Best Preamp under $150

Where are you located? Craigslist can find you some decent stuff. And to clarify....are you looking for a preamp, IE would require a separate amp, or do you have a preamp and are looking to add phono stage to it?

I guess what exactly are you using today so we know where you want to get to.

 

The Mani has adjustable gain switches when you need to adjust it, in between carts. You don't need to adjust it otherwise, so you don't need a gain dial.

 

I need a phono preamp.
im currently using some no name phono preamp. My receiver does not have a phono output.

 

Dude, seriously. You won't find a better sounding phono preamp--with switchable gain settings for when you do swap cartridges, passive RIAA, and at a price less than $150--than the Schiit Mani. Go ahead and order it with confidence.

 

Thanks Gabe. Much appreciated!

 

I was able to find a used Luxman TP117 on ebay in that price range. Not only was this a great price----but a great preamp to boot! Has a good phono stage and the tuner section is marvelous! One Tip---make sure it comes with a remote, as many of the functions are controlled by the remote only. This is a very good preamp that often can be had at a bargain price on the used market.

 

I got mine for (top of my head here) $140 on Ebay. It was meant as a second system stop-gap until I got a matching Mcintosh tuner-preamp for my MC2100 amplifier, but instead I just purchased an Adcom GFT-555 tuner too.

My dad is still running his Adcom GFP-555 along with a GFA-555 amplifier. The speakers he bought with that system gave out first!

 

He's looking for a phono stage. The thread title is very misleading.

 

It really did take long enough to pull that little piece of info out.

 

Sorry guys. Maybe someone can fix the title of the thread?

 

You can put the Pyle phono preamp listed above with the Schiit passive preamp and you'll have a pyle 'o shiit.

 

Hey Vinyl Addict -

I've been reading about the Little Bear Tube Phono Preamp (Ebay, $115-150) on the Audio Karma forums, and what an interesting story. The engineer/designer is a guy named Xie Guangwei, in Shenzhen China, and he sells a phono preamp model for $115, which has kept a pretty live thread going on Audio Karma forums over the past year. Interesting thing is, the engineer reads everyone's posts, and has made regular updates and tweaks to the product in response. Now he's got a full update product, the T10 Pro Phono Preamp, which comes in a kit complete with the vacuum tubes and a cool see-thru case; the new model has switches installed so that you can even swap the tubes out for some Russian brand that has a bunch of these audio guys excited. Also he found a way to quiet the hum that was a complaint on the earlier model. Anyway the T10 Pro is the model I bought for $150 (free shipping!) and I gotta say, the sound is amazing! I'm still tweaking my rig to maximize the audio quality for digitizing lp's, but hey, this is real old-fashioned tube quality at a great price. I'd recommend you check it out, and good luck! (Disclaimer: Xie's English is a little rough, and there is no instruction book - but I just looked at a few pictures and figured it out.)

 

I use my 300f with a Cambridge Audio 551p. It was a significant improvement over both the internal pre on the turntable, as well as the phono stage on my Harman Kardon receiver. Much improved channel separation and detail and very quiet background.

At the moment I have a Denon DL-110 cart on there and have also used the 2M Red.

Have been reading about the Shiit Mani and my interest is piqued, but I do think the 551p does a nice job.

 

Anyone know how the Schiit Mani compares to the Hagerman Bugle2, in overall sound quality?

 

Do I have to assemble the Bugle 2?
Pretty sure im going with the Mani though. Just a nicer unit, appearance wise AND fir the price. Also theres room to upgrade my cart down the road.

 

Keep your eyes open for a Nakamichi CA5, the original model. Extremely well built preamp and you may find one in your price range.

 

You can buy it assembled ($190) or unassembled ($150).