps you are interested in.

If I was you, my question is effectively what preamps may result in me listening to more music or enjoying it more than your Arcsm. 
 

There are a lot of awesome ~$500 phono preamps. 

grinnell
1,117 posts
 

Someone is selling Hageman Cornet 3 phono amp on Audio Circle for a good price.  I have the Cornet 2 and it sounds very good.  The only big different is the 2 is tube rectified.

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