Problem with phono stage


Hello Fellow Audiogoners,

I need help with my Phono stage. It is Lehman Audio Black Cube from Germany.  It was recommended from Simao, a very respected Audiogon member who helped me a lot when I was building my stereo. It costs 450$ brand new which I bought used from this site. Michael Fremer considers it one of the best steals in phono stages. I get a little bit better detail and bass extension BUT it also much noisier. I can hear the pops and any other noises  on the records much more then with the phono stage of my Arcam FMJ 28 which turned out to be a surprisingly good one considering it is an integrated one.
I also switched the cables but the noise is still there.
Is this a common problem with added phono stages as opposed to integrated ones or something is wrong with my phono and needs to be checked.

All help will be greatly appreciated.
Emil


emilm
Is this a common problem with added phono stages as opposed to integrated ones
No. So let's start with what cartridge do you have? Also, what kind of cable (phono cartridge cables should be low capacitance)?



Is the noise you're hearing proportional to the improvement in detail?
Hi Mike and Ralph,

My cartridge is Nagaoka MP-110.
My cables are AudioQuest regular interconnects. I can't see which model exactly.
Do I need a special cable for the phono stage?

Emil
Hi Millercarbon,

No, the noise is more then the improvement to a point that I don't use the  phono anymore.
Do I need a special cable for the phono stage?
@emilm    Yes! Most regular cables have too much capacitance. This causes a high frequency peak and certainly can emphasize ticks and pops.


A proper phono cable will have a capacitance of about 20pf (picofarads) per foot and you won't be running more than about 1 meter, or else you'll want to find a cable with lower capacitance.
This is the sort of thing you're looking for:
https://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/audio/index.htm