Atma-shere preamp comments

travis, can you comment on the phono stage of the pre? i've only been able to find small reviews here and there but they virtually ignore the phono section.

thanks

I should have said, blew away the LINE stage of the SF. My friend does not do vinyl. Regarding things on the home front, so many things have changed all at once here that it's hard to talk about the phono stage. Just got Magneplanar 3.6 and THAT changed everything...for the better. My vinyl set-up is weak so it's hard to say much. I got the phono stage in case I got the urge to get more serious about vinyl. I still have about a thousand LPs after dumping a couple of thousand some years ago. Listening to the AR-ES1 w/ Shure V15TypeV (I know, I know) last night was very nice...quiet, big and deep, but again, a lot of that could be the speakers talking. Sorry I can't be of more help.

I purchased an MP-3 about two months ago. I am very pleased. The pre amp just disappears. Very musical.
I was using a Welborne Labs Reveille before.
My system:
YBA 2-Delta CD player
MP-3 pre amp
M60 MKII amps
nOrh 9.0 marble speakers
Harmoic Tech. wire and cable.
Ralph at Atma-Shere is great to deal with.

I have both the Hovland and an MP-1 MK1 I bought used (yes they are hard to find used). I am driving MA-1 amps. On CD, MP-1 wins due to better sound stage layering, tonal character rightness, dynamic nuance (ie low level dynamic detailing). Instruments spatially well delineated. Phono not yet compared since I am waiting for new cable termination. However, Hovland phono stage sounds better if I use MP-1 line stage too. My 2 cents. Mp-x preamps grossly underrated, it seems. j

Tube rush can be a serious problem to tame if you will use the phono with a low output MC (0.25mV). Some have tamed this somewhat with NOS Mullard 12AT7. The hovland has no such problem but has no phase switch.