I'm looking for a new phono preamp for my Mobile Fidelity Studiodeck +Ultra Tracker. I've have tried few inexpensive options which include the U-Turn Pluto, Schiit Mani, Project Phono Box, Project Phono Box S and Mobile Fidelity Studio Phono. None of the phono preamps I tried met my expectations and the best of what I tried was the Schiit Mani which is very noisy and has a very recessed midrange. My budget is $1500 USD, I can only purchase new equipment, solid state devices only and I can only purchase online as there are no dealers of high-end electronics near enough to me. (I tried to purchase a Darlington Labs MM-6 but it did not make its intended shipping date and I haven't been updated as to when or if I will ever receive that unit so I must move on to other things) My search has resulted in a few options that are easily attainable, but given my limited experience with turntables and phono pre-amps I am not sure which one would be best for my current turntable setup (which is likely to remain unchanged for a long while). Here is what I found: 1. Darlington Labs MM-6 MM-6: All-Discrete Zero-Feedback High-Voltage J-FET RIAA Phono Preamp - High-End Musicality — Darlington Labs (an attempt was made to purchase this but nothing happened so moving on probably.) 2. Cambridge Audio Duo Cambridge Duo Headphone amplifier and phono preamplifier for moving magnet and moving coil cartridges at Crutchfield 3. Rothwell Simplex MM Rothwell - Simplex MM Phono Preamplifier 4.Primare R 15 Primare R15 (Titanium) Phono preamplifier for moving magnet and moving coil cartridges at Crutchfield 5. Sutherland Insight Sutherland - Insight Phono Preamplifier | Shop Music Direct 6. Parasound Halo JC 3 Jr. Parasound Halo JC 3 Jr. (Silver) Phono preamplifier for moving magnet and moving coil cartridges at Crutchfield
Ideally you would need to hear those and decide for yourself. If you only plan to use an MM cart for the foreseeable future, some of those options may be considered overkill for your needs. You could try to narrow things down to 2-3 options, then buy and return whatever you don't like.
I only plan on using an MM cart for a while, not sure how long but I will upgrade to a MC in the future. That upgrade will consist of a Rega Planar 6 with Ania MC cartridge or something in the VPI Scout/Scout Prime lineup with a MC cartridge. I don't really like to purchase and return a lot of items so I was hoping to narrow things down to perhaps 2 or 3 options ideally.
Surprising about the lack of response from Darlington Labs, the owner Keith Richards posts here occasionally to answer questions, and I know most have gotten quick email response to questions in the past, including myself, must be pretty busy. I'm kind of partial to the no feedback designs, so the Darlington and Rothwell would probably be the only two on your list I'd seriously consider (btw, you can buy the Rothwell for much cheaper than Music Direct from their UK site, around $350, and there's a US dealer on audiogon with decent prices too, though not quite as low as you can get direct). I think all the others are high feedback opamp circuits, just my personal preference, not saying anything is wrong with any of them. We were talking a little about the Primare in another thread recently, that looks like a lot of preamp for the money too. Nice looking design. Some popular choices on your list, probably can't go too far wrong, big price spread though. Anyway, just thought I'd give your thread a bump, there are always lots of phono preamp threads around here so sometimes the topic gets a little over-saturated and responses fall off. Probably nothing personal
Thank you for your input! I did finally receive a tracking number from Darlington Labs after a made an inquiry but the tracking number doesn't work yet. I will more than likely try the Rothwell if the Darlington Labs pre-amp doesn't show up in a reasonable amount of time. The price spread is so large because I'm new to vinyl playback and I am not sure what would pair well with my turntable. The Primare unit is beautiful and if it sounds like it looks then I'd certainly purchase it.
Hope the Darlington arrives some day, be interesting to hear your thoughts, we are all so different. They've gotten some pretty good comments and reviews around here and elsewhere. You've probably seen, but some of the Graham Slee preamps are very popular around here too. Such a wide selection of offerings from all over the world now, probably was hard to put together your list, as someone new to vinyl. Sometimes the ads, and reviews, and user comments make it sound more like an art form than product engineering, hard to separate the hyperbole from the facts, but I think it does take a little art with the engineering to make a really good sounding preamp
None of the others had the resolution I like to hear, they all obscured details in one way or another and were not really enjoyable since they did not allow me to connect with the music.
I would look at the Graham Slee Accession. If you go to their website you can get on the loaner list and try it in your system for a few weeks. It only cost you shipping. US Loaner Program - Graham Slee Audio Forum | HiFi System Components
Have you used a preamp that provided the level of detail you seek, in the past, with that cartridge (elliptical right)? If so, what was it?
No, I'm rather new to Vinyl. I've only had experience with two turntables so far, a Project Debut Esprit SB DC with an Ortofon Blue and my current Mofi Studiodeck +U. Both of the cartridges use elliptical stylus however, the Mofi setup resolves far more detail and vivid results than than the Project no matter which phono stage is used with it in my setup.
How long did you use the other phonostages? I find that a lot of us are not vey patience when it comes to gear, and we change up to fast not really understanding what's under audition is really doing. We also have a tendency to switch things fast to see if we hear a difference and change out more than one thing at a time ( Guilty as charged ). When your are listening to Vinyl you are hearing the cartridge, the arm, and the table and the pre-amp, and how they all interact. I think your best bet is to just take your time, and take notes on what you are hearing.
I have had each of the phono stages in my system for at least one month before I decided what I felt that I understood the character of what it sounded like before swapping them and making comparisons. Although, I must admit that I didn't enjoy a few of them very much at all so listening time with those was certainly a lot less.
I bought a Ifi Zen phono amp and am truly blow away by how well it has performed on my Rega. I’ve owned over 50 different brands between $1k and $100. I did not ever like the Mani back when it was released. Even after 8 months I was over it. Of the list you made— ive owned one on it. But all of those should be a solid upgrade to what you have tried.
Sounds like the iFi Zen Phono is another one I should add to my list. I like the Mani the best of everything I've tried so far, but I don't love it.
@PaperTiger you'll have to try out some more to find something you like. If you don't like anything, then perhaps you need to start looking at other components in your system as the root cause of the issue. Of the ones you listed, I owned a Mani and a Studio Phono. I thought the SP was a much better unit than the Mani. I now use a G.S. and have had it since 2019 with no plans to change it out. There is a loaner program as someone else mentioned.
That is very interesting since I was sure that the Studio Phono would be much better than the Mani in my system but instead it sounded rather dark and the bass was muddy while the midrange was acceptable and the background noise was much quieter than the Mani as well. Perhaps there may be some other issues in my system I need to look at if the Studio Phono is in fact superior to the Mani.
The Mani I had was very noisy but I didn't have those problems with anything sounding muddy while using the Studio Phono. Not at all. I would look into other aspects of your system. I assume your stylus doesn't have too many hours on it and it is clean? Anyway, a lot of people are quick to blame all sorts of things for system sound issues when speaker and room acoustics play a huge role and probably where most people should look first.
Yes, my stylus is clean and it has 16 hours on it (I use a stylus timer). I've ruled out speaker and room acoustics since digital sources sound excellent.
What equipment exactly are you using with this turntable and cartridge? You have so much gear listed in your profile, it's difficult to know what you are actually using for your vinyl rig. Vinyl and digital playback are different things. Playing vinyl can manifest problems that you'll never hear with digital music, e.g. subsonic rumble. What kind of records are you playing here? Not all records sound good, and that goes for both new and old vinyl. You mentioned you are relatively new to vinyl and only have 16 hours on this cartridge. That is nothing really and may or may not have been enough time to judge the subjective quality of all those different preamps. Or are you saying you listened to those with your previous Pro-Ject turntable?
I have used the Graham Slee Accession, and its a fine phono stage that would be one I could recommend. There is another one to consider, although its out of budget by a bit. That is the Liberty Audio B2B-1. That one was my main phono stage for a number of years, and is one of the best bang for the buck ones out there. It is a factory direct offering by PBN Audio, and Peter Noerbeck bases it on the circuit for his two cost no object PBN phono stages. I was able to finally do a bit better than it, but it took an Esoteric E-03 phono stage to oust it, and that has a MSRP of $6000. Take a look at the B2B-1, it might be of interest to you. B2B-1 ALL FET PHONO PREAMPLIFIER – Liberty Audio
Paper Tiger, we have added two new employees who are hard at work meeting increased demand. Additionally, we have made some updates to the units we are shipping now, to increase bass "punch" and overall dynamics without degrading any other area of performance. This is beyond the already-generally-well-received performance. We will be offering a no-cost, on-request update to existing owners of the MM-6 after we are caught up with existing shipments as well as introduce a new product. Sincerely, Keith Richardson Director of Engineering Darlington Labs LLC Boston, MA
