On hunt for new a phonostage

[TooCool4]

I have been thinking of upgrading a few things in my system for a while, what I am looking to upgrade are phonostage, pre-amp and speakers.

I had a few phonostages in mind to try out, the ones I had in mind are the Esoteric E-03, Rega Aura and the Zandon Model 120 to replace my Rega Ios.

One of the things I require from a phonostage is that it must have the controls / loading on an easy to adjust dial on the front panel, no dip switches.

When I upgrade as a rule of thumb, I need to be spending at least 3 x what I am replacing else it’s no point, you must consider inflation the price of everything has gone up else I am only making a sideways move to something different and not a true upgrade.

Checking out these phonostages they have all now gone up in price, which make most of them a little less attractive. The Esoteric has gone up about £3K and they have just stop making them since the E-02 is out, the Zandon has gone up about £3K and the Rega has gone up about £400. They become less palatable since they are not improved versions, they are still the same things but just cost more.

Anyway at the moment, I have the Rega Aura on a home loan so I can try it in my system. I never buy anything anymore unless I can have it at home and use it in my system in my room, that is the only way you truly know. You only really know what the kit is doing, when you have lived with it for a while. I find an hour or 2 in the dealers dem room to be a false evaluation, you may be wowed in an hour or 2 but when you live with it for a while you really know.

Out of the box, the Aura is an improvement in all areas over my Ios. After a few notes you can just tell, I did do a few switch back and forth then I stopped to just live with and enjoy the Aura.

I would not say I heard anything I did not hear before, but first thing that I noticed was how much quieter the phonostage is. I could hear everything better than before, the sound stage was deeper and wider, clarity was on a different level.

I have been playing my records, throwing many different tracks at it to see how it handles them. It has done a very credible job with most tracks.

People say this phonostage is revealing and yet forgiving at the same time. I would agree with the revealing part but the forgiving part, I disagree with it is brutal on not so good recordings.

A couple of tracks that it was brutal on is 12” mix of Grace Jones – Me! I disconnect from you and the other I have found so far is E-Z Rollers – Droppin Science, when the bass drops it’s painful to listen to.

I may be able to fix this issue buy doing a better setup, but we shall see.

I am still playing around with the capacitance to see if I can hear which setting sounds best.

Build quality the phonostage is built like a tank.

A friend of mine was here listening to the phonostages with me, we both came to the same conclusion an improvement in every area over the Ios.

So looks like I will be buying a new phonostage.

Ios on right and Aura on left.

 

[Massimo66]

I have been thinking of upgrading a few things in my system for a while, what I am looking to upgrade are phonostage, pre-amp and speakers.

I had a few phonostages in mind to try out, the ones I had in mind are the Esoteric E-03, Rega Aura and the Zandon Model 120 to replace my Rega Ios.

One of the things I require from a phonostage is that it must have the controls / loading on an easy to adjust dial on the front panel, no dip switches.

When I upgrade as a rule of thumb, I need to be spending at least 3 x what I am replacing else it’s no point, you must consider inflation the price of everything has gone up else I am only making a sideways move to something different and not a true upgrade.

Checking out these phonostages they have all now gone up in price, which make most of them a little less attractive. The Esoteric has gone up about £3K and they have just stop making them since the E-02 is out, the Zandon has gone up about £3K and the Rega has gone up about £400. They become less palatable since they are not improved versions, they are still the same things but just cost more.

Anyway at the moment, I have the Rega Aura on a home loan so I can try it in my system. I never buy anything anymore unless I can have it at home and use it in my system in my room, that is the only way you truly know. You only really know what the kit is doing, when you have lived with it for a while. I find an hour or 2 in the dealers dem room to be a false evaluation, you may be wowed in an hour or 2 but when you live with it for a while you really know.

Out of the box, the Aura is an improvement in all areas over my Ios. After a few notes you can just tell, I did do a few switch back and forth then I stopped to just live with and enjoy the Aura.

I would not say I heard anything I did not hear before, but first thing that I noticed was how much quieter the phonostage is. I could hear everything better than before, the sound stage was deeper and wider, clarity was on a different level.

I have been playing my records, throwing many different tracks at it to see how it handles them. It has done a very credible job with most tracks.

People say this phonostage is revealing and yet forgiving at the same time. I would agree with the revealing part but the forgiving part, I disagree with it is brutal on not so good recordings.

A couple of tracks that it was brutal on is 12” mix of Grace Jones – Me! I disconnect from you and the other I have found so far is E-Z Rollers – Droppin Science, when the bass drops it’s painful to listen to.

I may be able to fix this issue buy doing a better setup, but we shall see.

I am still playing around with the capacitance to see if I can hear which setting sounds best.

Build quality the phonostage is built like a tank.

A friend of mine was here listening to the phonostages with me, we both came to the same conclusion an improvement in every area over the Ios.

So looks like I will be buying a new phonostage.

Ios on right and Aura on left.

View attachment 112397

View attachment 112398

Hello among the phono and you absolutely must listen there is also allnic 7000. I coupled it with a Spectral 30 Ss preamp and I saw that you have the 20. moreover, I also use the Dynavector 507 mkIi as an arm.. don't be frightened by the price, contact the German or Italian importer who always have some demo specimens. they carried them around to the various fairs. for the io i rule even if they are from above you have a table that is very simple to use

 

[Johan K]

I have been thinking of upgrading a few things in my system for a while, what I am looking to upgrade are phonostage, pre-amp and speakers.

I had a few phonostages in mind to try out, the ones I had in mind are the Esoteric E-03, Rega Aura and the Zandon Model 120 to replace my Rega Ios.

One of the things I require from a phonostage is that it must have the controls / loading on an easy to adjust dial on the front panel, no dip switches.

When I upgrade as a rule of thumb, I need to be spending at least 3 x what I am replacing else it’s no point, you must consider inflation the price of everything has gone up else I am only making a sideways move to something different and not a true upgrade.

Checking out these phonostages they have all now gone up in price, which make most of them a little less attractive. The Esoteric has gone up about £3K and they have just stop making them since the E-02 is out, the Zandon has gone up about £3K and the Rega has gone up about £400. They become less palatable since they are not improved versions, they are still the same things but just cost more.

Anyway at the moment, I have the Rega Aura on a home loan so I can try it in my system. I never buy anything anymore unless I can have it at home and use it in my system in my room, that is the only way you truly know. You only really know what the kit is doing, when you have lived with it for a while. I find an hour or 2 in the dealers dem room to be a false evaluation, you may be wowed in an hour or 2 but when you live with it for a while you really know.

Out of the box, the Aura is an improvement in all areas over my Ios. After a few notes you can just tell, I did do a few switch back and forth then I stopped to just live with and enjoy the Aura.

I would not say I heard anything I did not hear before, but first thing that I noticed was how much quieter the phonostage is. I could hear everything better than before, the sound stage was deeper and wider, clarity was on a different level.

I have been playing my records, throwing many different tracks at it to see how it handles them. It has done a very credible job with most tracks.

People say this phonostage is revealing and yet forgiving at the same time. I would agree with the revealing part but the forgiving part, I disagree with it is brutal on not so good recordings.

A couple of tracks that it was brutal on is 12” mix of Grace Jones – Me! I disconnect from you and the other I have found so far is E-Z Rollers – Droppin Science, when the bass drops it’s painful to listen to.

I may be able to fix this issue buy doing a better setup, but we shall see.

I am still playing around with the capacitance to see if I can hear which setting sounds best.

Build quality the phonostage is built like a tank.

A friend of mine was here listening to the phonostages with me, we both came to the same conclusion an improvement in every area over the Ios.

So looks like I will be buying a new phonostage.

Ios on right and Aura on left.

View attachment 112397

View attachment 112398

Great report Chris !
I’m happy for you if you find a new phonostage that satisfy your demands.

/ Jk

 

[TooCool4]

Hi Massimo66 thanks for recommending the Allnic phonostage, in general I stay away from anything Valved based just too high maintenance for my liking. Since I never turn my equipment off, anything Valve will not last long for me.

The hunt goes on.

 

[DasguteOhr]

Hi Massimo66 thanks for recommending the Allnic phonostage, in general I stay away from anything Valved based just too high maintenance for my liking. Since I never turn my equipment off, anything Valve will not last long for me.

The hunt goes on.

Ok ..no tubes your decision.

In the forum, a new sow is driven through the village every week. Please be stubborn and spend your money on excellent old stuff. you get more performance for the money you save, ok there is no guarantee. In terms of performance, you won't find anything better either. it may sound different, everyone has their preferences. But they didn't reinvent todaythe wheel either. If you can find a Klyne Audio Arts 7px 3.5, buy it, the last one sold on eBay in February for €3,200. it lets you enjoy the music everything technical moves into the background promised.
P. S
and yes i don't sell mine i'll be buried with that

 

[TooCool4]

Ok ..no tubes your decision.

In the forum, a new sow is driven through the village every week. Please be stubborn and spend your money on excellent old stuff. you get more performance for the money you save, ok there is no guarantee. In terms of performance, you won't find anything better either. it may sound different, everyone has their preferences. But they didn't reinvent todaythe wheel either. If you can find a Klyne Audio Arts 7px 3.5, buy it, the last one sold on eBay in February for €3,200. it lets you enjoy the music everything technical moves into the background promised.
P. S
and yes i don't sell mine i'll be buried with that

This is obviously lost in translation, as I don’t understand what you are going on about?

 

[DasguteOhr]

This is obviously lost in translation, as I don’t understand what you are going on about?

I just wanted to say that you shouldn't necessarily be on the lookout for new phono amplifiers. There are so many good old things that can easily compete with modern, expensive phono amplifiers. hence my recommendation Klyne Audio. The first sentence in my answer above comes from a German forum a proverb. This means that if a device is hyped in forums, after a few weeks nobody is talking about this device anymore, in a few months the owner will quickly sell it again. Good units are rarely found on the used market and a Klyne Audio is one of them.
I hope I was able to explain it to you in an understandable way

 

[bonzo75]

Hi Massimo66 thanks for recommending the Allnic phonostage, in general I stay away from anything Valved based just too high maintenance for my liking. Since I never turn my equipment off, anything Valve will not last long for me.

The hunt goes on.

for SS get the Burmester 100 or FM 123 used

 

[TooCool4]

Okay DasguterOhr I understand now. I am not after something new and shiny just looking for something better than what I have now. So far the newer Aura is much better than the Ios I currently own, I want to try more but at the moment I have been too busy with other things in life hence not tried anything else after the Aura.

Once I have more time on my hands, I’ll resume the hunt.

I still maintain everything I try must not be valve, must have the controls on the front for ease of use / setup and generally should be MC only as there is no point in paying for something I will not use i.e. MM

 

[TooCool4]

bonzo75 Burmester is outside my price range, I would not want to spend more than £10K on a phonostage. I would have to be really impressed before I spend that much on a phonostage.

The Sutherland phonostages look interesting, but then I will be stuck with only low impedance cartridges. I like a phonostage that is flexible and allow me to use nearly any cartridge I can find.

 

[Audire]

I was directed to Sutherland before purchasing a rather economical VAC Renaissance. It’s an excellent Phono.Pre (tubes and it’s in standby all the time, with no wear … I purchased extra tubes but probably won’t need them for 5 years or so). This said, it shall soon be replaced by a Vitus Masterpiece Phone Pre - solid state - which is above which you presently desire to spend (60k).

 

[TooCool4]

Yes Audire Vitus are amazing, but way more than I could afford and willing to spend. Too many other things competing for my money, like a house for instance.

 

[rossb]

I'm using the Rega Aura, and it is the best phono stage I have owned. Previous phono stages included the Klyne Series 7, EAR 912, Whest PS40RDT.SE and Ref V, Naim Superline/Supercap, Nagra VPS/Classic PSU, Ayre P5xe and many others.

While I wouldn't describe it as "forgiving", it is certainly not harsh in anyway, and has a slight sweetness and warmth. But it is also fast and dynamic, as you would expect from Rega. It is definitely not for those who prefer the slight softening and bloom of tubes. But if you like an accurate, fast, neutral, quiet and dynamic phono stage I can highly recommend the Aura.

The only downsides are that the highest loading is 400 ohms, and there is no MM input.

I think many people would imagine that a Rega phono stage would only be at home in a Rega system, and that being Rega it is "mid fi". Neither of these assumptions would be correct. I am using the Aura in a system without any other Rega components, and the Aura is a true high end phono stage.

 

[TooCool4]

Thanks for your words rossb, I do like the Aura. I may well end up with it but for now I will still look around a bit more when I get time.

 

[Bonesy Jonesy]

Thanks for your words rossb, I do like the Aura. I may well end up with it but for now I will still look around a bit more when I get time.

After owning a brand new Rega Aura (which I had connected to a brand new Rega P10 with Apheta 3), it is quite a good and convenient Phono Stage for the money (especially if you can buy one second hand) and matches very well with Rega's own cartridges. The Rega P10, Apheta 3 and Aura was a very good synergistic match (as you would expect being all Rega components) for an overall TT set-up.

But (as other WBF members have mentioned), for the same money there are better (value for money vs performance) Phono Stages especially on the second hand market that are also more flexible with cartridge choices etc. Your choice of Phono Stage also depends on your future upgrade plans (if any) with your other hifi equipment i.e. your TT, Tonearm, Cartridge, Pre-Amp, Power Amp, Speakers, Headphones etc.

I was in a similar dilemma this time last year with my then Rega Aura Phono Stage when I had made a massive upgrade jump from the Rega P10 to a Kuzma XL DC fitted with a 4Point 11" and a MSL Eminent Ex cartridge (my dream TT and Tonearm).

I wanted to also upgrade the Aura to a much higher grade of Phono Stage to go with my ugraded TT set-up with better flexibility (for choice of cartridges and settings etc.) and a higher fidelity in sound.

I ended up going full monte upgrade for the Phono Stage too with being able to find and secure a one Owner 2019 manufactured CH Precision P1 Phono Stage for a great price (well below RRP for a new and a second hand 2019 model, although a lot more expensive than the Rega Aura) which is amazing giving me fantastic sound and being very flexible with multi settings for multi choice of cartridges, and have no regrets in spending far more than I originally planned to do on a Phono Stage and it will most probably stay with me for a very long time to come (i.e. I don't have any plan to upgrade it any time - only to provide it with a CH Precision X1 Power Supply for it). I can also build the rest of my hifi chain in the future with other pieces of CH Precision equipment for full synergy (I am big fan of trying to buy equipment from the same Manufacturer or at least equipment from another Manufacturer that has been used by a Manufacturer to test their own equipment with).

Just my 2 pennies worth and something for you to think about ! Note that the Phono Stage can have a big impact on the overall hifi analogue chain especially with equipment synergy and the sound you are after.

 

[TooCool4]

Hi Bonesy Jonesy I did read your thread about getting the CH Precision, it was interesting. The CH Precision is a big jump in money and at that price, the Rega should not get a look in. Like I said I have more important things fighting for my money.
I know I am a bit funny about these things but I don't do second-hand, even though you can get some good deals. You can't beat being the first person opening something new and the first to touch it since packed in the factory also knowing the full history. So for me new is the way to go. I keep things for a very long time, I am not one for changing things every time something new comes out. I always do my research well before parting with my money, hence I keep things for a long time.

 

[Massimo66]

Hi Bonesy Jonesy I did read your thread about getting the CH Precision, it was interesting. The CH Precision is a big jump in money and at that price, the Rega should not get a look in. Like I said I have more important things fighting for my money.
I know I am a bit funny about these things but I don't do second-hand, even though you can get some good deals. You can't beat being the first person opening something new and the first to touch it since packed in the factory also knowing the full history. So for me new is the way to go. I keep things for a very long time, I am not one for changing things every time something new comes out. I always do my research well before parting with my money, hence I keep things for a long time.

a real hi-fi fetish fan, sorry for the joke but a pun with the 38° outside the house is what I was missing. the mere thought of turning on my hifi system (classroom stove as my wife calls it) in the heat makes me sweat.

 

[allvinyl]

Channel D Lino C 3.3
https://www.channld.com/news.html

 

[TooCool4]

Thanks for the recommendation allvinyl, I did see a while ago Steve Guttenberg reviewed it. Like I said before on the Sutherland phonostages, I will be limited to low impedance cartridges. At the moment I am using EMT JSD S 75, which I believe is 24ohm not good with current phonostages. I may change to something else in the future, but for now I want to be able to use any MC cartridge without restrictions.

 

[allvinyl]

Thanks for the recommendation allvinyl, I did see a while ago Steve Guttenberg reviewed it. Like I said before on the Sutherland phonostages, I will be limited to low impedance cartridges. At the moment I am using EMT JSD S 75, which I believe is 24ohm not good with current phonostages. I may change to something else in the future, but for now I want to be able to use any MC cartridge without restrictions.

Because the Lino C 3.3 is selectable current-mode and now also voltage-mode, unlike all other previous Lino C versions, you wouldn't be limited to low impedance cartridges.