# What Phono pre-amp do you recommend



## robbo266317 (Sep 22, 2008)

I have been looking at phono pre-amps for my turntable and most are lacking in details in their spec pages.
What do you own and what would you recommend. 

I am currently leaning towards this one as it has a subsonic filter: http://nadelectronics.com/products/turntables/PP-4-Digital-Phono-USB-Preamplifier#heading-downloads


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

NAD is known for making quality budget phono pre amps and that unit is worthy of consideration. I loved my old NAD 1020 pre amp and it's phono stage.

That said, I am partial to ProJect nowadays, they pack a lot of tech into their budget boxes. My Phono Box S is doing a great job. 

http://www.project-audio.com/main.php?prod=phonoboxs&cat=boxes&lang=en

Here is the USB, if that is a priority for you.

http://www.project-audio.com/main.php?prod=phonoboxusb


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## robbo266317 (Sep 22, 2008)

That looks like a very good unit with good specs and very low distortion. 
The subsonic is set a bit high but it does have the capability to turn it off.
As for USB, it is not a priority as I would prefer to convert it to a lossless format myself.

The Australian website does not have the S variant. (It looks like the S is for Sub-sonic so no real loss.) http://www.projectaudio.com.au/


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## Lumen (May 17, 2014)

tesseract said:


> That said, I am partial to ProJect nowadays, they pack a lot of tech into their budget boxes. My Phono Box S is doing a great job.


Here's a model Pro-Ject Phono Box DS demo on sale for $100 off:http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=1PRPBDS

I wish I could help with a recommendation of my own, but phono stages haven't been on my radar for a long time. My stage is built into my Carey SLP98P preamp. Shopping is sometimes the most fun, so I wish you happy hunting!


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

robbo266317 said:


> That looks like a very good unit with good specs and very low distortion.
> The subsonic is set a bit high but it does have the capability to turn it off.
> As for USB, it is not a priority as I would prefer to convert it to a lossless format myself.
> 
> The Australian website does not have the S variant. (It looks like the S is for Sub-sonic so no real loss.) http://www.projectaudio.com.au/


I never use the filter, some might want it. I was more interested in the S adjustable capacitance and loading.

The straight Phono Box is the same thing as the S, sans variable loading and subsonic filter. 
http://www.projectaudio.com.au/collections/hi-fi-components/products/phono-box


A friend of mine has this MM one, it EQ's, amplifies and passes the signal along quite well. Scroll for specs.
MM: http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/products/hifi-and-home-cinema/azur-551p
MM/MC:http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/products/hifi-and-home-cinema/azur-651p


No direct experience, but I've heard good things about this one.
http://www.musicalfidelity.com/v90-lps/

A few of these are available in black or silver.


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

BlueRockinLou said:


> Here's a model Pro-Ject Phono Box DS demo on sale for $100 off:http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=1PRPBDS
> 
> I wish I could help with a recommendation of my own, but phono stages haven't been on my radar for a long time. My stage is built into my Carey SLP98P preamp. Shopping is sometimes the most fun, so I wish you happy hunting!


I would have bought that at the price! Good find. If I recall correctly, it is a hot rodded S.


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## robbo266317 (Sep 22, 2008)

I found this one locally with analogue and USB outputs. Again, a reasonable buy for the specs.
http://www.addictedtoaudio.com.au/product/pro-ject-phono-box-usb-v


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## istvan (Jul 5, 2013)

I picked this one up used for 900$ CDN http://www.tnt-audio.com/ampli/minimax_phono_e.html. The cartridge and turntable you have are equally important. Are you running MC or MM ? on what turntable ?


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## robbo266317 (Sep 22, 2008)

That is an impressive looking unit you have. 
As for my setup, I have a Rega Planar Turntable with an SME series 3 arm and a Shure V15 type IV MM cartridge.


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