van den Hul The Grail SB... I have enough tubes in my system that I don't need/want more in a phono pre. Had a Simaudio before this and it was no slouch, the VDH is however the end of the road for me. Just my opinion
End Game Phono Preamp (tube)
Before you say ALLNIC a few caveats - I will only be using one TT so only need one input (MC). ALLNIC has up to 4 which is a lot of extra engineering I don't need and don't want to pay for. I'm coming from a very much loved Hagerman Trumpet MC with all the finest (to my ears) NOS tubes, external linear power supply, upgraded footers. It sounds terrific but I just have to scratch that itch to see if I can do better. If the only improvement I'll be getting by going up the food chain is less hiss, well, I can live with the existing hiss truthfully. I'd be expecting improved imaging, depth, resolution, cymbal decay beauty. Maybe I have it all now... if anyone has first hand experience with the Trumpet and can with an informed opinion offer a better option I'm all ears (hehe).
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@fastricky yes the melto2 received a glowing review In stereophile. If you can pick one up used, like I did, it’s worth checking out. However, to me, its performance is not in line with its retail price. I didn’t care for it. Synergy and personal preference come into play. |
Doshi is another maker of a tube phono stage that can be used with MM and MC cartridges and has a reasonably high gain for low output MC cartridges (72 db). Loading can be set very easily by remote control. I heard it in a dealer setup that I was not very familiar with so I cannot say how it sounds. I frankly don't have an idea what is the best phono stage I've heard because I have not done any direct comparisons. But, I've heard very good sound from a system that used the crazy expensive Audio Note M9 phono stage and their top of the line step up transformer. The same dealer also uses Synthesis and Lector tube phono stages and those sound good too. That same dealer sells Conrad Johnson, but I heard that company's phono stage in a completely different setting and the sound of that system was good too. Many of the tube phono setups that I like either require a separate step up transformer or employ a built in transformer (like my Viva Fono). Some totally active phono stages that don't use a step up transformer can b a little bit noisy or require the buyer to hunt for extremely quiet tubes (like the Aesthetix phono stages). |
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