Solid State Phono Stages

I’ve always had tube phono stages. But I decided to give a SS one a try and I’m glad I did. I bought an SPL Phonos and am very happy with it.  Very dynamic with great bass extension and tonally very neutral. This is the one I’d recommend. 

The smartest thing is likely to stick with the Modwright PH9.0X phono. (IMO)

I had the Sim/Moon on the short list, as well as Sutherland.
It sort of depends on the cartridge though. If one is playing many cartridges then the Sim/Moon has combo that can be selected from the front panel.

If one is inclined towards MI or MM then I doubt that the transimpedance are “the go”. I am pretty sure that the Sutherland requires only MC… so no MI or MM.

And there is the SUT crowd. So whether it is “build in” or outboard, then that drives one to a different set of phono stages.

If one already has a nice phono stage then a good case can be made to just stop there.

My system has zero hiss at full volume, except with the phono stage… and the old ARC is limited to MM and 42dB (or maybe 48dB) of gain. And the ol ARC PH2 has a fair amount of hiss and low level noise… which starts to get audible a bit higher than where I normally have the volume at. So it is not bad, just it’s not perfect.
And I am limited to using only High Output coils.

Hence; I decided to upgrade the phono stage. And I have more cartridge options available.

If I had something like the Modwright PH9.0X phono, I would not likely have done so.

I’ve liked all my tube phono stages better than both of those units.

I got a used tube phono stage. And most are not overly “tube hungry” like a power amp can be.

I hope you will report back as to what you do and find. My journey has been in the opposite direction… I found Audio Research for phono stages decades ago and once I got to ARC tube phonostages… there was no going back… I now own a ARC Reference 3. Next same with preamps… now Reference 6SE… then DAC and amp… Ref160s… After decades with the wonderful Pass ss amps I can’t even begin to think of going back.

So, I would be really interested to hear your impressions when you get your new Phonostage.

@thiefoflight 

looking at the Phono Loco and it looks like it requires a balanced input into the stage

Your cables should work fine as they are. Current (no pun) production typically uses RCA inputs.

@thiefoflight Nice looking specs on the Moon product.  I would expect that at three times the price. I'm at the point where my ears just can't hear the difference above a certain level of quality.  Cheers. 

@boothroyd looking at the Phono Loco and it looks like it requires a balanced input into the stage, meaning I would need balanced outs from my tonearm. I could get my tonearm to do so. It is possible, but I would want to make sure transimpedance is the way I would want to go. I strongly believe in using good cables. I’m currently using a Synergistic Research Atmosphere X Euphoria phono going into my phono stage. 
 

@solypsa and ​​​​@rauliruegas Thanks for the nudge to SimAudio. It continues to be the unit that piques my interest and the way you validate it’s sonic characteristics is reassuring and make it more appealing. I did not know about the 820S power supply, that makes it even more interesting to upgrade down the line!

@karl_desch I have heard the XP27 a few times as well in a friend’s all Pass system. It too is very good, so worth considering.

@bigtwin The noise I mention is likely not one that is readily audible from listening position, but one that obscures imaging and separation. Even by looking at the stats, it has a range of SNR from 87db down to 67db. I think that is noisier than even my Modwright tube unit. I know most record surface rumble generates around 70-75db SNR anyways, but adding yet another layer of noise never helps. Many of the other stages I’m looking at are up in the 90-100db SNR range, which will be beneficial to pair with my preamp and amp which are all >115db SNR. 
 

@thiefoflight  I have the Rega P8 with Alpheta 3 MC cartridge.  Hegel H590 into Acoustic Zen speakers.  It is dead quiet so I'm not sure what noise others are complaining about.  My previous phono stage was the Vertere Acoustics’ Phono-1 MkII.  The JC3+ is superior in wvery way.  IMHO

Dear  @thiefoflight  :  Just pull the triger for the 610 by SimsAudio, no tube or hybrid designs can " touch " it. Latter on you can make an upgrade to the 610 with the external 820S power supply that not even the 810 has it. Obviously I'm in agreement with the gentlemans that posted here and that support the 610/810. Don't waist your time and as soon is posible start to enjoy the SimsAudio. You can't go wrong with and fulfill your tragets:

" when it should be, and also gentle and refined when it should be. " Yes, when it should be.

I think that in the same system with the same cartridge if you listen to the 610 and 810 will be extremely hard that you can say which one in true is better, not only different but better,

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,

R.

Very happy with my Pass XP-27.  Super quiet and brings out the uniqueness of each cartridge. No balanced input, but has a true balanced output. Great controls up front for MC, MI, MM carts.

@thiefoflight hopefully you do get to demo the 810lp, it fits your characterization of 'SS with personality' from my experience. I represent a solid state phono from Germany called the Audiospecials Phonolab and had it in a comparo with the ( more costly ) Moon. Both are fantastic, but in this instance and system the takeaway was that the Phonolab is a straight A student but the 810 in comparison had more swagger on top of good grades :) . The Phonolab does have the interesting Recompizer function which is pretty nice to have with less than stellar recordings, for my wide ranging musical tastes it gets used...

@lewm 

I know a lot of audiophiles break my "rule" by driving transimpedance stages with say a Denon DL103, which has a very high internal R. That's life.

A great excuse for them to consider the upgraded “R” version DL103R (14 vs 40 ohms). Lower impedance equals more current & music in these types of circuits 👍

Most higher end tonearm makers will offer their tonearms with "captive" cables as an option, so you have one wire from cartridge pin to phono input. For sure, this is true for Reed and Triplanar; I own one of each, both with captive cables. Clearaudio tonearms are not unique in this aspect.

Re balanced connection: You really already have a balanced connection, as 99% of cartridges offer a balanced output if the wiring permits.  To connect the cartridge to a balanced phono input, you simply use the "Ground" lead from the cartridge as the negative phase of a balanced signal. Optimally, therefore, you want the ground wire to be a conductor identical in type and quality to the conductor used for the positive phase of the signal.  By convention, the positive phase, aka "Hot" on an RCA connector, attaches to pin2 of an XLR connector, and the negative phase, aka "GD", attaches to pin3 of the XLR. pin1 is then where to connect the shield and any audio ground wire.  Since the internal wiring of most tonearms already uses the same conductors for what becomes Hot and GD in a single-ended connection, all you need is a balanced cable (defined as per above, where the pos and neg phase conductors are equal and terminated in an XLR), and of course a true balanced phono stage. (Be careful of that.  Some phono stages that offer XLR inputs are not truly balanced internally.) Also, you could get away with just re-terminating a single-ended phono cable where ground is carried on the shield with XLRs, but that would be a compromise with respect to optimal.

"Transimpedance".  I really dislike that term, although it is in common use these days to indicate a current-driven phono stage. Because it's misleading.  MC cartridges with high-ish internal impedance, say 20 ohms and higher, are not necessarily so well matched with SOME current-driven phono stages, because those phono stages inevitably have an input impedance greater than zero, and because the current output of the cartridge is a function of its internal resistance. (I know a lot of audiophiles break my "rule" by driving transimpedance stages with say a Denon DL103, which has a very high internal R. That's life.) The lower the internal resistance (and the greater the voltage output) of the cartridge, the more current it can deliver. If I am not mistaken, most current-driven phono stages seem to consist of an input stage that converts current to voltage. Then the downstream circuit functions much like any other phono stage.  The I to V conversion is best done by a solid state device. Hence most current-driven stages are at least hybrids or fully ss.  If it were me, I would check on the input impedance of any current-driven stage before purchase.  Ideally you want the Z to be as close to zero as possible.

I am a Tube Device user myself and every so often get the chance to listen to very modern designs for Solid State devices..

Recently I have been offered demonstrations of Two Phonostages, one being the Phasemation E-350 and the other being a model referred to as the 'Avalon', it is  Bespoke Built Design by a very accomplished Electronics Engineer with more than 40 years using LP as their main replays.

Each of these Phon's have made a extremely good impression and very memorable and worthy of informing others about.

Neither of the Phon's are going to break the bank, and the price separation between the Two above Phon's has a decent separation.

Even though the Phon's were not compared side by side, the demonstrations were carried out in short succession and the recollected information was enough to produce a assessment that both were very capable and will need a vast jump in design to be seen as easily bettered.

When encountering either of these Models the impression made might be such, that the need to continue a search further may be vanquished.  

complete don't usually promote products

@thiefoflight 

I don’t currently have balanced outs coming from my tonearm but it is an option.

Not required on the current crop of Loco products although cable type should be considered as previously mentioned.

Thank you all - some great suggestions here. 
 

@holmz ​​​​​@boothroyd - I don’t currently have balanced outs coming from my tonearm but it is an option. I’ve read about the Sutherland Phono Loco in the past and forgot about it as I wasn’t curious about solid state stages then. A brief search also surfaced Channel D phono stages, which also have an incredible reputation. 
 

@rsf507 I think the Gold Note PH-1000 is super sexy, but a few reviewers have commented on its lack of speed and dynamics, stating the unit is overly refined. That was a turnoff but would love to hear if anyone has experience comparing it to other stages. 
 

@bigtwin I forgot to list the Parasound JC3+  I’ve looked into that one before, but I’ve read a few users who commented on its noticeable noise levels for low output MC cartridges, and that was a turn off. 
 

@williewonka Yeah Simaudio MOON is up at the top of my list. There is a 610LP that is in budget for me, but I’m somewhat waiting for the 810LP to hit the market. They consistently seem to outperform the competition from what I’ve heard. 
 

I really appreciate the suggestions so far and will take a deeper consideration into transconductance stages, which I know little about. 
 

Keep it coming!

Good luck on your journey!

I haven't explored the separate phono stage route; however, I am extremely pleased with the phono stage from my Moon 390 - it is derived from their 610 phono stage.  

@thiefoflight - Take look at Simaudio Moon - there is a model to suit your budget.

Not sure you will find a used uinit because the ones in your budget do not come up for sale very often.

I have the LP5.3 RS model (the current 310LP model) and I an very happy with it.

But you would probably want the 610LP ($10k CDN) or the 810LP (16k CDN)

Simmaudio Moon Phono stages

They are extremely quiet and can be configured to most all cartridges

They are very dynaic and bold with exceptional details, but they convey the aura of the performance very well also

I use extremely good cables and the sound is exceptional.

Regards - Steve

I am very happy with the Parasound JC3+   Way below your max budget and while worth a demo. I believe it has all the features you have requested. 

The best phono solid state phono stage I've heard in your price range is the Coda 06x. It's bettered by my Zesto Andrés Deluxe II phono stage but not by much.

+1 on the Sutherland Loco or transimpedance phono preamps. The build and specs of your PC1S make it an absolute ideal candidate.

While your tonearm is not mentioned, Clearaudio Tonearms usually have a captive signal cable. Definitely helpful if your tonearm cable utilizes balanced signal construction as coax types typically exhibit increased inductance which impedes current/music flow.

As expected, network phono cables are a definite no for transimpedance performance.

I would love to hear the new Gold Note PH-1000. I use the GN PH-10 and it's so versatile and sonically full and detailed. If the PH-1000 is significantly better it just might be the end game for many

I would suggest the transimpedance jobs are likely worth a listen to if you use MC.

(Sutherland makes one)