Just because it has a FET stage doesn't mean it will sound good or sound the best or even sound better than stepups. There is a lot more to getting a FET gain stage to sound as good as a stepup than just building the circuit. However, if it is done right the benefits of not having to mess with minute changes in loading to get things sounding right and not having an extra set of cables in the mix is very much worth it sonically. And there is no chance of experiencing ringing from the transformers. In reality we have just exchanged one set of problems for another set of problems.
The circuit that the 834 is based on is pretty good. I have not studied the RIAA part in any detail. I'll leave that to others who obsess over that. But if one has the intention of maxing out a phono stage based on that circuit it makes much more sense to me to start from scratch. If you look you can find the circuit online and also some enhancements to the circuit. Why buy the unit, then buy more parts, etc. Why not just do the job right and by-pass starting with a product that was meant to meet a price point?
The circuit that the 834 is based on is pretty good. I have not studied the RIAA part in any detail. I'll leave that to others who obsess over that. But if one has the intention of maxing out a phono stage based on that circuit it makes much more sense to me to start from scratch. If you look you can find the circuit online and also some enhancements to the circuit. Why buy the unit, then buy more parts, etc. Why not just do the job right and by-pass starting with a product that was meant to meet a price point?