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About to pull the trigger on the MF V-LPS unless...

Erocka2000

Erocka2000

Well-Known Member
...someone can convince me not to.

My budget is less than $200. I was also looking at the Cambridge 640P, but all the comparisons I've read give the edge to the V-LPS.

Unfortunately, there is nowhere I know of near me (Brooklyn) that would allow me to audition either piece. NYC is weird in that it has budget stores (Best Buy) and high-high end (Stereo Exchange, Sound by Singer, etc.). There is no middle ground.

I'm currently using a Dual 504 with a M97xe with the built-in phono stage in the TCC-TC 754 I'm using. Volume is definitely a little too low and music is quite flat, hence the need for a phono stage. That said, I will most likely be upgrading the tt to a Pro-ject Xpression III (not definite, but leaning in that direction) in about 4 months or so.

Is the V-LPS a good enough phono stage that it should survive one or two tt upgrades (well at least one anyway ;)), and is the best option for an under $200 phono stage?
 
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It's a good one. The NAD PP2 /PP3 are pretty good and a bit warmer sounding than the MF. The "flatness" might also be due to the stylus. A different stylus would liven things up.
 
And there's the DB-systems DB-8 which a couple of us have been name-dropping lately. I love that phono pre, and it's pretty cheap.
 
Hmmm ...

I don't understand. the TCC has built-in phono equalization and variable output so the signal should be fairly correct volume wise. Since you should be able to set output level, the volume should not be an issue? The Amp you are using is stereo and only 15 watts. But that should be enough to fill a room.

Now the fact that you are using a M97Xe cartridge at 47K (?) is not optimal to the conditions you describe. The cartridge is dark and somewhat veiled in standard form into 47K. There are two ways to cure this. One is to install the JICO SAS stylus which brightens the signal from the cartridge due to it's ability to extract more detail and higher frequencies. The other is to bump the loading to 62~100K. That requires a phono stage with switch selectable loading.

Which way you go is up to you. But I would not spring for your planned purchase without a bit more thinking :scratch2:
 
The reason I say that the volume is very low, is because when using my CD player through the TCC I barely have to turn the volume passed halfway. When using my tt I generally have to turn the volume almost all the way. Granted I know CD players give out a much higher signal, I still feel that the tt level is lacking.

@Broc, when you say I should be able to set the out put level, are you referring to the volume pot or something internal? If internal, then I would have to take look, though I haven't worked on circuit boards yet. If you were referring to the volume, is that how it should be; turning it all the way? Also, the speakers I have are 94db efficient, so the 15watts should provide plenty of power, as evident when using a CD player.

@Big I wish I could sample these items, but as I said, there is nowhere to sample them, that I know of, in the NYC area.
 
Erocka2000 said:
The reason I say that the volume is very low, is because when using my CD player through the TCC I barely have to turn the volume passed halfway. When using my tt I generally have to turn the volume almost all the way.
Click to expand...

It's normal to have to turn up the volume when listening to an LP, compared to listening to a CD (and, to an extent, when compared with radio, TV, DVD, etc).

Read up on the "loudness wars". Most CDs released since the early 90s are mastered too "hot", in an attempt to make every note sound as loud as possible. Most remastered CDs of older material do this, too, unfortunately. The same issue is increasingly common with DVDs, TV, etc.

It ruins the dynamic range of the recording. Thankfully this dynamics compression usually is not present on older LPs, so dynamics are intact. Event new popular-artist LPs are often better than the CDs in this respect, because the limitations of the LP medium often do not allow the same overly-compressed masters to be put onto an LP (there are ways around this, but they seem to make things even worse and thankfully they're not used very often).
 
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There is also the Vincent sold by Audio Advisor. I've read some good things about it and some preferr the sound of it over the cambridge..............
 
The Vincent and the dB Systems are the units on my list.

ehhove just did the comparo of the Bellari/640P/dB Systems and he likes the dB.
 
Consider holding off on another phonostage and put it toward a well thought out piece of gear. Your cartridge isn't going to shine @47K. It will sound better with any of the stages mentioned, but not the best money spent. When you refer to sampling phonostages, if that isn't on your gear at home, your not going to learn much.
Nice avitar, when that disc came out, I listened to it everyday for longer than I can remember. The second one was just as good.
 
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