Pre Amp?
Hi
I am looking to improve my current vinyl system which consists of;-
Rega Planar 2 - Upgraded with 24V motor and white belt - Ortofon red cartridge
Kenwood 3020SE integrated amp
Eltax Compact Bookshelf Speakers
I have been told that adding a seperate pre amp will be better than using the phono input on the amp and have been looking at NAD PP2 and Pro-Ject Phono Box pre amps. Somebody else has said that these would be no better than my current set up.
Any thoughts?
I have already decided to replace the speakers and have been looking at Monitor Audio bookshelf speakers
My system is in my home study and only around 10x8 so not a big room.
Cheers
Thanks for the reply
No not very handy with soldering iron I'm afraid 
Have decided to borrow a mates phono box se and see if it makes a difference.
If not guess I need to look for a new amp. Prefer from cost pov to buy secondhand any suggestions for an amp with a good phono stage built in?
You could do what I did. Have a look here http://www.gspaudio.co.uk/phono-preamps-and-phono-stages.htm, join the forum and arrange a two week no obligation home loan of a phono preamp or two.
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You may make some gains sonically but also the run the risk of having an extra "add on" component and possible noise/ground/cable effects making their presence felt.
It's quite an old amp... not that there's anything wrong with that... and out of curiosity I looked at the phono stage circuitry for the Kenwood which as expected is opamp based (as are most add on preamps too).
If you are reasonably competent with a soldering iron you could replace the rather "pedestrian" 4580 opamp for something like the LM4562 which for a around £4 could well offer the most cost effective upgrade.