Does phono stage noise drive you crazy too?

When I reinstalled the Grado, the first thing I did was to try it at the lower 52db. gain setting again. It did not sound "weak and anemic" anymore at that gain setting, so I surmise that I must have underestimated how long it was going to take for a brand new cartridge to break in. When I adjust the phono gain to either 52 or 61db. gain and then set system volume to a measured 79-80 db. playback level, the background circuit hiss sounds pretty much the same to me. Don't know what to think about that, confounds my expectations as well.
Thanks Al for all the advice. It would be interesting to run a frequency analyzer on this combo to see what the frequency response is. If there's a severe roll off above 8khz., my middle aged ears aren't hearing it yet.

When I adjust the phono gain to either 52 or 61db. gain and then set system volume to a measured 79-80 db. playback level, the background circuit hiss sounds pretty much the same to me. Don't know what to think about that, confounds my expectations as well.

That's not surprising. Assuming no special problems such as ground loops are present, overall noise performance will usually be pretty much determined at the front end of what comes first in the chain, because signal levels are lowest at that point, and any noise that is generated or introduced there is amplified by everything that follows. That is particularly true if the gain of what comes first is high compared to the gain of what follows, as it is in this case even at 52db.

So I would not expect noise levels to be affected in any major way by how the overall system gain is allocated among the various amplification stages in the system.

Regards,
-- Al

Give Grado a call and ask if they can bump up the output. I think they can add some coils.

I had the same problem with my Grado Statement Sonata1 using the Grado PH-1 preamp. Reading this thread was like having a deja-vu. My (short story) solution was to upgrade the op-amp in my PH-1 from the NJM4556A to 2 x OPA627's mounted on a Browndog single to dual op-amp adapter. I tried other op-amps (opa2134, opa827) and found opa627 to be superior. It was clearer, quieter and more dynamic at high output with barely any hiss. In addition, I bypassed the PH-1's output coupling caps with 0.1uf micamold pio. Now the sound is as dynamic as anything I have ever heard and I have to put my ear to the tweeter to hear any hiss. I am finally enjoying this cartridge.
I tried using Hagerman's piccolo moving coil step up amp but that didn't work out. I'm told you can't use a MC step up transformer with a MI cartridge, so I didn't bother. My tube phono stage didn't have enough gain either. Now I was starting to understand why people preferred moving coil cartridges; their low outputs can be stepped up quietly without using an active stage (which adds hiss). IMO, the statement series needs at least 60db gain with no hiss to be enjoyed, and I wasn't going to throw good money after bad searching for another phono pre. I contacted Grado about the issue and got this kind of reply: "??? what are you talking about?". Their most useful suggestion was to reposition the phono stage, which I had already done with of course no effect. Here I was using a Grado cartridge with the Grado Preamp and the hiss was annoying the urine out of me. If I hadn't accidentally blown out my PH-1 necessitating it's repair, I would have never stumbled upon a solution.
Good luck, I hope this helps.

Not really.