lindsayt said:
hey, OP
This
Accuphase looks like a really good deal - and, well basically, most of the 2nd hand suggestions everyone posted so far. If you can return these (in case your friend won't like them), and they have warranty, such a purchase should be safe, and they should sound really awesome. On the website from this bay add there's more stuff that might peak your interest, like the
Kenwood L-A1, which seems to be in the ballpark (@2600 euro).
If you want new, most amps near that price mark won't have an integrated phono stage. The
Creek Destiny 2 is a sound suggestion, to which you could add
Rega Elicit-R (both of these have phono stages).
Also,
if a separate phono stage is an option, you could look at one of these (cheap to expensive):
Graham Slee Gram Amp 2 SE,
Musical Surroundings Phonomena II (this one seems to be somewhat of a bargain),
Clearaudio Basic + or a
Sutherland PH3D phono stages. As for a NEW amp to go with the respective phonostage, I auditioned most of these with a Simaudio Moon CDP or DAC and they sounded great together:
Simaudio Moon Neo 250i (which is the obvious partner),
Naim Nait XS2,
Sugden A21SE and
Jadis Orchestra (tube amp, sounds fantastic). Also,
Primare I32 might be worth checking.
goodluck