Seperate phono stage v.s. step up transformer

I add my vote to the posts from 4yanx, Ed, Twl and Hagtech.

No cartridge that plays with a Helikon will have enough output to keep you from needing more gain. Changing cartridges won't help unless you settle for a performance downgrade, which would be crazy on such a nice rig.

See my recent post 'Shelter + BentAudio loading' for details on the BentAudio Mu trannies. John Chapman starts with Stephens & Billington TX103's, finishes them off nicely and adds two great performance features: infinitely variable loading and the fewest possible connections/joints in the signal path. It's a fine, well thought-out product.

The K&K's mentioned by Bombaywalla are well regarded and less costly, but I don't know if they do either of the two things I like about the BentAudio's so elegantly, or at all.

BTW, the specs on the Granite Audio 770 don't say how many dB's of gain the phono and line stages have. You'll need to know before choosing anyone's tranny.

Best to ignore him David, as you once taught me, though I wish he'd chosen some less attractive animal as his nom-de-fume. There are so many unattractive animals available, houseflies, rats, any number of viruses; did he have to choose cats?

Bombaywalla, thanks for clarifying the features of the K&K's. I am certainly not a "skeptic" in any negative sense. I even said they are "well regarded". (BTW, BentAudio's SU trannies are not built with TX102's. The TX102's are used in their passive preamp.)

If, as Soliver informs us, the Granite Audio 770 already has variable cartridge loading then the K&K's become more attractive. Otherwise, those who prefer quick and easy load changing to soldering can choose to pay for the convenience. Clearly a case of YMMV.

I think we all agree that Agaffer won't go sonically wrong with either of these solutions. May he enjoy whichever one he chooses!

Jyprez,

Thanks for the nice word. As I mentioned, I expect to be going away for a week or so in November. If you want to borrow the BentAudio trannies and do an a/b in your system, no problem. Then you can post a real world comparison.

Agaffer, glad to see you made a decision. Enjoy! I'm picturing a 250 lb. tortoise hangin' ten with a nice pair of Sennheisers on its head. That would be some Beach Boy.