Ok, I had my Herron phono back from Keith for a month with new tubes and 2A upgrade. Very impressed with the product and support Keith provides. Warm, dead quiet and easy to use and set-up! For $2500 on the used market, this is a no-brainer. I will be listing my SS phonos and unneeded SUTs in the months to come. They are good, but not on the same level as the Herron phono.
Phonostage recommendations under $3K
Folks,
I am looking to step up from my current Parasound ZPhono XRM (still under 60 days audition trial). To be honest, I am quite pleased with its performance, feature set and flexibility. I mean what else you can expect from a $600 phono. While I enjoyed listening to vinyl through XRM, I feel there is room for improvement and XRM may be the weakest link in my vinyl setup. And since XRM is the only phono I’ve experienced in my setup, I don’t have quite have a reference point. So what else should I be considering under $3K?
I prefer a relaxed and slightly warm sound since I mostly listen to jazz genre.
I started to put together a list list based on sound quality and flexibility with gain and impedance settings.
Parasound JC 3+ Phono Pre
Allnic H-1202
Leben RS30 EQ (requires a SUT for MC Cart)
I hear high praises on Herron VTPH-2A but it’s bit more than I would like to spend at this time.
My current vinyl setup, Thorens TD1601, ZPhono XRM, Hana ML (low output - 0.4mv), Accuphase E-650 and Tannoy Canterbury’s.
I would really appreciate some recommendations based on your personal experiences. Thank you!
I am looking to step up from my current Parasound ZPhono XRM (still under 60 days audition trial). To be honest, I am quite pleased with its performance, feature set and flexibility. I mean what else you can expect from a $600 phono. While I enjoyed listening to vinyl through XRM, I feel there is room for improvement and XRM may be the weakest link in my vinyl setup. And since XRM is the only phono I’ve experienced in my setup, I don’t have quite have a reference point. So what else should I be considering under $3K?
I prefer a relaxed and slightly warm sound since I mostly listen to jazz genre.
I started to put together a list list based on sound quality and flexibility with gain and impedance settings.
Parasound JC 3+ Phono Pre
Allnic H-1202
Leben RS30 EQ (requires a SUT for MC Cart)
I hear high praises on Herron VTPH-2A but it’s bit more than I would like to spend at this time.
My current vinyl setup, Thorens TD1601, ZPhono XRM, Hana ML (low output - 0.4mv), Accuphase E-650 and Tannoy Canterbury’s.
I would really appreciate some recommendations based on your personal experiences. Thank you!
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- 110 posts total
Any news about the audition of Aurorasound Vida ? |
Update: I brought in phono board option to compare with EAT e-Glo. It’s been three weeks listening through AD-50 and much to my surprise, it has surpassed my expectations. The sound is every bit Accuphase is known for.....warm, delicious and detailed without any harshness. I would say Accuphase has done a incredible job of not calling any attention to AD-50. Whenever I am listening to Vinyl, I am no longer ‘distracted’ by impedance and gain adjustments as one may be with any phono stage that has on the fly impedance and gain adjustments :-) Also AD-50 is dead quiet compared to the two external phono stages (SS and tube) I’ve tried prior to inserting AD-50 in my system. http://www.accuphase.com/cat/ad-50_e.pdf For now AD-50 is a keeper and stone cold bargain at $1K. I would like to acknowledge @robelvick for his feedback and encouragement to try the AD-50. My analog setup: SME Model 15 ➡️ SME 309 Tonearm ➡️ Hana Umami Red Cart ➡️ Audio Envy Phono Deluxe DIN>RCA cable ➡️ Accuphase E-650 w/AD-50 phono board. @larryi, The audition of SunValley EQ1616D will have to wait until Victor Kung / Kevin Carter can meet the demand. I think they are experiencing a huge production backlog. |
- 110 posts total