phono pre-amp being replaced
Hi guys long time no talk to.
So I'm reaching out to the community to get some feedback. I recently purchased a Lyra Kleos phono cartridge. Love the cartridge by the way. One of the best sounding carts in its price range and more that I have heard. With that said I currently have an ARC PH-7 phono stage. Love that piece also. Its very natural sounding and just produces a lovely sound. However in regards to cartridge loading its just not the best match for the Kleos. I understood that when I bought the cartridge, but I really wanted the Kleos so I pulled the trigger. Don't get me wrong the sound is amazing with the two however the PH-7 has a fixed gain of 57.5 DB. with the Kleos being a .5mv output I have lost about 8-10 DB of gain in reference to my medium output Dynavector that the Kleos replaced. I think the optimal gain for .5mv is somewhere in the neighborhood of 60-61DB. So that is a little background. Here is my question. I'm looking for recommendations for a phono stage to replace the PH-7. I don't want to shell out the money for the ARC Reference which is around $10k plus. I think I can get just as good a sound for somewhat less. So as much as I LOVE my PH-7 I am ready to part with it at this point to better match the Kleos. So I thought I would ask. So any suggestions would be helpful. I'm looking for something maybe with variable gain or at least maybe a high and a low setting for future cartridge upgrades. I would like it to be vacuum tube, and of course have a very natural sound. So that should narrow the field. I have been so happy with what I have that I have not even entertained auditioning anything else until now so Im a little behind the 8 ball on the available models out there other than ARC of course. May have a little brand loyalty there, but I'm willing to give another brand a try to keep things in my price range of 3-$6k.
Thanks in advance
-Keith
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- 44 posts total
So I spoke with Keith at Herron. Very nice guy. He is actually the person who designed the VTPH-2a so I suspect that he is a small outfit (personnel wise) We had a long discussion about the VTPH-2a. I have a question for you Herron owners. Are using the loading plugs that he offers with the pre? He suggested trying it without any loading, and said that a lot of people are running it un-throtled. However he said he would send the loading plugs in case I would want to load my cartridge. Just curious if anyone else is using this configuration. |
@noromance I am also looking for flexibility. I have decided to forego the SUT option. Trust me I’m not just looking to spend money. As much as I love and I don’t mean that lightly the PH-7 it’s not going to give me the flexibility I need to move to other cartridges in the future. So it’s not just one thing that is leading me down this path. Thanks |
Consider the Liberty B2B-1, and Yes I do make them :-) https://libertyaudio.com/service/b2b-1-all-fet-phono-preamplifier/ Good Listening Peter |
- 44 posts total