Phono Section of TAD-150 Preamp - How Good?

Glad to see I'm not the only one who believes "EARS" over hype....GREAT PRODUCT....GREAT PRICE

I just stumbled across this thread. As part of a system movement and subsequent simplification effort, I decided to try a TAD-150 for the heck of it, at least until I made up my mind about what I REALLY wanted. I have to say that I am quite pleasantly surprised, especially by the phonostage. Is it as good as my old C-J EV-1? No, but it gets enough stuff right that I don't dwell on what it doesn't do, and instead can simply enjoy my vinyl collection. My proverbial hat is off to Paul G. (of Bizzy Bee).

Just bought a TAD-150 from Paul at Bizzy Bee, and it's now just about completely through the suggested 30-hour break-in period. This replaced a Golden Tube SEP-1SE, and is driving two mono'd Golden Tube SE-40s. My Maggie 1.6's never sounded so glorious! (I can go on waxing sonic attributes for another paragraph or two, but suffice it to say that I am very pleased with what I'm hearing.) Been looking for an affordable tube preamp with remote and a phono stage for a while, and I will tell you that this one is tough to beat, especially for under $1000.

The phono stage: The nicest I've heard in my system. (Using a Music Hall MMF-5 table with Goldring GO12 cartridge.) Great low and mid-bass punch, warm & transparent midband, smooth and definitive treble - my 1972 copy of Traffic's Low Spark of High Heeled Boys never sounded better (nor does a MFSL pressing of Pink Floyd's The Wall). Had tried the SEP-1's optional phono board plus a few different outboard units, and the TAD-150's is clearly my favorite.

Happy Listening!