I have the highest respect for Nelson Pass and his products, but it seems to me that at this stage of the game (in reference to the evolution of solid state audio devices), any decent SS phono stage should already be "dead quiet", which is to say, not noticeably a source of added noise, even at the highest gain settings. Even my Manley Steelhead, which is a hybrid design, fits that description. So, I often wonder at the endless claims of "blacker backgrounds" and etc. SQ can always get better or evolve to be more suited to the taste of a particular listener, but S/N ought already be very very good for high end solid state devices.