Phono preamp advice.

PIA factor? That's exactly why I have the creature on steroids*. Quartz locked direct drive, electric brake, simple to set up, on the fly VTA adjustment, service manual & parts availability, stylus illuminating light, 33/45 RPM at the touch of a button, solid construction & reliability, FUN TO USE. Its excellent sonic performance is just a fringe benefit...

* Technics SL-1200MKII with KAB modifications.

***

Wow, Psychicanimal, I fear that the Olympic committee will be comin'-a-'nocking on your door soon. Could you post bicep circumference of tonearm (delicacy prevents me from asking any other intimate details)...am afraid that my dear MMF7 needs a gym membership! Congratulations on the 1200 w/mods.

My PIA reference was more for what Dougdeacon did for his Sunday evening and I do when I have the time. Having discovered A'gon member 4yanx's LP cleaning ritual in one of the threads (I do think it should be required reading), I was delighted to learn that some LPs can be saved and even made to sound better. Although I am not nearly quite as thorough, I did invest in a Nitty Gritty 1.5 and do some prewashing.

Yesterday, as I watched an LP doing laps on the table it came to me that some of the gratification of a record is that you have to "physically deal with it." Well, I could go into a long discourse here about other visual and/or tactile felicities of handling an LP as opposed to a CD but will let the more experienced users among us share their thoughts.

Oh, by the way, I am using HT Pro-Silway IC from TT to pre and also from phonopre to the Pass X1. Is this IC okay? Thank you.

I have an MMF7. I recently upgraded the cartridge to a Benz Glider HO and love it. After considering several different pres, I settled on a Conrad Johnson EV1 and noticed a WORLD of difference. Soundstage is deeper, playback is quieter and more detailed. The CJ has 5 catridge loading settings, changeable from a dipstick, and outputs 49db of gain. It got an A rating from Michael Fremer in Stereophile, and at its price point is a bargain.

Lachobba, :)!

BTW, most people prefer a shielded phono cable between TT and phono stage. That very low level signal needs protection. If you're happy with the clarity of low level details already, don't bother, but it's difficult to judge without hearing another cable. This is one of those areas where you'll never know what you're missing until you hear it. That happened to me when I upgraded TT/arm/cart - there's information in those grooves that my old rig never dreamed of playing.

Dougdeacon, thanks for the tip on the cable. Did you mean that the Pro-Silway is not shielded? If not, and you think I should experiment with others (I abstained in connecting the "Wadio Whack-looking" stock cables that came with the MMF7), which rca/rca would you recommend. I have a Wireworld-Equinox III somewhere around here I could also try.
Thanks again to all of you for tolerating my "low-fi" questions and quips until I upgrade and get to play in the BIG sandbox.
N.