I am totally confused, help please !!

[Reffc]

A good second hand Denon PMA-350SE with the optional phono stage for under £100 and a pair of Mordaunt Short Pageant II or original Mission 780SE speakers for about the same money all from eBay. It'll sound just fine. The Pageant II speakers can be upgraded easily too.

^^^
This, good shout Geoff.

Speakers wise, the new Tannoy Mercury 7.2 or Eclipse speakers create a big bold sound making them sound much bigger than they are and they're the best yet in the budget bookshelf veriety from Tannoy. £229 I think is the retail for thr 7.2

[brummy10]

Following advice i have just found a Denon PMA-350SE, problem is i believe this model had a optional phono card, the current owner has said it does have a phono input but has never used it for a turntable, is there a way of being sure before i purchase

[Firebottle]

Select the phono input then turn the volume up to full.

There will more likely be a bit of hiss or hum, compare to another line level input if unsure, you should hear a difference.

Turn the volume control down between selecting inputs in case there is any click or pop from the switch.

Cheers

[Jason P]

You could do a lot lot worse than getting the Brio-R in the classifieds here. Cracking amp and a very very good MM phono stage. And the knowledge that Rega's warranty and after sales is very good - even if you're not the original owner.

Couple that with any mid-range speakers and you'll be laughing. A pair of RS1's would do nicely, but it's a pretty neutral amp and will suit most.

[brummy10]

Well , i finally settled on a Denon PMA 250 Se amp, Monitor Audio Broze 1 (On stands) and even managed a HiFi rack, all looks and sounds great, he loves it, thanks for all the advice

[Macca]

Good selection. Glad we could all help

[sumday]

IF the pioneer turntable is going to kept in use, you may need to get the motor re lubricated as the original grease will have hardened allowing it to induce noise into the platter.
not as hard a job as you might think....there are lots of vids on youtube and the wider net showing you how.

you should also clean out the platter bearing and spindle.....add a couple of drops of machine oil and she should carry on playing for years.

NIGE.