It is time for me to buy a serious phono amp. The source is a Simon Yorke S7 with Lyra Skala, and maybe sometimes my good old LP12 (Armageddon, Ittock, Klyde). On the other end are the 552 and 500. The Superline looks like the logical choice and I will get one from my dealer for a test in a few days with and without Supercap. Right now, I am using a borrowed Tom Evans Microgroove which seems to fit well and I am very impressed by what it does.
What loading will the Skala need on the Superline? I don’t think it came up in the loading thread.
What other phono amps do I need to look into to make a well-informed choice? Checking out The Groove seems like a good idea since I liked the Microgroove. How about Whest? I don’t want anything that strays too far from the Naim virtues.
Thanks for your input!
Jorg

Recently I had a A/B comparison of a Stageline and a Superline: Both used no extra power supply and were powered by a NAC 252. The rest of the system was LP12/Lingo/Keel/Ekos2 and NAP 300 driving Avalon speakers. If I were you I would not hesitate to buy a Superline! Compared to the Stageline the Superline plays in another galaxy. And with your 552/500 you will have a lot of synergy. If this is still not good enough just add a Hi Cap or Supercap... and the Superline will be even better. I would not even think a second about buying a different phono pre. The Superline just got a great review in a big German hifi magazine, too. And I like the easy changing of the capacitance and resistance via plugs a lot, too. Here the Superline is much more flexible than a Tom Evans phono pre.