Jeff Rowland Concerto Integrated phono card good?


Sorry...another integrated thread

So a couple people have posted questions about the (relatively) new Jeff Rowland Concerto Integrated, and many want to know about the quality of the optional phono section. I think most of us agree that an outboard phono preamp can produce amazing results, but the question I think most have asked (and no one has answered) is if the Concerto's $600 optional phono card is any good.

Do any of you Concerto owners have the phono option and what does it sound like? What's your associated gear? What other phono preamps have you compared it to or owned? Do you think it's a waste of $600 seeing as you can get some good used phono preamps for around that price?

I'm looking at the Audio Research P-3 but would love to stay with the one-box solution of the JRDG if I decide to go with it.

A sidenote: how would you rate Musical Fidelity's Tri-Vista or KW500 phono sections? (a whole other thread, I know). If anyone wants to email suggestions based off my virtual system I'd welcome them!
mimberman
I can only answer the question indirectly, I have a Concentra I with a phono card which replaced the original Pass Ono dedicated phono preamp. I thought the Ono was very good to excellent, just a little cool sounding, but extremely quiet and well detailed. I would say the Rowland card is very good. Not quite as quiet, but not to the point of it being a problem. If the phono card for the Concerto is much like the Concentra card, then you'd really have to be a nit-picker to need an out board phono preamp.