No. 26 - MM or MC board?


Hi - I am trying a ML 26 preamp w/phono stage in my system, (Denon 103R cart.). I set the gain internal switch to 58dB or 38db and cartridge gain to 100 Ohms which I beleive is the recommended load for the Denon (instruction come in Japanesse so I can´t tell).

The point is that eventhough sound level is acceptable at the 1 o´clock position in the volume knob, there is not enough dynamics compared to the line level input (CDP in this case) and far from my previous Michael Yee phono preamp signal.

Could it be that this particular No. 26 has a MM board?
The 100 ohm setting is wrong for the Danon 103r?

Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge here.

Fernando
flg2001
Fernando: My post was for you can have help for anyone in this forum.
BTW, you don't answer something very important and critical: what are your graded musical priorities ?

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.
Hi Fernando. If you click on "Kontact", and click on "So finden Sie uns" in the menu whcih shows up, a page will come up with this address: voice@hifi-im-hinterhof.de. Click on this and the usual email page pops up. Write your request for information on the transformer they sell for the Denon DL103 (and explain you have an "R" version), since they (or some) definitely do speak English, very friendly and philosophical fellows. If this fails, then I'll contact my girlfriend so she can help us out.

Hi again Raul, glad to know you like MMs as well, have to continue to disagree with you on the subject of the Denon however, since accuracy should take a back-seat to musicality anyway. But to my ear, these are very tonally and rhythmically accurate MC cartridges (admittedly the imaging is not laser-etched), and their beguiling sound can only be described as poetic. My favourite MC to date. I will soon be sending a Kiseki Purpleheart Sapphire cartridge I have for a rebuild (I love vintage stuff), a beautiful cartridge, but not as compelling as the Denon. Serious money I save for trips to perfumed gardens in Asia Minor to hear Mesopotamian beauties with incredible voices sing under the stars accompanied by zithers, not for megabuck equipment. We all have our priorities.

Regards, and continue to enjoy the music!
Interesting findings !

I listend for about an hour the "new" setup (withthe step-up in the chain and settings above mentioned). It delivered a quite different presentation compared with my previous Michael Yee Phono Stage (that handled MC with no problems).

Here I listen the same sonic presentation of the Denon (tonal palette, liquidity, etc..), but also a bit less of resolution and impact that I think belongs to either the cartridge itself or that there is an extra fine-tuning that should be performed (twl-HELP).

John: I will re-visit the page with your instructions, will let you know.

Raul: I like music to wash-me-out, I like to listen to musicaqnd forget of the gear at all, to talk about the artisits and composers while listening to music instead of bashing the sound, and yes.. I hear almost al kind of music.

Thanks all for sharing your knowledge, I am moving faster.

Fernando

BTW: DO you like the Krell MC cartridge?, I have an interesting offer to buy a just-retipped unit.
Fernando: Don't do more mistakes. Stay away from step up transforme, this stage is a heavy degradation for the fragil signal that comes from the cartridge. It does not matters if is a " dedicated " one.

Think on this: when you use a step up transformer you need additional conectors and cables that do a degradation to the signal but not only this, when the signal goes inside the SUT has to pass for several wire metres on the transformers that do an additional degradation to the signal and other kind of degradations due to inherents problems in any SUT.

I already told you: what do you want? what are your graded musical priorities for analog sound reproduction ?

Till you answer these questions you will be inside of that " dark search " and you can't be satisfied ever. I think, that you have to build ( like anyone else ) you audio system with a foundation in those questions. If not, it is probable that you will waist to many time and a lot of money for nothing.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.
Fernando, when using a step-up transformer, the output of the transformer is designed to be plugged into the active phono section with a 47k ohm loading(the Levinson phono input should be loaded at 47k ohms).

The actual cartridge loading then is to be set at the transformer inputs, by way of a switch, or plugging in resistors, or whatever method your unit uses for loading.

Loading a cartridge at the transformer requires you to use about 1/2 the normal specified loading impedance, due to the ratio of the transformer windings.
When used with a transformer, the DL103R likes a load between 30 ohms and 40 ohms, but you can try some loadings a bit outside that range if you want, to suit personal taste. I use 40 ohms on my Cotter transformer with a DL103R.

The characteristics of using a transformer as a step-up device define how the input and output loading is done, so you must use a load of 47k ohm on the Levinson phono input, and between 30 ohms and 40 ohms(approximately) on the transformer input loading. If you deviate much from this formula, you will be affecting the sonic performance of the cartridge, and the way it should be loaded for best sound and internal damping characteristics of the cartridge motor.

While I understand Raul's point about transformers, I also have used many myself, and find that good ones can sound excellent as part of the analog chain. If you already have this unit and can put it to good use, it will serve to save you some money and give additional flexibility to which cartridges you can choose for your system.