I haven't heard what many here would consider "top tier" phonostages but I ran the Whest PS.30 (using a Dynavector 20XM mounted on a VPI Scout) against the EAR 834P, Acoustat PH1 and the ARC PH5 and it was markedly better than all of them. Very three dimensional, quiet, detailed and dynamic. Not sure how it would compete against much pricier models since they were out of my reach. Of course all of this is very subjective and system dependent--not sure a ranking like this is really of much value. You really have to consider the cartridge and the phonostage as a package rather than rate phonostages as a stand alone item.
Phono stages belong to which tier?
I feel the phono stage is the most critical component in an analog system since it is an important part of the source. Which phono stages have you heard and in which tier would they fall in 1st 2nd or 3rd?
From reading the threads here: aesthetix, manley, lamm, fm acoustics, einstein would probably fall in the 1st.
Please include stages that have been listened to extensively and those that have been heard breifly.
From reading the threads here: aesthetix, manley, lamm, fm acoustics, einstein would probably fall in the 1st.
Please include stages that have been listened to extensively and those that have been heard breifly.