Hi Scott,
No, it just means that 2.2 mv in (in MM mode) will result in 1 volt out, at 1 kHz. Based on those specs, the maximum input the phono stage could process without clipping, in MM mode and at 1 kHz, would be:
(30 volts/1 volt) x (2.2 mv) = 66 mv.
Obviously that represents a goodly margin relative to the maximum input any MM cartridge is likely to provide, and corresponds closely to Stereophile’s measured 1 kHz overload point of 69.2 mv.
The gain of the phono stage in MM mode, per those specs and expressed as a ratio, is:
(1 volt)/(0.0022 volts) = 454.5, meaning that the output voltage will be 454.5 times as great as the input, at 1 kHz, as long as the clipping point is not exceeded.
Expressing that gain in db:
20 x logarithm (1/0.0022) = 53.2 db.
As you’ll realize, that is about 4 db higher than what Stereophile measured. So either the spec is not quite accurate, or the design changed somewhere along the way, resulting in differences in gain among 834P’s that were manufactured at different times.
In the interests of simplicity I’ve neglected RIAA equalization in all of this, which does not affect 1 kHz but which compensates for a progressive increase in frequency response at higher frequencies and a progressive decrease in frequency response at lower frequencies that is introduced in the record-making process. See the first figure in this Wikipedia writeup.
Best regards,
-- Al
No, it just means that 2.2 mv in (in MM mode) will result in 1 volt out, at 1 kHz. Based on those specs, the maximum input the phono stage could process without clipping, in MM mode and at 1 kHz, would be:
(30 volts/1 volt) x (2.2 mv) = 66 mv.
Obviously that represents a goodly margin relative to the maximum input any MM cartridge is likely to provide, and corresponds closely to Stereophile’s measured 1 kHz overload point of 69.2 mv.
The gain of the phono stage in MM mode, per those specs and expressed as a ratio, is:
(1 volt)/(0.0022 volts) = 454.5, meaning that the output voltage will be 454.5 times as great as the input, at 1 kHz, as long as the clipping point is not exceeded.
Expressing that gain in db:
20 x logarithm (1/0.0022) = 53.2 db.
As you’ll realize, that is about 4 db higher than what Stereophile measured. So either the spec is not quite accurate, or the design changed somewhere along the way, resulting in differences in gain among 834P’s that were manufactured at different times.
In the interests of simplicity I’ve neglected RIAA equalization in all of this, which does not affect 1 kHz but which compensates for a progressive increase in frequency response at higher frequencies and a progressive decrease in frequency response at lower frequencies that is introduced in the record-making process. See the first figure in this Wikipedia writeup.
Best regards,
-- Al