Does EAR324 phono stage sound like tubes ?

I really have to place my ears next to the tweeter of my Thiel 3.7 to detect anything other than dead silence. That said, my First Sound preamp is as dead quiet as well.

To sidetrack a little, does the Ear 324 use a fuse in the unit?

To me, the 324 is very revealing and never sounds analytical. I've yet to discover any tube bloom. The spatial distribution of notes is incredible - Music is never messy or compressed together. Compared to my previous Pass Xono, the 324 thrashes it left right center making the Xono sounds amateurish and unrefined. By the way, the 324 is far more queiter. My current cart is the Lyra Helikon SL.

Having own the 324 nearly a year now, I cannot detect any hum in my system unless of course if you place your eyes at the speaker tweeters. And it is hardly audible. It's even quieter than my Pass Xono.

I would love to try out the Einstein one day.