Stand out phono stages


This topic has been started before by others and myself as well, maybe too many times, but it is worth revisiting since the source is so very important!
So far I have had the pleasure to enjoy two worthy phono stages: the EAR 834p and the JLTI.
I have to admit they are spectacular. Obviously the record and all the equipment downstream play a role in the sound heard. In some cases I prefer the JLTI and in other cases the EAR. But neither out do the other dramatically.
What phono preamps outshine others by a big margin, those that can be considered the last phono preamp ever needed.
pedrillo
I have owned the Einstein The Turntable's Choice phono stage for the last four years and have been quite happy with it. It easily beat both the hotrodded Vendetta SCP2T and the Blowtorch which I had previously owned. About two years ago, I began to hear rumblings about a phonostage from a Greek company Ypsilon, the VPS-100. About a year ago, there was an extremely positive review by Michael Fremer. Again, I am a fossil and tend to move very slowly on these things. Last night, a friend helped me install the VPS-100 in my system. It is seldom that when you install a new piece the improvement is so major as to be instantly obvious even when the unit is cold. This is by far the best phonostage that I have heard by quite a wide margin. For context, I use a Rockport Sirius with an Ortofon A90.
I replaced a PSA GCPH with an EAR 324 (both run balanced-out). While it's true that the former is nice for the money, it's also true that the difference in price for the latter is an accurate reflection of the improvement in sound.
As good as the EAR 324 is, the Einstein Turntable's Choice beats it. It is close to hearing "nothing" from the phono. But you need to leave the Einstein warmed up for a couple of days at least to get its full potential.
I had the latest Steelhead and a PSA GCPH in my studio for several months. One gripe about the Steelhead is that MC cartridges sound a little sweeter with better high end definition though the MM inputs, but lose a little low end punch. I tried to get a combination of the MM input highs and the MC input lows but it didn't seem to be possible despite trying every setting on the unit. Routing the variable outputs back into the pre-amp inputs helped, but the low end was still slightly lacking. The PSA, although not quite as liquid as the Manley, sounded 98% as good in most instances and actually has more cohesive imaging, at least with my system. I sold the Manley and kept the PSA with no regrets.