Phono preamp advice.

There is, or was, on Audiogon, an EAR 834P with extra tubes for a very good price--under $800. I have one and prefer it to an AHT DM-P phono preamp that cost more than three times as much retail. IMHO you couldn't go wrong with this choice, and could easily resell it for more if necessary.

I have a Phenomena with the BPS that I was using with a Teres 265/Graham 2.2/Lyra Helikon set up. I moved "up" to a Tom Evans Groove about a month ago. To be honest I don't hear any difference or improvement and the Tom Evans gets pretty good reveiws from all that use it. The point is I think that the Phenomena is way under rated. If you don't have the BPS, you might consider getting that instead of a new phono pre.

I'm unfamiliar with the Phonomena but I agree with PhilD. That TT (arm? cart?) is well below the rest of your system.

The best phono stage in the world won't improve a signal that isn't reaching it in the first place. Upgrading your source first helps control results and - very important - the cartridge may determine which phono stage to choose. Choosing a phono stage first often limits your cartridge selections.

I am beginning to see that the "front" is more important (for now) and that maybe the MMF7 is ok but not remarkable. I was a bit afraid when I bought the TT that my craze with LPs would pass when the realities I remembered (from olden days) of cleaning, dealing with less-than-perfect surfaces, and storing would again dampen my enthusiasm. Well...unfortunately...the sound is so bloody good (even with my humble TT and pre) that the PIA quotient doesn't really matter. Maybe my next move is to go to local shops that have analog setups and just listen using some LPs from my collection.
I can't tell all of you how much I appreciate your input and am happy that Audiogon has these various forums to be able to learn from the experience of others.
N.

Lachobba, it was perfectly sensible to test the waters before diving in. Before buying a new TT/arm/cart I plugged my 25 year old low-fi rig into my new, higher end system. Just as for you, enough of the magic came through that there was no turning back. As for what the new rig does, don't get me started... :)

There's no denying the PIA factor. Sunday evening I spent three hours at the kitchen sink scrubbing my latest acquisitions. But as you say, "the sound is so bloody good..."

Check out the recent 'Analog under $2K' thread for some ideas. Local shops and vinyl-philes are valuable too, if you can find them. Don't forget to enjoy the music while you hunt!