Great phono stage, with character, for a digital pre


I have been trying out a NAD M12 and M23 setup which is really nice!  For my turntable I have a Sota Saphire VI with an Audiomod tonearm and a Dynavector Karat 17D2 MK II.  My current phono stage does not wow me much (McIntosh MP100).  Since the analog signal is going in and being digitized right away I was looking at other stages that may be warmer and give music that analog sound still.  So looking for recommendations for a stage with character , $2500 budget, and I listen to classical, jazz, and rock.  
 

justinrphillips

Why not buy the NAD pair which you like?

HiFi electronics are not supposed to have "character." They are supposed to pass an electric signal from one end to the other unscathed except for amplification. Any character they possess is distortion. Leave the character up to the musicians. 

The vast majority of the "character"/distortion a system has is coming from the speaker/room. Now it is a matter of choosing your poison or perhaps stumbling over it. 

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The particular cart in use I wouldn't describe as very ' warm / rich ' based on my experience with it. YMMVY but might be a bigger piece of the puzzle than assigned so far.

 

 

truth there as well…. That and frankly most Dynavector are “ truth tellers “….. not unusual for people to “ warm them up “ in a variety of ways…… the SOTA while also pretty neutral leans warm imo….

@simao I agree, wish the Herron was still in production..used examples are very desirabe….i dont plan on replacing mine anytime soon. Having said that my other phono is an ARC REF phono 2 se…… blessed i know…

enjoy the music.

Jim