Audia Flight FL phono vs Avid Pulsare

Pani, Is it my imagination or do you change gear a lot?  Not that there is anything wrong with that.  My point would be that by being the good listener that you are and also by auditioning quite a wide array of very good quality equipment in your own system, it may well be that you are the best person to answer your own question about a comparison between these two phono stages.  Personally, I steer clear of matching components by the criterion that the deficiency of one element in the chain will be made up for by adding another element up or downstream with a strength in that area perceived to be a deficiency of the associated components.

For example in this case, a solid state phono stage is not necessarily the "cure" for what you feel is lacking in your tube Audio Note equipment.  On the other hand, you could luck out with one of these phono stages and not the other, but only you can make that judgement, in situ.

Lewm, I agree with you. Trying to compensate one shortcoming with another never works. My AN setup is doing well, just I am not yet ready for an all-tube bloom. I need a bit more incisive sound to enjoy my LPs. I tried borrowing some SS phonostages, like the Lehmann Silver Cube and Vertere. Both of them gave me that extra pace I have been craving a bit but they are relatively entry level in the finesse of presentation. Tones are a bit to dry so I am shooting for upper end phonostages which are not plagued with tonality issues in general and can retain the pace and incisiveness. 

I have heard the Avid in the past in a friend's system and liked it. Audia Flight I have not heard.

There are many excellent phono stages, both tube and SS, that may provide the incisiveness you seek. I would not agree that only SS phono stages can sound "incisive".  (There is another discussion around what that term means applied to a phono stage.) Atma-sphere MP1 and Manley Steelhead are two that I own.  The latter could be said to be a hybrid.

I have not heard the Avid preamp so I can’t comment on it. I do have a McIntosh C1100 tube preamp and an Audia Flight phono preamp. My C1100 replaced my C2300 tube preamp. Before I purchased the C1100 I thought I would be able to replace the Audia Flight but as soon as I played the first record I realized the Audia Flight had to stay. I still love the C1100 with the SS Audia Flight feeding it and would recommend that combination to anyone.

@lewm I have already heard the Atma mp1. It was incisive but the balance of frequency was too bright for my taste. The background was also not very black. 

@mcgal could you please describe the Sonics of Audia Flight compared to other phonostages you heard ?

pani, I am not the best at describing in words what I hear. I just know what my preferences are. I didn't want to keep the Audia Flight. When I purchased the C1100 I thought I could free up space in my rack. This was not the case as the Audia Flight will be staying with the C1100 as a preamp. The Audia Flight just sounds more musical and detailed to me. For me it wasn't even close. I did try the MC phono stage on the C1100 after I had about 300 hours on it and still preferred the Audia Flight. I didn't try any other phono preamps. I am happy now and not looking to make any other changes.

Thanks @mcgal 

No one has heard an Avid phono stage ?

Accuphase C-27 has purity of tone and excellent dynamics. quiet as a tomb and each input saves the gain/loading etc.

I had an Audia Flight Phono and it played nice, but had very loud peaks. After opening it my HiFi dealer and friend showed me the tinned and screwd cable ends. This cables coming from the power adapter were all loose.

I think most people here knows that tinned cables cannot be fitted with a screw. Audia not...

I haven't heard either of the phono stages you mention, but own both the Whest Ref V Mk 4 and Naim Superline/Supercap, and either of these would fit your requirements.

I have owned (and still own) many other phono stages over the years - including Aurorasound Vida, Tom Evans Groove Anniversary, EAR 834 and 88PB, EAR 324, Einstein Turntable's Choice, Tron Seven and numerous others.