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A great MM phono stage

Posted by jsm71 (A) on June 22, 2017 at 08:22:48

I recently purchased a custom built phono stage from Don Sachs, who is mostly known for his work in restoring vingtage HK, Scott, etc tube electronics. Don advises on upgraded parts if desired as part of his efforts and his customers often receive better than new units.

His phono stage is based on Vacuum Tube Audio's (tubes4hifi.com) PH-16 kit circuit, but again, Don upps the ante with better parts. I went with all his suggestions and opted for a nice cherry wooden case with a metal top place that exposes the tubes, including his name on the plate, for a nice look. I don't think he sells a lot of these compared to his full function preamp, so his phono stage is still a sleeper.

The PH-16 basic kit is for MM only and includes full dip switches for fine tuning the load. If you wish Don can also include SUTs as part of the build. I already use a Bob's Devices SKY 20 SUT boosting my Lyra Delos cartridge, so the stock setup loaded at 47k was perfect for me. I can play with the loading if I ever want to fall back on my MM carts some day.

Don is a busy guy with very happy customers so there is a waiting list for new units. That's the only downside. I couldn't be happier with the sound. There are a few other reviews on the tubes4hifi site, but it is dead quiet, has amazing channel separation, and the isolation of individual voices/instruments would be hard to beat without spending multiples of what I paid. Thanks, Don.

For me, the design was perfect. I didn't need full MC support so all the cost and design was put into a superior MM stage.

This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:

Kimber Kable

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