Phone preamp question

I have never seen a powered passive.(??)

Yeah, that was kind of redundant....

😀 yeah…

But it is pretty cool that it worked out for you.

Many phono stages only have enough adjustment to load a cartridge, so it worked out well for you, and I suspect that it sounds just dandy.

Well done sir!

Additionally - it could potentially not sound not as good with a passive shoved in the middle, depending on how it is trying to drive the amp(s). The Bellari would have a better (lower) output impedance than a passive, so if it is working a champ, then maybe do not start second guessing it?

Just score it as a win.

@thecarpathian

the Bellari came with a custom and extremely robust separate power supply to use in place of the original, anemic wall wart. (Included)

I wonder if this has something to do with its performance?

Most definitely. High quality audio is always directly associated with high quality power supplies.

I have a Bellari VP129 that I use in a dedicated vinyl/headphone system and have always been shocked by how well it performs.  My only nit that I wish I had a fix for is when you power it up, it will send a "pop" to your amp so be careful to power it up before your amp.

These units have been heavily modified by many but the biggest bang for your buck is a better tube, then the power supply.

Most definitely. High quality audio is always directly associated with high quality power supplies.

Although I really doubt ^that^ is a truism, @thecarpathian could certainly try it and report back, which could give us some insight worth respect to the Bellari, but doesn’t say much about other gear.