EAR 834P Phono Preamplifier

I actually own one, and while it is not up with the very best that one can buy, it produces a very pleasing and listenable sound. But I'm afraid that I would never pay the price that you are being asked.

 

I think that's a little high Gary. On audiogon there is a dealer for 1300+ Canadian. They also show a dealer in Thornhill, Ontario called Falcon Audio. I looked into the 834P, it sounded great most users love it.

 

I've got one and love it!
A bit lush, a bit of tube rush, but, oh, as good as an argument for tubes as can be made. Mine is pretty much the stock item, but can be easily souped up. Jeff
BTW, I am in Toronto and might possibly loan it out!

 

Gary, are you using MM or MC cart? I've owned the Deluxe(Chrome)834P, I now have an EAR 864 preamp, which has the 834P phono board in it.
I love this phono stage and I know a few audiophiles that could afford a more pricey stage but choose to run the 834P in their system. Can you borrow one so that you can demo it in your system?
BTW, if you hear tube rush, check out your tubes, it's not the phono stage, mine is dead quiet and I have heard nothing out of other 834P's in that regard.

If you do decide to get one, get the deluxe version, the black, mm only stage has inferior input jacks plus if you decide to go MC in the future, you would'nt have that flexibility.

Check out Fremer's review in the recent issue of Stereophile, he liked it too.

 

I still love my Audio Supply "Superamp" PH-1. 6SL7 X 2 and 12AU7 X 1 compliment. Amazing sounding pre.

 

Tube Rush is a sort of distinctive low level hiss. Once it's been pointed out, or you have identified it for yourself, you will notice it every time. That's not to say it will bother you, and although certain tubes will lessen the effect, solid state will always be, inmyexperience, that much quieter. That said, I still like tubes.

While Barry Falcon of Falcon Audio is undoubtedly one of the best amp repairme/restorers in the country, the prices he charges are nuts. I feel safe in saying this as I never see stock at his store change. Moreover, while browsing in his store once, a younger woman came in with an old Ontario farm radio of her grandfathers and asked, just for fun, how much would it cost to get it working. Barry replied, well, you could get it working, but to do it right you would have to custom, hand build new capacitors, wire your own resistors, find true vintage wire, about $2000 to start.
And this for a radio worth at most $100. The downside of the story is that the women just walked off and the radio will never play again. Had it been my radio, and had it the sentimental value that it seemed to have for her, I would have had it play again for C$100 to C$300 and been pleased. With what Barry said, the radio will most likely end up on the dust heap. In the end, I slipped her my card (not to scoop her radio or to date her -- though come to think of it both would have been ok ideas) but to help her. She never called.

Jeff

 

Gary, are you sure you want to go with a tubed phono preamp with your McIntosh tube amp? Maybe too many tubes in the chain. Also, have you considered buying a used one? For *well* under $1000 used you can come up with several comparable to the Ear. I'd also suggest visiting the Head-Fi site here as an additional source for info.

 

Gary,

The EAR 834P MM/MC model is the way to go. I've had one for 4 years and haven't looked back.

Beg to differ with rontokyo here. I use mine in conjunction with a Cary CAD-300b SEI amp and 102 dB/W sensitive Lowther horns and have no issue with tube rush. The results are truely excellent.

As Jeff said, the unit can easily be tweaked. Tim uses rather noisy Chinese tubes in the stock model. I have performed the following simple tweaks which work perfectly:

1) Replace all 3 ECC83's with GE JAN 5751s (Mil spec / slightly less gain)
2) Install a "true earth" and connect to rear terminal on 834P

Re' 2) - not essential, but seriously consider it - it's not that difficult to safely set-up (unless on the 90th floor of a skyscraper) and only compliments your "house earth".

Your main task is just to shop around to get the best price in North America.

Gary - please *do not* hesitate to send me a PM if you have any other queries - I have experience of using both MM and MM/MC models.

Best regards,

MarkM.
Windsor / UK

 

In the interests of full disclosure, I should relate that my Ear phono stage is/was MarkM's AND HE AIN'T HAVING IT BACK, it's that good. Thanks MARKM. Jeff

 

You heard this story? Or one like it? I was there! Jeff

 

Hi Mark

I too have an EAR 834P, although I suspect it's an older model - it has a level control as well as an on/off. I use it with a Tim de P transformer to match to my Ortofon Rohmann.

Basically, I'm pleased with it. It gives a neutral and laid back sound. I tried a Chinese tube pre-pre combo (the Concerto and Solo from YS Audio) which needed some running-in time. However, I couldn't stand to listen to the harshness while I waited so I put back my 834P. The YS Audio seemed brighter and, I think, more detailed.

My speakers are not as efficient as your Lowthers but they are very fast and transparent and I wonder if I'm getting as much as I can from the vinyl. Do the mods you've suggested give more detail? Would you recommend that I short out the level control? Anything else?

With thanks

 

I considered the 834P but ultimately went with a Pass Labs Aleph Ono.
This thing is dead quiet, has tremendous gain, and is adjustable to accomodate a wide variety of cartridges.
With my Benz Ruby 2, something like 0.28mv output I don't even run the Ono wide open, too much gain. It is quiet and the Ruby2, sounds sweet.
Cost about $1200 used. They also offer a kit which costs about $200 plus.
It is supposed to sound great but only for MM.

 

Hi 7'

The 834P I now have is MM/MC switchable - TdP has placed two small trannies in the chassis. A wide range of MC's can thus be used. I use both a vintage Ortofon SPU g/t and modern SPU "Classic" with this set-up.

My small tweaks certainly improve the "detail", but not in a clinical way - i.e. overall quieter background and apparent "granularity" in the sound - especially noticable on vocals. The earth upgrade manifests itself in deeper, tighter bass (yes, even with horns - which are even better again closer to the wall/corner - something I don't always see at shows...)

(Forgot to mention - unit also sits on 4 polypods and I'm now using Campaign Audio Design Conqueror~mi mains cables (made in Cardiff boyo)
- however the "tweaks" were of course incremental over time and the tube changes/true earth produced "more of the same" heading in the right direction - the polypods and the mains cable upgrade admittedly came first)

I think TdP's pot' is OK quality-wise - it all depends on your system - if your 834P is going into an integrated amp or another pre' with a pot' try bypassing the built-in pot' in the 834P and see what you think.....

Cheers,

MarkM.

 

Since tweaks have been brought up, I'll throw my .02 in. There are 2 that are essential, IMO if you have the MM/MC unit.
The switch Tim uses is crap.
I had mine removed and bypassed since I use only MC, a Koetsu cart.
It improved performance dramatically, soundstage, bass, and dynamics all improved.
The 2nd tweak is to add standoffs to the phono board. He only has 2 at each end of the board and if you roll tubes often, you will strain the connection between the board and the RCA inputs because the board flexes too much, trust me, I've personally seen more than a handful of 834P's in the shop, predominately the black MM only units because he uses cheaper jacks.