Phono/Preamp Discussion: The Missing Link

Well, Ohnofiasco I disagree. I am not trying to start up a pissing contest but a good SUT does not have to cost anywhere near 4K. There are many new production and vintage models to chose from that are stellar. I can see how that option is a turnoff for most, it requires math and a soldering iron often times since you usually just get a pair of cans.

Ohnofiasco: In terms of the hommage, it is excellent, with CERTAIN cartridges (SPU...). I do not see the OUTSOURCED item as anything particularly special, beyond its synergy with the carts suggested. However, generally people who purchase that unit are far detached from the DIY crowd and will pay for the convenience to have the absolute best match. If I was ready to spend 4k on a trafo I would take the set it and forget it approach as well, but I am not.
I think equivalent or even better trafos can be had for much less.

I don’t think the price/cost has anything to do with full active MC gain vs mm gain + SUT, after all you can find ultra expensive and no so expensive samples of each. Just look at the Kondo MM phono + SUT, and you can see this route can get very expensive too!

So, which one is more cost effective depends on which particular models you are looking at, and more importantly, your preference in audio reprodution.

Like many other things in audio, CD vs LP, tube vs SS, some audiophiles just prefer active MC gain while others SUT. You just have to pick your poison!

"I think equivalent or even better trafos can be had for much less."
Dfel

What SUTs do you think are comparable to the Auditorium Homage for significantly less?

I am not familiar with that many, but would like some other suspects to check out and hear.

Thanks.

Dave (Dfel) I have to agree with Ohno's general statement, once add up the cost of the MM phono stage, cables, SUT you will be pretty close to 5k.

Take the Leben for example, that retails at 2600, add 1500 for a good step up, and another couple of hundred for cables and sundries and you are pretty close to 4k. 1k premium for set it and forget it convenience!

As for 4k for a step-up, seems a bit excessive but to each his own.

OK- here is why not an SUT and basic phono section.

In a word: transparency.

We have auditioned every SUT we could get our hands on and they all have a signature. We also identified several other problems.

One of them was the use of feedback to equalize the RIAA curve. This often contributes to enhancement of surface noise. In addition, we found that if we used single-ended circuits we had more noise per stage of gain than if we went balanced (actually, balanced differential). Further, we found many differences in the sound of interconnect cables that connect between the tone arm and the preamp; since the cartridge is a balanced source we found that by accepting the signal in the balanced domain at the input of the preamp, we could reduce the artifacts imposed by the cable.

So we built a zero feedback, fully differential, passively equalized LOMC phono section. It has two stages of gain, so the signal path is actually simpler when compared to many preamps.

So far we have only built our phono sections into our preamps- there are two reasons for this. The first is connectivity- we don't have an interconnect between the phono section and the rest of the world so there is less artifact on that account. The other reason is that our line section has a direct-couple vacuum tube output (that is also balanced). This not only gives the line section more transparency and bandwidth on account of no coupling cap at the output to mess things up, but it also allows the preamp to drive really long interconnect cables (100 feet being no worries) so the power amps can be placed close to the speaker to minimize artifacts from the speaker cable.

If you get that we are concerned about the effects of cables then you have an important understanding about why our designs are the way they are. That is why everything is balanced, as balanced cables, if driven correctly, have essentially no artifact at all.