Dear Firewall: On that budget there are a lot of options that could outperform your 501. looking to your system seems to me that if you want to improve the analog quality perfromance level my first step ( if I was you. ) should be a better Phonolinepreamp because is here where the pick-up delicate and sensitive cartridge signal pass through a whole " hard " proccess to amplify that signal ( some times 10K times: 80dbs+. ) and must do it with adding no noise/distortions that degrade the cartridge signal. Is in this Phonolinepreamp where the cartridge signal is equalized: inverse RIAA eq. curve, to achieve a frequency response according with was in the recording and this RIAA eq. must do it with out frequency deviations that again degrade the cartridge signal.
Even that your PHD is a nice unit IMHO can't honor top LOMC cartridges for these ones can shows at its best.
In the other side and before take that " road " my advise is that you try the other analog source alternative: MM/MI, that IMHO is very good too and where you don't need to make any up-date in your system to enjoy it. This MM/MI alternative can not only even the quality perfromance of the 501 but outperform it overall. The Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood is a good place to start.. You will be surprised with its quality perfromance for less than 1K.
Regards and enjoy the music,
R.
Even that your PHD is a nice unit IMHO can't honor top LOMC cartridges for these ones can shows at its best.
In the other side and before take that " road " my advise is that you try the other analog source alternative: MM/MI, that IMHO is very good too and where you don't need to make any up-date in your system to enjoy it. This MM/MI alternative can not only even the quality perfromance of the 501 but outperform it overall. The Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood is a good place to start.. You will be surprised with its quality perfromance for less than 1K.
Regards and enjoy the music,
R.