First impression: Herron VTPH-2A phono preamp

Gain structure he has.
Lyra Etna SL 0.25mV > Herron 64db > Lightspeed 0db > Gryphon Antillion 30db > Wilson Sasha 90db

The amp's input sensitivity of 0.975v sure helps. 

+1 brf

Another bit of information that would be good to know is what kind of music Rob67 used in this evaluation.  Volume levels tend to be set based on the average volume of the music, rather than on the volume of brief dynamic peaks.  My understanding is that the majority of pop and rock recordings are dynamically compressed such that peaks require less than 10x as much power as the average level of the recording (corresponding to a 10 db peak-to-average ratio).  While many well engineered classical symphonic recordings may require 1000x as much power for brief dynamic peaks as for the average level (corresponding to a 30 db peak-to-average ratio), which will usually result in the listener setting the volume control much higher than for a highly compressed recording.

In any event, what is undeniable is that 64 db of gain will boost 0.25 mV to 0.396 Volts.  Although as I mentioned earlier the dynamic peaks of some recordings may result in a cartridge output significantly greater than under the standard test conditions upon which the cartridge's output rating is based.

Best regards,
-- Al 

Almarg and George  I have the Herron phono and I tried it at length with a transformer paste passive. While it sounded good and very transparent I did go back to an active line stage due to feeling like there was a slight lack of bass impact and slight lack of dynamics. I used to be a believer in passive preamps but now after that experiment changed my mind. 
 It's good to see another individual discovered the benefits of Herron gear. Keith is great to deal with and I like that his products are not up in the rip off pricing category. I have heard many phonos costing more than twice as much but still would choose the Herron.  I constantly look at the gear for sale ads but never once think of changing out my phono anymore. 

beatlebum wrote
"Just to amplify what some of the others have said regarding the upgrade from the VTPH-2 to 2A, the improvements are easily heard in a more dynamic presentation (perhaps due to the quieter background), even sweeter treble and punchier bass."  

I've had the VTPH-2 for 11 years and upgraded to the 2A last March.  My findings agree completely with beatlebum.  Far and away though, the thing that most caught my attention was the punch factor,  everything is mow tight as a tick.  I can now follow any bass line, hear kick drums as distinct entities, and just in general I sit and marvel at the sound. 

 Just to clarify further about the passive preamp versus the active one, even with the passive I could easily get lots of volume. That wasn't the issue that made me go back to active.And one of the reasons why Scm  is having success with his passive configuration is because he added it to buffer. That changes everything. He said himself in his one post that now he runs the volume at a
I am of  The opposite mindset  of George, I wish amplifiers had less gain. It's easier for preamplifiers to not mess up the sound so I would rather establish the gain earlier on in the system and just have amplifiers providing the current when needed.