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Looking for phono stage recommendations

I have recently ordered a Sota Cosmos, with a Tri-Planar VII arm and a ZYX Airy 3 cartridge. A friend of mine is interested in my Pass Labs Aleph Ono phono, so that leaves me with nothing (thanks a lot Paul)to use for my new frontend.

Several friends have made recommendations. The Pass Labs X-ono, the Manley Steelhead, ZYX phonostage, and a Supratek(?) have been recommended. The Zanden and Boulder are out of my price range, so don't bother...

Are there any other phonostages that I should consider. I don't have a preference of Solid State vs Tube.

I have used and/or heard the Krell KPA and KPE already and they're not really in the running. Not that there's anything wrong with them, they are very good, I'm just looking for something better.

I want something quiet that will work for low output cartidges.

HEEEEELP!
nrchy
newbee
4,794 posts
 
Don't overlook the EAR 834P just because it's cheap and tubed. Its an excellent little unit.
kurt_tank
1,189 posts
 
How about the Aesthetix Rhea?

My friend uses that and it sounds fantastic, and it is very user friendly, as it allows remote controlled adjustments to the loading and gain. (Too Cool.) There is a bit of tube noise, but if you don't mind that, I think that is a good choice. (Unless you can afford the IO, in which case, that would be a real step up, at least from what I have read anyway, as I have not heard it, yet.)

I have seen the Rhea's used for under $3,000 quite a bit. New they are $4K.
flyingred
139 posts
 
Another vote for the EAR834P - it doesn't sound "tubey" -just good and being very flat to low frequencies would be a good complement to the Airy 3. I have a Supratek Chenin pre (very good indeed) but still go back to the EAR.

I also suggest you consider a Hagerman Trumpet phono stage (www.hagtech.com) with Bent Audio step up transformers. Both Chris Brady (Teres) and Thom Mackris (Galibier) use these. I have heard both and they are awesome!
jafox
1,467 posts
 
What did you like about the Pass...and what was it lacking that you would like to get with a different product? How much gain do you anticipate you will need? Would you like a unit with balanced ins/outs?

There seems to be much praise over the new ARC PH5. I have not heard this. I had the PH2 for many years and liked it a lot as it was extremely low noise, very tonally coherent and with the bloomy ARC LS5 line stage, there was a very good 3-dimensional presentation. When I brought home the PH3, the sound was too fatiguing and forward to me.

If you can afford a BAT VK-P10, that is a mighty fine unit and goes for around $2k on the used market. This replaced the PH2 as the BAT had more gain. They were very similar tonally but the BAT had a little more dynamic authority; when you take the top off a BAT unit and see the power supply, you can see why this is the case.

If you can go up a little more, and you really like decay of the notes and awesome portrayal of space, the Aesthetix Io comes in. It is more susceptible to a higher noise floor so you have to put a lot of effort to find low-noise tubes and try many types. The Telefunken 12AX7's work beautifully here. The standard (non-signature) unit sells now and then in the $3k range.

The highly praised Counterpoint SA9 also comes around now and then in the $3k range but these don't last long at all on the market either.

So there's a handful of models to consider in the $2-3k range.

John
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