retseldrib
pfm Member
I am hoping to have this for a home dem this weekend to use with my LP12 and Ania MC.
Does anyone have any experience with this product?
Many thanks.
Does anyone have any experience with this product?
Many thanks.
Tom Evans Micro Groove+ X mkII Phono-Stage
- Thread starter retseldrib
- Start date
Killersteve
pfm Member
Had a TE Microgroove + and loved it. Asked Tom for an upgrade to MK2 and this was really a big improvement. Used it with Rega RP8 and Apheta 2 until May this year. Replaced now by a Teddy Pardo PHN1.1 without any regrets. The TE was very good but the Teddy is better in any way.
retseldrib
pfm Member
Thanks ill investigate the teddy
Killersteve
pfm Member
You‘re welcome!
Have had the Teddy PHN1 also but sold it after some tests between
the PHN1 and TE Microgroove + (MK1). The TE was better with
some distance.
Have had the Teddy PHN1 also but sold it after some tests between
the PHN1 and TE Microgroove + (MK1). The TE was better with
some distance.
retseldrib
pfm Member
Not sure that I understand - the first post you appear to be saying that the Teddy is better and in your second post that the Tom Evans is better? Apologies if I’m being thick
Killersteve
pfm Member
No problem. The first version PHN1 was not as good as the TE but the second version PHN1.1 is really better. The first version was a One-Box-Design with PSU integrated, the second one a Two-Box-Design with a separate PSU.
Arkless Electronics
Trade: Amp design and repairs.
If the OP is in UK then there is my Arkless GTi. See reviews here on pfm.
retseldrib
pfm Member
I do - let me search for it
Arkless Electronics
Trade: Amp design and repairs.
retseldrib
pfm Member
I ended up buying the Tom Evans Mark 2.5 having demmed the Mark 2 for around 3 weeks.
The mark 2.5 is better in every respected - more dynamic, louder, less hiss and more detail plus the PSU is larger.
Not sure how you measure these things but the Tom Evans was more “ .......” than the Rega Fono MC that it replaced by a significant margin. I’m sure that anyone could tell the difference if they did a blind fold test - which I did not do.
The mark 2.5 is better in every respected - more dynamic, louder, less hiss and more detail plus the PSU is larger.
Not sure how you measure these things but the Tom Evans was more “ .......” than the Rega Fono MC that it replaced by a significant margin. I’m sure that anyone could tell the difference if they did a blind fold test - which I did not do.
Killersteve
pfm Member
Still talking about the MIcrogroove plus X? MK2.5? Had a search on Google but only found 2.0.
retseldrib
pfm Member
Yes the microgroove + X Mark 2.5; it appears that this a revision and has not been updated on Tom Evans site. Pasted from Toms email to me “ you have the latest Mk2.5 version, it does have a larger power supply and the latest version of the internal Lithos 7.5 regulator pcb.“
Killersteve
pfm Member
Ah, OK. Lithos 7.5 is also considered in my MG+, which was rebuilt from MK1 to MK2 in 2019. But the PSU has not changed it‘s dimensions.
Chefren
pfm Member
I have a Microgroove+ X mk2.5 also (after a factory upgrade) and it's a great phono stage: dynamic, clear and resolving. But as it picks up noise from the 4G antennas we have on the roof on the apartment building (I'm pretty sure that's the source) I ended up getting an Avid Pulsus instead, which has similar strengths and has more features but also costs more. I think I still prefer the Microgroove by a small margin, but not enough to keep it on my rack wrapped in tin foil to avoid the noise.
Before the factory upgrades, the Microgroove, then a mk1, had a slightly splashy-feeling upper register which the upgrade resolved. It's still slightly bright compared to the Pulsus and an Aria which I have also tried, but so clean it doesn't feel like a downside anymore. Comparatively the Pulsus has slightly more power in the bass.
Before the factory upgrades, the Microgroove, then a mk1, had a slightly splashy-feeling upper register which the upgrade resolved. It's still slightly bright compared to the Pulsus and an Aria which I have also tried, but so clean it doesn't feel like a downside anymore. Comparatively the Pulsus has slightly more power in the bass.
retseldrib
pfm Member
I have a Rega Ania MC of which I thought might be a weak link. According to Tom, he said that the Ania was good enough for the next model (£2.5k) up and putting a more expensive cartridge on would see no real improvement.
Anyway, the phono-stage sounds great but I don’t have much experience with phono-stages and have only just re-discovered vinyl again during the first lockdown after 25 years in the digital wilderness.
Anyway, the phono-stage sounds great but I don’t have much experience with phono-stages and have only just re-discovered vinyl again during the first lockdown after 25 years in the digital wilderness.