Best phono preamp under $250

Thanks all for the suggestions. Is the project phono box SE II worth the price difference over the standard phono box II?

I use a Cambridge 640p with a Pangea P100 power supply and it sounds great. The newer model that replaced it might be better. Plus, it has a rumble filter that I like. Inexpensive, seems to be built very well.

I agree with Wolf Garcia on the Cambridge Audio. Very good phono stage for the money..

The Cambridge 640 did it for me. Way better than the 540. You really have to jump up in price to see more of a difference.

I recently acquired a Pro-ject Phono Box S for a secondary system. I installed it in my main system first to see how it would play with my Pro-ject RM5.1 SE/Sumiko Blue Point No. 2. I was blown away by how it performed compared to the phono stage built into my Parasound 2 channel preamp. Neddless to say the Phono Box S is now a permanent addition to my main system.

At $200, this little box allows for full cartridge loading of gain/capacitance/impedence so you can dial in your cartridge, either MC/MM, exactly for your system. In my case I gained much lower noise, better gain, and a wider and deeper soundstage. I should have bought one years ago, its that good and its under your stated budget.