Phono stage for Benz Wood H2

I use a Benz Micro PP-1 with an L2. The PP-1 is a fixed device and might have too much gain for the high-output version of the cartridge, but maybe not.

Drubin may be right, I'm not sure. I misread your cart as a low output benz which i was using with my PP-1

The amp used to be sold at musical surroundings but i don't see it on their site anymore and don't have my amp for the stats.

The phono stage you're refering to is the Benz-Micro Series 2 Lukaschek PP-1 and is still on the site under Benz. At 62 dB of gain it is way to high for that cart. Optimum would be about 40 dB. The issue with the Cary is the combination of relatively low gain, the noise inherent in tube designs and the output of the cart being a little on the low side for a MM. If you don't mind a bit of tube hiss it might be just fine.

Thanks Piedpiper. If you think the AES Cary PH-1 would be a noisy, then do you have any other suggestions to match this cart? I have no experience with tubes, so I am not even sure what the noise you are referring to would be. Does it eminate from the pre-amp itself or though the speakers? What are some stages that have 40db of gain? The AES is at 36, so that seems close, but it sounds like I should be looking at ~40 or a little above.

Abruceaudino,

The function of gain in a phono stage is to boost the voltage level of a cartridge's signal up to a level your line stage can handle.

Line stages are designed for components with outputs in the 300mV range (more or less), as is typical of CD players, tape decks, etc. MM and HOMC cartridges like your H2 have outputs in the 2-5mV range, roughly 1/100 the voltage of a CDP. LOMC's have outputs 1/10 of that, just 1/1000th the voltage of a typical line level component.

Here's a good resource for calculating the phono stage gain needed for a particular cartridge output, or vice-versa. http://www.kabusa.com/frameset.htm?/index.htm

Click on "Preamp Gain Computer". (Note: when they say "preamp" on that site they're referring to phono stage gain only.)

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One option for a phono stage in the range you're seeking would be a used full function tube preamp from the likes of ARC, c-j or others. The MM phono sections (what you need) of those preamps were often serious overperformers compared to what's in today's entry level units. Even the line stage might impress you, and these vintage preamps can be had for far less than $1K. There are two c-j preamps in the classifieds now, both for under $700. Either one should outplay your PP-2 by a pretty large margin.