Hifirabbit. It is great to hear from another owner of the NVO SPA II since there aren't many of them out there. It is perhaps the best kept secret and the best buy in phono stages at the moment.
I bought my NVO SPA-II Phono Preamplifier based on Jeff Day’s review in Positive Feedback On Line, http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue57/nvo.htm
without hearing it, I couldn’t find one nearby to go and listen to. I had read Jeff’s review of the Tannoy Westminster Royal SE, and owning a Tannoy Canterbury SE myself, it gave me a sense of his musical taste.
Right out of the box, the NVO SPA II sounded quite better than my Parasound Halo JC3 phono preamp, it was quieter (much to my surprise given that solid state units are generally quieter than tubed units), it had better rhythm and pace, the bass was a little more fleshed out and I could hear the bass lines much better than I had ever heard in my system. The only original downside was that it was a little bit on the dark side. As it broke in, it got a lot better. There is now no hint of darkness, it is very transparent when it needs to be. It has the grin factor, vocals are so realistic they will bring a grin to your face, all of a sudden you get the realization that this is how real music is supposed to sound like. It has the shock and awe factor, for music with dynamics, its limitless dynamics will shock and awe you. I have had it for about 3 months now and it has gotten better each week.
It is by far the best phono stage I have ever had and I have had my share of very expensive phono stages.
I bought my NVO SPA-II Phono Preamplifier based on Jeff Day’s review in Positive Feedback On Line, http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue57/nvo.htm
without hearing it, I couldn’t find one nearby to go and listen to. I had read Jeff’s review of the Tannoy Westminster Royal SE, and owning a Tannoy Canterbury SE myself, it gave me a sense of his musical taste.
Right out of the box, the NVO SPA II sounded quite better than my Parasound Halo JC3 phono preamp, it was quieter (much to my surprise given that solid state units are generally quieter than tubed units), it had better rhythm and pace, the bass was a little more fleshed out and I could hear the bass lines much better than I had ever heard in my system. The only original downside was that it was a little bit on the dark side. As it broke in, it got a lot better. There is now no hint of darkness, it is very transparent when it needs to be. It has the grin factor, vocals are so realistic they will bring a grin to your face, all of a sudden you get the realization that this is how real music is supposed to sound like. It has the shock and awe factor, for music with dynamics, its limitless dynamics will shock and awe you. I have had it for about 3 months now and it has gotten better each week.
It is by far the best phono stage I have ever had and I have had my share of very expensive phono stages.