Help me pick a phono, pre and cart

Dear @sbank   and audiophiles: I don't know why you gave so long answer when I only ask for a " yes or no ", anyway thank's.

First think I have to tell you is that I already gave an specific SS advise to @jetson   and the whys about and even advise for specific cartridges and that's all.
Was not me whom started the SS/tube dialogue but @bpoletti   and latter that manufacturer bu$$ine$$s man and I need to give a wide explanation because one of them even implicated I'm a lier or told that I'm what in true I'm not.

First that all and no matter what a tube is a tube and nothing can change its heavy limitations and if the today designs improved well the SS too, so this argument that I don't know why you used in your post is totally useless with out sense to me.

The extreme superiority of well designed SS units over any tube design is obvious if you know about MUSIC and if take in count that we live not in the 50's or 60's but in 2018 where not only SS designs but digital technology grow up order of magnitudes for the better.
 I want to remember you and let know to other gentlemans what a very " old " SS design can do even today. You participated on that. Here are really interesting links about, interesting because the ones that always attack me just can't understand what I'm talking about because my overall audio and MUSIC experiences are way different from them and this include any manufacturer and proffesional reviewers:

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150


this thread came from Andrew in Georgia with our very first design in my first trip to USA.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326185#3261...



this is the second owner of that unit. He owns very good system and had a noise problem with, read about.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326188#3261...


I visited twice this gentleman in Houston, second time was with the Essential 3160.
Please take a look of the system items all these gentlemans own.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326191#3261...


this gentleman was invited by Doug at his place.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326196#3261...

I want to say that till what we can read on those links the cartridges where all LOMC ones: Transfiguration, Colibri, ZYX Universe , Clearaudio and Titan the second time I was with Fred. Many other cartridges follows as the Lyra Olympos, My Sonic Labs, Myabi, Benz Micro, etc, etc..


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326211#3262...



that was the 3150 today my unit is an up-dated one and I can call it: 3190..



https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326226#3262...



https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/review-j-r-essential-essential-3160-preamplifier



this UK gentleman was the first owner of our unit.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326248#3262...


this gentleman is a music player, speaker designer and tube designer too.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326250#3262...


great system he own, cartridge the XV-1s.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326251#3262...Audiogon Discussion Forumforum.audiogon.comHere are my comments on the listening session I had with Raul and his Essential 3150 Full Function Preamplifier.Firstly, I would like to thank Raul. He ...


he is a player of a very well regarded Mexican Symphonic Orchestra, a great young gentleman as all the ones I had the luck to meet on those East/West USA coast trips..


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326259#3262...


this was in the west USA coast. This gentleman with the top of the line Wavac/Vac tube units and several top cartridges.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326270#3262...


well, Spencer as all the other gentlemans is a great hostess. At his place the very first moment that we were hearing/listening the Essential 3150 there were other two gentlemans, one of them was Joe  ( the owner of the system where those 40-50 audiophiles attend as part of the club Spencer talks. ) , whom knew very well the Spencer's audio system, at the first moment that the first notes of the LP came out from the speakers he approached to one of my ears and told me " Raul you are a genius ". Obviously I'm not.

The day in Joe's place with all those club members was a great experience for all of us and not only because the Essential 3150 performance but because Lloyd Walwer was invited to that special session. Joe is a Walker customer through his TT. Very good system and not only for the TT but those great Kharma speakers.

Lloyds was part of that " chorus line " Spencer refered and I remember that before some one introduce me with him Joe ask Lloyd something like " what do you think about, on what he was listening ? " and he only made a sign with his hand up: " spot on ". 
I think some way or the other all in that session learned a lot because almost the 100% of the people were tube lovers where our unit was an intruder.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326272#3262...


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/experience-with-raul-s-essential-3150/post?postid=326231#3262...

I was twice with Albert in different times. The first time I remember very clear that he was loading his LOMC cartridge ( I think the Myabi. ) at around 400 ohms-500 ohms through his Aesthetix I/O and I told him that the quality performance for that cartridge was not up to what the cartridge can shows when loaded correctly. We play it in the Essential at 100 ohms and suddenly " ligths on ".

With him I had the opportunity to meet part of his audio group and a Dagogo reviewer.


https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/our-home-system-how-good-it-is


I was too in Denver at Tom place whom is the Galibier TT designer/manufacturer, great audiophile gentleman.


I have to say that I think that only @pryso was using a non LOMC cartridge and if I remember was Grado one. 

As I told I was an " intruder " with all those gentlemans because almost all were or are tube audiophiles and our unit is a full SS.

We did not made a shoot-out with any of those tube/hybrid electronics but only against a Dartzeel full fuction phonolinepreamp and this was in the San Diego area and yes the Essential outperformed it.

Here in San Diego where I was invited to a presentation in a big audio show rooms of one of the main audio distributors in the area and attend at least 30 audiophiles maybe 40. What a great time with and was a very good experience for those tube people.

Btw, our Essential unit accross those trips always was connected and listened " just " after the arrive of fligths or long run roads over different places and these means that never took the time for the unit been in rest for some time after the flight/road and temperature changes from snow to 40° celcius  and the unit always shows its quality performance level. This kind of circuit stability speaks for its self.

All cartridges were loaded at 100-150 ohms ( no exception. ) and we did't care about capacitance or the like. Our unit " knows " what to does. Only bad designs has troubles, not ours.


@sbank in your post you try to " diminish " your speakers about bass range I can't understand for sure why other than trying to dimish the Essential in that frequency range but all over those links our unit was connected in full range and even with subwoofers audio systems and in all shows it its quality performance levels.

Btw, @bpoletti posted about harsh sound from SS electronics and the bu$sine$$ man on brigthness with and I have to say that in the past I talk exactly in the same way till I learned how MUSIC sounds live at near field position where we can listen that harsh/brigthness qualities.
So if in our each one home audio system we do not listen those qualities that are inherent to the live MUSIC then we are listening a way colored system/room presentation that's not truer to the recording.


"""  Raul is a digital aficionado. He’s not into vinyl.."""


as always spreading lies and nothing else and a person that spreads liers is a dishonest person it does not matters if for ignorance or on purpose.

In no one of all those places I visited we only listened LPs not a single CD. Spencer knows that but I don't want to ask him to attest about but I want to disturb a gentleman that came several times to my place:

@cardani, please tell us if in any single of the times you were at my place you listenede to a single digital medium. Thank's in advance.


"""  Neither are there any solid state phono sections with response to DC;  """

another lie from the same dishonest person:

http://www.spectralaudio.com/dmc-20.htm

http://www.spectralaudio.com/dmc-20spec.htm

and it's not the only SS electronics that shows that DC bandwindth other than our Essential.


"""  With regards to bass and highs, tubes can go from DC to many MHz  """

I never talk or posted about bandwindth but only frequency extremes where tubes can't handle in the rigth way, only well designed SS electronics can. We have to remember that the main target is to stay truer to the recording that means nearest to the live music to what the recording microhones pick up. Tube and SS are way way different in those regards, tubes for the worst and SS for the better. Facts are facts and no one can change it even with dishonest lies.


"""  bandwidth from 1Hz to 100KHz, with bandwidth intentionally limited to prevent damage to tweeters from RFI..."""


another on purpose lie because as the Spectral or our Essential any well designed electronics can goes to Mhz with out problem but the designer must have the knowledge to design it, knowledge and skills how to do it.


more lies:

"""  nor does the RIAA spec past 20KHz; so many phono sections, solid state included, """"""

these are RIAA eq. of SS measurements:

https://get.google.com/albumarchive/104284617601331669309/album/AF1QipPGwVfiWSHynlELSEYgXBVdyx1X8IKa...


and look the outstanding measurement of same RIAA in our Essential:


https://get.google.com/albumarchive/104284617601331669309/album/AF1QipMFuJ0YVzL64lrK46jDWyUx7h0SGhNy...



Enough for now.

R.

@rauliruegas "enough for now"?  Too much for nothing.  Concise is nice.  

So you're a manufacturer hawking your own design?   That doesn't exactly make you an objective source of information.  Since you're not an objective source of information, your credibility is damaged.  Damaged credibility makes your opinions of little value regardless of your EXTREME verbosity.  

Dear @bpoletti :  """   I have not heard any better phono stage at any price.  """

that's your post speaking of the Herron and I have to say that after your deep experiences at any price you have top credibility.

Btw, what you read on those links I posted were not my words or experiences: were other audiophiles experiences. Got that? ! ? ! ? 

Whom says: " there is no worst deaf that the one that did not want to hear " or whom says:  "" there is no worst blind that the one that did not want to see """

Unfortunatelly in your system you can't enjoy MUSIC only noises. Good for you.

R.

@rauliruegas Your words "there is no worst blind that the one that did not want to see." says the individual that refuses to "see" that engineering design of tube equipment can, and often does, provide superior results over solid state equipment.

I have finished responding to your epic novels.  

You should study Dale Carnegie.

I read earlier on that you have to replace the arm on the 1200G.  Not  true.  The arm on the 1200G is very very good.  If you wanted to pursue a different arm that may be better such as a Triplanar you certainly could but you may find that the arm on the 1200G may just work for you.  I would replace the platter mat and headshell/headshell cables.  I love the arm that comes with the 1200G and I am very picky.  It took me 5 years to find a table I liked.  I found it with the 1200G.  I cannot see how it can get much better for the money.

Hm. Sounds like raul is a bu$ine$$man looking to sell his preamp, but actually prefers digital (I didn't make that up):
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/phono-preamps-with-balls

Here's an excerpt from that thread:

A CD with a top DAC ( 32bits/384 khz.) and good overall design outperforms any phono stage it does not matters the phono stage price/pedigree ( including yours. ) in the bass " management " and this is not because your unit or other units are not good designs because I know your design is a good one but it’s because the differences between a digital and LP recording technics.

The recording microphones pick up all the music in stereo including the bass range but for the LP overall limitations the low bass comes not in stereo as when in the recording but in mono way when in digital comes as what were pick up by those recording session microphones, digital has no limitations about.

That is one of multiple reasons why digital outperforms LP/analog in the bass no matter what.

I repeat, it’s not your quality unit design but the " medium " limitations. No contest by analog in this regards against digital.

-and yet he calls me a liar for it.


As I said on that thread, I've yet to hear a digital system at any price have more bass impact than analog. Raul misses a key ingredient here- its probably not that digital hardware is inherently inferior in this regard. What raul doesn't seem to understand is the industry is the problem- CDs are expected to be played in a car so they are compressed as a result. LPs have no such expectation and so have less compression or none at all. This results in more bass impact.

Btw, my unit is 3190 after 3 up-dates from the 3160 version.

Latest up-date was two months ago and when I was thinking my unit can't be improved any more. I was wrong about.

Things are that like 5-6 years from now I bougth some parts for my unit to test it and see what happens but I did not made the changes on those parts because it's way time consuming to make parts up-grades to a SS four layers boards as in my unit. So I did not nothing and forget about.

Well, looking in all my audio stuff suddenly I seen those parts that I already forgot I had and this time I made the change and fortunatelly was and is for the better. 
I can say that " everything changed "/improved due that today exist no unit/system noise floor level, we can't detect it not even when the system starts switch on: we can listen nothing but dead dead silence as if the system were switch off. I even check at each speaker single driver ( efficiency/sensitivity 95dbs. ) with an stethoscope and no sound at all! ! !

That kind of non-existent system noise floor changes for the better the overall listening experience as ever before. Forgeret about black  blackbackground,  I'm talking of an order of magnitud different: non-existent system  noise floor at all. Astonishing !.

R.

Yes, the unit selector in phono MC position and attenuator wide open.

R.