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Which entry level phono stage, Graham Slee or Pro-

Hi all,

I'm looking to get a decent phono stage, and in my price range it seems to boil down to the Pro-ject tube box or the graham slee amp 2 SE, both used. At the moment I'm using the om-5 cart that came w my pro-ject debut, so MM, and am not sure if and when I'll try MC. I've read the reviews of the graham which claim its dedication to MM gives it an edge soundwise over similar phono stages that cater to both. Have you all found this to be true? I'm also curious about how much of a tube sound one can get from a phono stage alone. Anyway, any and all help is appreciated.

GB
gbb
nuno_barbosa
32 posts
 
Hi
I never tried the ones you mention but both are great choices as an entry level. I have a Project phono box SE and I really like it.
The tube box can be "improved" by tube rolling, it may be more versatile.
I´m afraid I can´t say much more
miner42
709 posts
 
I have hte Graham Slee Era Gold IV and am very pleased with it. I bought it as a demo model. If you decide on a phono stage you will do yourself justice by upgrading your cartridge too. The stage will only sound as good as your cartridge.
johnnyb53
3,510 posts
 
There are a lot of good phono stages emerging in the $600-and-under category. For a long time Slee held the position for the $1K stage, but not necessarily the $500 one. Now there are many more and the Tube box is certainly one of them, but there are also the Creeks at $250 and $450 depending on whether you need MC or not, the new Grado PH-1, Musical Fidelity X-LPS V8, Clearaudio Smartphono, and especially, the Musical Surroundings Phonomena II, which has dual banks of DIP switches to optimize gain and resistance to a specific cartridge.

In its most recent analog issue, TAS seemed to really like the $600 Phonomena II, perhaps a bit better than the $925-1195 Slee Era Gold models.
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