Best cost no object tube phono

@rsf507 If I remember correctly, Scott had said that the price for the Wavestream Kinetics Deluxe Phono Amp has remained the same since 2013 at roughly $9000. This is just another testament to the great character of Scott Franklin... to keep the price of admission the same for this fantastic piece for the last 8 years, all while making continuous improvements! Especially when you see other manufacturers increasing their prices every year, outpacing the rate of inflation by leaps and bounds.

The current Wavestream Deluxe is actually in it’s Level 5 Reference iteration. Levels 1-3 were 5 tube configurations offering 60 dB of gain. The upgrade to Level 4 changed from 5 tubes to a 6 tube circuit using 4 x 6DJ8 & 2 x 12AX7. He said that there are several benefits over the previous 5-tube circuit....

1. Reduced crosstalk between channels gives more precise localization of images in complex material. The crosstalk was due to the shared 12AX7 in the 5 tube circuit.

2. Increased headroom allows bigger peak inputs without compression or harshness.

3. High-frequency bandwidth is extended to 50kHz. This improves leading edge transients (high-frequency detail, speed and air).

4. The output impedance has been reduced. This helps to cancel the adverse effects of cable capacitance and amplifier impedance. By the same means, the load presented by the RIAA network is isolated from the outside world.

5. Upgraded signal coupling caps provide better definition and a more natural tonal balance.

6. Both power supply regulators have been improved to optimize transient response.

I believe he said that the previous 5 tube units can be upgraded to the Level 4, six tube circuit with an upgraded audio board, numerous parts and power supply upgrades for about $2850. You will want to confirm this with Scott.

The current Level 5 Reference also now has an outboard power supply which I believe reduces the already impressive noise floor even lower.

I’m really excited and looking forward to having this as a major part of my vinyl system.

Wishing you all the very best of health, love and happiness!
Don

In the other side the " tale " about those " tick and pop " is just that a tale that can't be proved it happens.

Sure it can. I have to admit though the first time I encountered this it had me floored. That was a bit over 30 years ago. Since then I've seen it plenty of times.


There's plenty of sound engineering reason why this happens. The electrical resonance between the LOMC cartridge and the tonearm cable can be a peak of **30dB**. If the cartridge is making 0.5mV, this means that the peak could be half a volt! Many phono sections that can handle a LOMC cartridge will simply be overloaded by that much input. In solid state preamps in particular, the RFI can be rectified at the base of the very first stage of gain, resulting in a burst of noise for a very short period of time- a tick or a pop results from the circuit being overloaded.


This isn't hard to prove; we can inject a 0.5V RF signal at 1 or 2MHz into a preamp and see what happens. Often it isn't pretty. The idea that somehow this 'can't be proved it happens' is ridiculous on its face.

I've never heard the atmasphere phono product (I heard a set of their mono amps decades ago and liked them) but note it also uses balanced inputs. I reckon it is a fully balanced product like the Accuphase.

@ivanj It is, and has the distinction of being the first balanced line preamp made for home use back in 1989. People don't think about it as so weird now, but back then people looked at the MP-1 crosseyed because it used XLR connections for the phono input.

@rauliruegas 
You don't "distress" me, you irritate sometimes Raul. This is a thread about tube phono stages, and you have come here to provoke and promote your holy grail SS phonostage ! It is your usual modus operandi, you like to promote some idea or concept of perfect sound that has captured your attention at the time, like your long fascination with MM cartridges. Often using long quotes from other people. You always make claims of absolute truth, and then change your mind a year or two later, it just gets tiresome. Discussing with you is like fighting windmills, you have unlimited time, and little sense of proportions. When you repeatedly get banned from forums, you should start wondering why !

Dear @kps25sc : I don’t promote " your..SS phono stage ".

SS did not captured my attention " at the time ".

I started my audio life with Japan/USA SS electronics ( Crown, Pioneer, Sansui, Luxman, Denon, Mckintosh, etc, etc ), then and due that I started to read " underground magazynes " I switched to tubes because reading on those magazynes " convince me " that no other alternative can outperforms it: at least is what said it there.

Years latter and after I learned I returned to SS electronics but now not because audio magazynes " high experts opinions " but because I learned by first hand experiences and no return to tubes never again.

The MM adventure was a re-discovery of a decent cartridge alternative that because those " underground magazynes " was a " sacrilege " to listen through any non LOMC cartridge.
This adventure was and is truly learning and I can tell you that 2-4 of those hundreds of vintage MM/MI/IM/electrect cartridges are good enough to compete not with your LPS but even with higher quality LOMC cartridges.
Today the 70% of my analog listening is through top LOMC cartridges but always I left mounted/set up the top of the top MM/MI cartridge because it’s really good and a pleasure to listen its little different sound signature. What’s wrong with all that?.

Learning is the audio name of the game. Not to stay sticked for ever because as in the day by day life everything is changing and sometimes for the better and that’s part of my day hunting and always willing to learn from any gentleman even from new comers.

I took those " long opinions " from other gentlemans when necessary with the subject I’m talking about when other opinions coincide with mine or that are from by point of view came.

Btw, I provoke the wbt " banned " on purpose and I let to know it to gentlemans that through the wbt inside private emails gave me their support to follow posting and told that I don’t wanted anymore to stay where the owner is " hunting me " and few days latter I posted something to and that’s how things happened.

Curious, here in Ago moderators are unbiased gentlemans that do not post in the forum and in wbt exist " hundreds " of moderators that their main characteristic is that are gentlemans that post and post really often in the wbt forums: they are audiophiles, audio distributors or the owners. All those gentlemans are heavy biased in favor or against several things and even they have audiophiles under " their protection ": untoachables. There when some one " cry " because one word in a post that post is deleted or reported to the owner whom just banned that gentleman.
Here you can cry all what you want it but if any one don’t insult directly with a untrue insult you can’t be banned.
In wbt lagonda " insult " all agoners ( including you. ) when posted that " low knowledge levels here " and you know what no single Agoner but me ( and there are many Agoners posting in wbt ) puts a " stop " to lagonda. Where was a moderator about in wbt?

I posted in other forums, important ones, where on purpose you have not some one " behind you " like my first hand experieces in wbt .

Btw, I respect your opinion even that I disagree with many aspects of what you posted to me. In the other side, I read that your dream TT is the AS2000: really?

R.

lagonda: "" as on Audiogon where the level of knowledge is a lot lower. ""

I can see that your prefered Phono stage is the I/O. I already posted about.

R.