Phono Preamps with "balls" ?


taking the cue from another thread about speakers with "balls" - what are some phono preamps that you have found to be the most powerful, dynamic and yet still sound clean.  
i turn on my digital sources and they are often much more robust sounding and would like to know if there are phono preamps that can deliver.  thanks in advance  
avanti1960

I’m one who prefers a properly matched SUT to drive to a simple but well designed tube phono stage.

My front end: Technics 1200G --> Bob’s SKY 20 SUT --> Don Sachs’ built Tubes4HiFi PH16 phono stage with upgraded parts and nice wood cabinet --> Linear Tube Audio MZ2 preamp.

Honestly, the MZ2 is the magic component here. It allows the phono stage to sing unimpeded with 3D delivery. Cartridge and tube choices determine the final sound "flavor".

Dear @atmasphere : """ I’ve yet to hear a CD that plays better bass than my phono section..."""

A CD with a top DAC ( 32bits/384 khz.) and good overall design outperforms any phono stage it does not matters the phono stage price/pedigree ( including yours. ) in the bass " management " and this is not because your unit or other units are not good designs because I know your design is a good one but it’s because the differences between a digital and LP recording technics.

The recording microphones pick up all the music in stereo including the bass range but for the LP overall limitations the low bass comes not in stereo as when in the recording but in mono way when in digital comes as what were pick up by those recording session microphones, digital has no limitations about.

That is one of multiple reasons why digital outperforms LP/analog in the bass no matter what.

I repeat, it’s not your quality unit design but the " medium " limitations. No contest by analog in this regards against digital.

I’m an analog lover but I’m not " blind " and certainly not " deaf ".


Regards and enjkoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.
A CD with a top DAC ( 32bits/384 khz.) and good overall design outperforms any phono stage it does not matters the phono stage price/pedigree ( including yours. ) in the bass " management " and this is not because your unit or other units are not good designs because I know your design is a good one but it’s because the differences between a digital and LP recording technics.
Nah. I've heard the best digital out there. Sorry.

The recording microphones pick up all the music in stereo including the bass range but for the LP overall limitations the low bass comes not in stereo as when in the recording but in mono way when in digital comes as what were pick up by those recording session microphones, digital has no limitations about.
This statement is false. I run an LP mastering operation (Scully lathe, Westerex 3D cutterhead, modified Westerex 1700 electronics). It is true that out of phase bass is problematic for the LP (which only occurs in pop recordings; if recorded with two mics it does not happen). Problematic is one thing- impossible is another!

If you are lazy, you use the bass processing (and then the bass might be mono for a few milliseconds), but so far we've yet to need it. All you have to do is spend some time with the project (making tests of the problem area) to sort out how to master it (vary the groove depth and amplitude to see what works- a 3 db change is a significant change in modulation...) so you don't have to use processing even if the bass is out of phase.

My recommendation is to get an LP mastering lathe and find out for yourself- or listen to someone that has already gone down that path.
Mola Mola Makua preamp with phono module. Extremely versatile loading set ups for up to six MM or MC cartridges. Very high spec. Take a look on the Mola Mola website for more details.
Dear @atmasphere : As I said the problem is not in the phono stage ( I mean the main problem. ) but  the huge differences that exist in both proccess: recording and play where digital is way way different to how things goes with analog where almost all " thousands " of steps/stages where the signal pass through degrades the signal and you can't argue nothing about because are facts, no matter what. Example other that how the bass is recorded in digital:

analog pass through not one but two terrible huge equalization proccess because the LP medium limitations, these equalizations are the RIAA standard.
Only these proccess ( where does not exist in digital because it does not need it. ) impedes to mantain  what the microphones pick up during the recording sessions but is worst that what we can imagine because the second RIAA eq. ( inverse. ) procces that happens in the phono stage is to even the  original recorded frequency range and this " even " never  never happens ( especially in the bass range. ). First because the RIAA eq. in the phono stage just does not " knows " exactly each single deviation in the eq. curve made it in the whole recording proccess ( so it can't exist that " even " ever. ) and second because all the inverse RIAA eq. curve comes with different frequency deviations all over the frequency range and those deviations over the curve normally stays over 0.2 dbs that at not only affects at each single discrete frequency where is happening but affects too at least two octaves because each single discrete frequency depends  and affects the next one.

Not enough?, ok: at the very first time that the cartridge stylus hits the very first LP groove it can't reads what in reality is that groove or in all LP grooves because the tracking error in the choosed alignment and additional to that tracking error this error develops tracking error distortions that additional these distortions are incremented by other distortions that depends on each cartridge tracking abilities.
All these happens inside a " perfect " tonearm/cartridge alignment set up but " perfect " does not exist so the distortions goes even higher and normally affects more to both frequency extremes.  LT tonearms? has other problems too, forgeret.

Your : "  Nah. ", means nothing other than nah.

If you want more just ask for it because  there are more FACTS about.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.