Phono Stage for Koetsu Black

A good mainstream choice is EAR 834P.

For a very nice "under the radar" choice you can get a MM phono stage and Cinemag based SUT from Choir Audio for about $1150.

Both work very well with Koestu's.

There are probably cheaper options available but be careful about being too frugal - you don't want to buy something that will compromise the cartridge.

I can only speculate, but I suspect the EAR might be too laid back a match for the Koetsu.

I owned a Koetsu Rosewood Signature for a bit and preferred it with a battery operated solid state phono pre (Nighthawk) over a tubed Minimax (juggled the hell out of tubes trying to unlock the magic).

I suspect that a Koetsu Black and Ear 834 would be a mismatch for most folks.

Black is laid back and rounded; Ear is slow and sluggish.

Combining them is sonic molasses IMO.

Dealer disclaimer.

Tron Seven & Koetsu black would work well.

To each his own I guess. I have used a modified EAR 834P with a Koetsu RSP and it was fine. Currently using the Koetsu with either Shindo Masseto's internal MC (Lundahl transformer) or thru separate Hashimoto SUT. I like these a bit better than the EAR but it's not a major difference.

I also know that Brian Hartsell and Scott Franklin of Wavestream Electronics recommend the Koetsu/EAR pairing for those who can't afford the more expensive Wavestream phono stage.