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Pre-amp newbie question

Hi,

I've recently returned to vinyl after a long hiatus. Please excuse my naiveté on the subject of pre-amps but back in my younger days I couldn't afford such equipment and never really researched it. Now, I constantly have the upgrade bug. My question is: Would I hear a big difference by by-passing my stereo pre-amps phono stage and going with a dedicated phono pre?

I currently have a Rega P3/24 with a Dynavector 10x5. Further down the chain is a Parasound P7 pre-amp and Parasound A21 Amp. The phono stage of the P7 is MM/MC with input impedence of 47k and 100 ohms respectively. With the high output Dynavector the sound is remarkably good but could it be better with a dedicated phono pre-amp?

I'm looking at a Musical Surroundings Phonomena II which has multiple settings for impedence and gain and is compatible with both MM and MC (high and low) carts.

Embarrassingly, the whole subject of ohms, loading and gain confuses the heck out of me so any input would be greatly appreciated.
mjm1124
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uru975
684 posts
 
A few general remarks
generally, once you get up to 1mVolt or more a mm input can be used. Generally again, under 1mVolt it is usually better to use a MC input, due to the higher gain needed.
Most MM phono preamps are preset to 47k as a load, as yours is.
Your dynavector wants something of at least 1k ohm or greater, so the 47k could work. You also have choices of 1,2,50 and 100k to play around with and find out how it sounds to you.
AT 2.5mVolts a gain of 40 should give your around .1 volts which times your preamps gain, 14, should give you about 1.4 volts to your amp. Your amp has an input sensitivity of 1 volt so that should be enough to get you going.
You can then improve the loudness,sound, gain, by increasing the gain to your preference.
The various loading possibilities are there for you to find out what sounds best to your ears. It is always nice to have choices.
Hope that helps. If my numbers are off I am sure someone on here will correct me, thankfully.
stanwal's avatar
stanwal
3,147 posts
 
Dedicated phono stages are better than built in ones, whether it is worth the money to you is another question. If you go with something like the Project Tube Box 11 SE or the Dynavector P 75 [ I am a dealer for the Dynavector] you will notice a considerable difference; these sell new for around $700 . If I didn't want to spend this much I would get the Blue Circle "Thingee", cheap, no looks, but sounds good. I sold Blue Circle in the past. In my own system I spent twice as much for the phono stage as the line stage but I have a lot of vinyl.
agiaccio
147 posts
 
For $795, take a serious look at the Ray Samuels Audio (RSA) F-117 Nighthawk MC/MM phono pre-amp.

I have the Dynavector DV-20X Low MC Cartridge mounted on my VPI Scoutmaster and even though the Dynavector P-75 MK-II was a great match for my Dynavector cart, the F-117 Nighthawk is better (for roughly the same price).

As a bonus, the settings can be changed on the fly via front panel knobs (no need to open up the unit).

I've had mine for roughly 2 weeks now and I've been totally blown away by the F-117. I even had the chance to compare it to the Nagra BPS (3x the price of the F-117) and the F-117 had better, tighter, deeper bass than the Nagra BPS!

RSA F-117 Nighthawk:
http://www.raysamuelsaudio.com/products/f-117
gsself
46 posts
 
One of the many benefits of AudiogoN is buying used equipment to evauluate and re-sell if it the equipment is not satisfying. You should be able to buy a reasonably priced phonomena II on this site. Everyone has opinions and they all.. are subject to their personal experiences. Those experiences may or may not be relevant to you. In your room, with your favorite music, on your system, you are best off trusting what you hear with your ears. Take some time and try different equipment.

Cheers
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