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How do you tame a Denon DL-S1?

I recently got a Denon DL-S1. It has a very low output. I have a Minimax phono preamp and a Dodd. I have been rolling tubes and trying various things to see what works best with the Denon. When I use the stock JJ 6922 tubes in my Dodd and run the Denon directly into the 47k input, the detail and texture of the voice is unbelievable. I didn’t know there was that much information in the grooves. The problem is that I have to run the gain of my preamp up so high and the overall tone is not quite as good as with 60’s Amperexs or the Sovtek 6922s. With the other two I lose a lot of the detail and texture. My question is; would a SUT give me more gain and still keep the detail and texture? Would the SUT improve the overall tone? Would a blue Cinemag be a good choice?

I suspect that it might be a similar problem to other high information mc cartridges

Bob
rsimms

Showing 2 responses by dgarretson

dgarretson
2,615 posts
 
I agree with Raul. You may get by with a step-up, but this is unlikely to reveal the cartridge's potential. IME the DL-S1 sounds best loaded under 100R. This reduces gain further, compounding problems for all but a high-gain phono stage. I load it at 80R. A few owners have reported optimal loading at 30-40R.

It's an interesting cartridge-- one of the few MCs with non-permeable coil formers. This design choice may account for its high performance at the cost of reduced output.
dgarretson
2,615 posts
 
Based on positive listening experiences at shows, I suggest Pass Labs XP-15 or XP-25 phono stages. These do 76db gain with granular loading options all the way down to 10R.
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