Graham Slee GSP Era Gold Mk. V - anyone have it???

I bought both a GSP Era Gold MkV and an Ear 834P and lived with both for a couple of months. Each had its strong points, and I could see how some people might prefer the Ear. But I preferred the GSP's speed and slam.

I saw in Audio Asylum discussions that there are some effective and not-too-expensive upgrades that can be made on the Ear, mainly upgrading capacitors and resistors and putting in better tubes (Telefunkens are probably best). After making those changes, the Ear 834P improved so much that it clearly bested the GSP (to my taste). But the Ear is more expensive to start with and if you have someone else do the upgrade on it, the Ear becomes about twice as expensive as the GSP.

So the GSP remains the champ at its price level, and better than many preamps costing 2, 3, 4 times as much.

Good point on the price comparison between the upgraded EAR 834P and the GSP. A more fair shootout would be the new GSP Reflex and modded 834P, although the GSP is still significantly cheaper, I think.

I preferred the GSP over the Rogue Stealth and EAR for the exact same reasons as Bolson. The difference was significant.

g'day all,newb here..be gentle. just replaced long serving denon dp30l mk.2,M.F.A3 amp. w/ NAD M3 & THORENS TD700 T/T w/ ORTOFON 2M blue, & well, using a NAD PP2 phono stage was distinctly underwhelmed,forum cruising turned up local south oz PS AUDIO dealer...HMMMM. a phono stage costing 60% of T/T. outlay, dunno 'bout that? how far do you go up the slippery pole of diminishing returns using M.M. carts ? MIKE from Magenta audio [PS AUDIO dealer] assured me this phono stage would be the SH#T! i needed to get on track [& take care of M.C. upgrades if so desired ]& he was so on the money!!! every, & i mean EVERYTHING i've thrown at my new setup has leapt out of my DYNAUDIO 72's with a vengeance...timing/energy/depth of field/taut bass/clean vocals [ first up used TERRY REID.. a BAS##RD to get a listenable vocal from] & this was STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BOX, can't wait to see if 'burn in factor' kicks in down the track. point here from my perspective being ..if you're a vinyl music fan, a GREAT phono stage HAS to be your first consideration. cheers folks!!