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Which phono stage?

If budget is such a factor, buying used rather than new would get you a better sound and also leave you the money for more vinyl. Heck, you could get a used Angle and save even more.
 
Boys....boys....please... I had one 'which phono' thread deleted because of bickering. Seriously, everyone, thanks for the suggestions. I didn't buy the Bronze. I was running the 2M blue, but a friend kindly gave me the bronze on a long-term loan. I've set my limit at £200. Going to give the Angle Audio unit a trial - fuss-free returns if not happy, so nothing to lose, and if it ends up being a keeper, then I'm wayyyy under budget.
 
Whaleblue said:
I pointed you at this in the classifieds, presumably just before the deletion event:

http://www.pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/whest-two.204681/

As I said before, rather over budget, but a stage that impressed me (not this particular one, an earlier version, as it happens). I don’t know the seller.

Anyway, hope that is of some use.
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I'm the seller , Whest is clearly beyond the budget but is really worth every penny , it took Paradise phonostage to better it .
£200 budget is a bit awkward , I doubt if you gonna better Arkless stage , if I was doing it all over again I'd borrow Graham Slee Era Gold from said forum (you just pay postage cost) and see if it's worth spending £200 or keep saving on something more expensive so you're not caught in constant upgrade path.
 
Sgt pepper said:
But not always.

Like I said earlier the Angle Audio has been compared and bettered Stages costing in excess of £400.
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It wasn’t my intent to specifically criticise the Angle Audio design (or any other) as I haven’t heard it. However, as suggested above, buying second hand would be a good idea if budget constraints are of primary concern. £200 is very much on the lower rungs of potential cost and performance when it comes to phonostages.
 
springer said:
Boys....boys....please... I had one 'which phono' thread deleted because of bickering. Seriously, everyone, thanks for the suggestions. I didn't buy the Bronze. I was running the 2M blue, but a friend kindly gave me the bronze on a long-term loan. I've set my limit at £200. Going to give the Angle Audio unit a trial - fuss-free returns if not happy, so nothing to lose, and if it ends up being a keeper, then I'm wayyyy under budget.
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I for one would be interested in your thoughts on the Angle, I am hoping to get my 30 year old PT running in the next few weeks and my P75 only does 1 TT in so I’ll need a 2nd stage.
 
Buying used is sensible as you can try and if it doesn't float yer boat move it on for little if any loss. I would say that as the OP didn't hear a difference between two different phono stages in the deleted thread that this approach would yield the least pain.

I would rate the phono stage ahead of the pre and power amps. If the signal is screwed up here (and it often is) then no matter how good the following kit is it can't improve the sound that has already been damaged.

Several years ago I thought my Troika was getting worn as during heavy complex passages it sounded muddy and distorted as if it was mistracking. So I bought a s/h Troika and had it re-tipped. In the meantime whilst waiting for the service I bought a good phono stage and used this instead of the Naim 523k cards in my pre-amp and lo and behold I suddenly had a new cart and the 'worn' sound had gone. I never did use that re-tipped Troika and sold it when I moved up the vinyl spinning food chain.

Cheers,

DV
 
Sorry, no - Cyrus 7 amplifier. As previous thread detailed, I've got a CA 640P, which is okay. I'd bought it with a view to the Arkless upgrade, but when I tried the demo unit that Jez kindly loaned, I wasn't getting the night-and-day improvements that apparently everyone else was, so returned it with thanks, and lived with the CA. No slight on Jez or his product, despite what he apparently thinks; it just didn't push my buttons. The hifi industry would die on its collective arse if everyone agreed on which thing was best. Now, I just fancied a change. £200 of overtime earned, so that was my limit. I've crawled up & down the lower rungs of the hifi ladder for the best part of 40 years - generally second hand gear, without over-reaching. Last month's 1210GR purchase was my biggest ever outlay by a country mile! So thanks for all the input; I'll give the Angle a go - if it sticks, it stays; if not, it'll go back and I'll try something else in budget. Graham Slee, Musical Fidelity (I have one of their DACs, so who knows??) etc etc...
 
No intended sleight on any specific product but, from what you say, I doubt you will hear any benefit in spending £200.
 
springer said:
Boys....boys....please... I had one 'which phono' thread deleted because of bickering. Seriously, everyone, thanks for the suggestions. I didn't buy the Bronze. I was running the 2M blue, but a friend kindly gave me the bronze on a long-term loan. I've set my limit at £200. Going to give the Angle Audio unit a trial - fuss-free returns if not happy, so nothing to lose, and if it ends up being a keeper, then I'm wayyyy under budget.
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It's not bickering, just one or two members seem to think you have to spend quite a bit on a phono stage, but as as far as i can see nothing could be further from the truth. the original thread was not and still has me baffled as to why it was removed.
 
I don’t think you ‘have’ to spend ‘quite a bit’ (though what consitutes ‘quitea bit’ is very subjective) - but I’ve heard quite a lot of phonostages and there are clearly audible benefits in the better, more expensive, designs.
 
As I'm sure there are benefits in a £10K turntable! Either way, I've got £200 and that's it. Didn't need to change my 640P, just fancied something different, that's all. Christmas treat to myself, if you like, As it is, I've spent half my budget on the Angle, with nothing to lose. I can try something else if it doesn't hook me, or go back to the CA, or revisit this in months to come where the budget might be more (or less!)
 
YNWOAN said:
I don’t think you ‘have’ to spend ‘quite a bit’ (though what consitutes ‘quitea bit’ is very subjective) - but I’ve heard quite a lot of phonostages and there are clearly audible benefits in the better, more expensive, designs.
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So how much would you recommend spending before you hear any clear audible benefit?
 
I'm with the cheaper phono crowd.....I had an expensive unit, But I'm very happy now with much cheaper Cambridge CP2 for MM and MC. I sold the much higher priced phono because, upon audition, the Cambridge was so close and even better to my ears in some ways.
 
I’ve not heard one (i’ve an era gold) but for that sort of money presumably a slee gram amp 2 would be worth a look?

Also, the Tisbury looks really interesting. I like what they do (their passive pre is great) - the phono stage is fairly new, not sure if there are reviews of it around yet. Has anyone here heard it?
 
springer said:
As I'm sure there are benefits in a £10K turntable! Either way, I've got £200 and that's it. Didn't need to change my 640P, just fancied something different, that's all. Christmas treat to myself, if you like, As it is, I've spent half my budget on the Angle, with nothing to lose. I can try something else if it doesn't hook me, or go back to the CA, or revisit this in months to come where the budget might be more (or less!)
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I would be interested in thoughts on the Angle range if these offer a reasonable upgrade for my RP6 and an upcoming Hana EH

Usually I run a Rega Fono or Naim phonostage cards with good results and long term satisfaction for me, both solution very cost effective
I have little or no worries with above pricelevels, deck vs phonostage
Offcourse it can become better but sometime its nice putting the kit swapping aside and just enjoy the music even its mullet on the paper.

Once I tried a standard 640P but thought it was sterile and boring, certainly not my cup so horses for ..
I never tried the modded version

I was obviously too late in following the deleted thread, so no idea what happened
 
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