• I'm looking for something similar to Dogs, but preamp only. Currently have a cheap little channel switching box with built in phono stage but it was only £70 ten years ago so surely must be the weak link in my system. Ideally I want a box that has:

    Bluetooth aptx
    Chromecast Audio or an optical-in & DAC for my existing CCA
    Phono stage

    Would also do non-chromecast type thing as long as it can be controlled in-app by Spotify. Balanced output would be nice, but I'm sure I wouldn't be able to tell if it wasn't.

    Neither Schiit, Topping or Pro-Ject seem to do the thing I want, though happy to be corrected. Where else should I look?

  • Surely your options increase if you have a separate phone stage? There’s plenty of good budget ones out there.
    Would a WiiM mini or pro plus phono do all you require?

    Edit, the Winamp looks like it ticks the boxes

  • Pro-Ject Prebox DS2 Digital does all of that plus it’s a nice headphone amp. I’ve used mine in all sorts of configurations, it’s very versatile.

    https://www.project-audio.com/en/product/pre-box-ds2-digital/

    I’ve since upgraded to an external phono stage and added a linear power supply but it sounds great straight out of the box.

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