Thanks so far for your encouragement. Lewm, as for my bias toward an SUT, I have advice to the tune of about 20:1 that this is the way to go with a 103. I was being very intentional in my choice of a 45-year-old design-- my musical preference is often avant-garde jazz and small-ensemble chamber music from the late '50's-early '60's, and I wish to hear this part of my collection as it may have been intended or at least mixed. I bet nobody was using powered MC stages at that time-- that bet is heavily on a transformer. However, while I am waiting for it, I will certainly try the Zu through my three powered phono stages, all of which have a nominal loading of 100 Ohms in MC. You can bet that I will want something to compare the SUT to! This is the primary reason that I did not go with a DIY or a Lundahl or any of the other very good alternatives-- I want to hear the maximum difference between a powered MC stage and the SUT, and was willing to pay two or three times the base price for the privilege-- checking account be damned. Where I live, "audiophile" means somebody who is careful placing his 5.1 or 7.1 surround speakers for his consumer-grade HT setup, so I have nowhere to go but the net for advice, and I tend to do my research and commit without first listening. Viridian, if this sounds half as good as I'm hoping, I'm ordering a stock 103 or two and expanding the number of arms that can feed the Auditorium 23. I'ver heard that this SUT might work for some other mid- to high-impedance MCs of around 0.3mV output, like the Benzes and Shelters, so I'll try it out with my other carts, but I'm kinda in the mood for an all-valve horn setup for my vintage Ayler, Byrd, Coleman, Coltrane, Dolphy et al. and I like the idea of a mid-sixties broadcast standard cartridge for it. Hdm, I seriously considered the 103R (and still may buy one) but I was not sure that I would learn what the 103 magic is all about with that design-- Here in my isolated little studio, I am endeavoring to evolve through the technology that eluded me while I was working my way through high school, college, grad school, and family establishment. Only then will I know when it is time to jump off the modern merry-go-round, which I do intend to ride. If nothing else, the above have taught me patience; speaking of which, expect my review after I get a handle on this new front-end.
