1. Home
  2. analog
  3. 197616-132496

Tube Phono Stage Recommendations

Hey,

Lately I been getting the itch to try a tube phono stage.

So, I wanted to reach out to get some recommendations.

Budget would be $2K or lower.

I am aware of the following that usually get good reviews and recommendations:

- Hagerman Trumpet MC
- Decware ZP3 (Looks like a real hardcore tube phono stage)
- Tavish (although not sure if they are producing at the moment)
- Black Ice Audio
- Schiit STJARNA
 

These are some that I am not really considering:

- Pro-Ject
- EAT
 

Any others that can be recommended that maybe I am not aware of?

Thanks

jay73
2psyop's avatar
2psyop
1,939 posts
 

Sorry I have a Pro-Ject tube phono amp and I luv the sound.

medium_grade
134 posts
 

Have the Hagerman. Great phono pre. My only suggestion is to upgrade the power supply before you spend a bunch of money on better tubes. The PS makes a WAY bigger difference in the sound.

patrickalston
162 posts
 

You have a Vincent Amp.  Consider the Vincent PHO-500 for around $500.  From what I’ve read, it gets good reviews and is quiet. Here are it’s primary features: 

  • A fully isolated external power supply for dramatically lower noise
  • MM/MC compatibility with proper loading options
  • A 24/96 USB recording interface (unique in this price class)
  • A heavier, better‑shielded chassis

Noise floor becomes the defining factor under $2,000—especially with low‑output MC cartridges. Designs with external power supplies (Vincent PHO‑500) or fully separated MM/MC circuits tend to outperform more “feature‑packed” units because they avoid injecting noise into the gain stages.

 

There was also a PHO-8 (discontinued) which got good reviews from Stereophile that perhaps can be found used.  (I actually own a PHO-8, but have never used it.  So, I can’t comment beyond what I’ve read.)  

Otherwise, if you can find a BAT VK-P5 which can be had used under $2k and would move your phono stage game into another universe.  Here’re some of its features:

    • Fully differential, dual‑mono tube phono stage
    • Eight triodes in a high‑voltage, zero‑feedback topology
    • Massive power supply with choke regulation
    • Designed for low‑output MC cartridges
    • True high‑end architecture: large transformers, film caps, discrete regulation, point‑to‑point wiring in critical paths

. . .and it could be upgraded to improve its already excellent performance.  

Here’s the AI comparison against the BAT VK-P5: 

Model Topology Noise Floor MC Handling Sonic Character Comparison vs VK-P5
Hagerman Trumpet MC All-tube gain + JFET MC front end Very low for tubes Excellent (JFET headamp) Big, open, harmonically rich Closest competitor; still less authority and scale
Decware ZP3 Pure tube, MM-only Very low but MM-only Needs SUT Warm, holographic, vintage-tube magic Beautiful but not in VK-P5’s league; limited by MM-only
Tavish Hybrid tube/JFET Low Good (Adagio best) Neutral-warm, clean, refined Strong value; not the dynamic equal of VK-P5
Black Ice Audio Tube/solid-state hybrid Moderate Good Smooth, euphonic, forgiving Fun but mid-fi; lacks resolution and headroom
Schiit Stjarna Fully discrete solid-state Very low Excellent Neutral, fast, modern Technically clean but lacks tube dimensionality of VK-P5

flash56
49 posts
 

Have you considered the Icon PS2 MM pre? It has PTP wiring. And has a whomping 46 dB of gain. And it will not break the bank. $1295 on Music Direct. It uses three 12AX7s. Two for the gain stage and one for the driver stage. It uses passive RIAA. I use it in combination with a SUT. I prefer SUTs over active head amp design. The Manley Chinook uses JFETs for the MC boost. I owned a Chinook. And I prefer the SUT/Icon PS2 combination.

jay73's avatar
jay73 OP
246 posts
 

@jjflash6 Hi, what SUT do you use?

 

@patrickalston I'll take a look at the BAT, thnx. I considered a Vincent but read a few negative reviews that had me concerned. I have a Vincent Amp and that works great though.

More to discover