I had the Chinook and it was somewhat sensitive to microphonics and noise issues, but generally it sounded quite musical and respectable.
I also owned a Whest PS 30RDT (early version) for a while and it was quite good sounding although I believe I had to remove the cover to get to the gain and loading adjustments.
One sleeper you might want to consider is the PS Audio NuWave Phono Converter. It's a very good performing solid-state piece that has externally accessible adjustments, polarity reversal on the front panel and a built-in A to D converter so you can record your records direct to a laptop or PC (@ up to 24-bit, 192kHz resolution). In fact, in addition to the USB record output it has an RCA S/PDIF output if you want to run it into a DAC (although I liked the pure analog playback a bit better).
Another thing about the PS Audio piece is that it's fairly immune to acoustic feedback. I have my turntable and phono stage only a few feet from my Legacy Focus SE speakers that go down to 18Hz in the bass (and are generally very strong in the bass). Even at fairly loud levels with crazy bass the PS Audio NPC remained totally focused, clear, and noise free. I was amazed how taut and powerful the bass could be out of a basic Michell TecnoDec sitting so close to the Focus SE speakers!
I also owned a Whest PS 30RDT (early version) for a while and it was quite good sounding although I believe I had to remove the cover to get to the gain and loading adjustments.
One sleeper you might want to consider is the PS Audio NuWave Phono Converter. It's a very good performing solid-state piece that has externally accessible adjustments, polarity reversal on the front panel and a built-in A to D converter so you can record your records direct to a laptop or PC (@ up to 24-bit, 192kHz resolution). In fact, in addition to the USB record output it has an RCA S/PDIF output if you want to run it into a DAC (although I liked the pure analog playback a bit better).
Another thing about the PS Audio piece is that it's fairly immune to acoustic feedback. I have my turntable and phono stage only a few feet from my Legacy Focus SE speakers that go down to 18Hz in the bass (and are generally very strong in the bass). Even at fairly loud levels with crazy bass the PS Audio NPC remained totally focused, clear, and noise free. I was amazed how taut and powerful the bass could be out of a basic Michell TecnoDec sitting so close to the Focus SE speakers!