Building a phono stage shouldn't involve:
1. pain
2. noise

The recipe:
Projekt X Chassis 70 x 300 x 320mm with 7mm anodized aluminum faceplate:
Steel enclosure for power transformers
2 UTS modules and 2 power transformers
RIAA parts tantalum and polystyrene
AC wire thick silver coated braided shield
Iso feet: 4 x $7USD
3 superior quality toggle switches
Teflon 2mm coax connecting cable
3 pairs DIYer friend silver plated RCA
1 pair of Cinemag moving coil step-up transformer with Mu-metal case and Faraday shield
1 pc LED

***New: includes mute and stereo/mono switches on the front panel

Assembled, just connect, plug and play!
You get an extremely state-of-the-art quiet phono stage with 36db gain (suitable for MM cartridge), and 58/64dB switchable with the included Cinemag step-up transformer, 82dB dynamic range and 20 - 20Khz flat frequency response AND output impedance of <100 ohm.
Price: USD $940