Good phono amp, low noise, not too expencive?

Is there an echo in here? there is another thread that is virtually identical to this one. The Plinius Jarrah will crush the Monolithic!

You may want to check out the AES PH-1. I have been very pleased with the results I have obtained in my system. $549 factory constructed (as opposed to a kit which is less).

A sleeper for few bucks second hand would be the accurus. The model may be p1 or p3, I forget. I owned one and it worked very well with a denon 304[about .2 output...I bought mine for about 350 cdns 7 years ago and sold it for 300...Th aragon version is more expensive but better....The above choices are worth checking out also....good luck...

Paul:

I am with the "Psych" as far as the Monolithic PS-1/HC-1 is concerned. I don't have a phono stage yet, and I am going to add an analog rig to my audio system this summer. The first piece I am going to get will be the phono stage. And my phono stage will be the Monolithic PS-1/HC-1. I think that at $660.00, it will take on all challangers that charge close to three times its modest price (though, I think that the AcousTech PH-1 might be a formidable foe for the Monolithic PS-1/HC-1, and if I could afford to spend more, then that's what I would get. But that's a different story altogether). Try one out for yourself. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

--Charles--

Charles, I bought the Monolithic without ever listening to it. I had a phone conversation with Greg--he's such a terrible salesman! But he spoke with enthusiasm and technical mastery of how his unit was designed and works. Kind of like an inexpensive version of a Klyne (my favorite phono preamp). I knew I could trust Greg's design...

Will you trust me on TT choice? I read in another forum that Thorsten posted in the Asylum that the Technics 1200 can be "stunning" with the proper audiophile cartridge. Yeah, Thorsten has to say it--right? My modded 1200 w/ Ortofon X5 MC, tonearm fluid damper and the Monolithic phono stage *is* stunning...People think that since the 1200 is direct drive it has a motor physically rotating the platter--it doesn't. It rotates via a magnetic field--there's no physical contact; rumble is a mere (-78 dB) and there's no transmitted vibrations from the "motor". Compare that technology with the glass and particle board units. Not a chance.