Shindo Masseto w Koetsu .3mv output

Thanks for answering the bonus question! Appreciated. May I ask what cartridge you used and its output in mv?

Stu

Thanks for the great feedback guys. Good to hear a .3mv cartridge sounded great on the Masseto.

Lalitk, I seem to read repeated opinions that the masetto is superior to the old monbrison, and potentially not as good as the new monbrison. Not sure if you agree. Also these opinions may be colored by people's personal preferences as usual. Not always sure what "better" means to them.

Thanks again, everyone! I will start looking for a used Masseto. There is one in Canada that is a possibility.

I have played with outboard sets with a previous setup and the Hashimoto HM-7 based sut sounded amazing. The only thing I did not like about it is that it tended to make images very large, which for me makes the whole presentation less realistic. I know some people love big upfront images but I don't. Other than that the HM7 was clearly superior to my mc stage ... Can't even remember which photo it was.

My current preamp is a custom built David Berning all tube unit. It was originally built for Chris at Artisan Fidelity and I got hold of it a few years ago. It sounds absolutely fantastic and I'm probably an idiot for even thinking of replacing it. But I love shindo and a few years ago owned a Montrachet amplifier, which was one of the most musically compelling pieces of equipment I've ever owned. I would probably still have it except that it did not play well with my quads. The impedance was just no good for the Montrachet, and may have even damaged it if I had kept playing it! Of course I've moved on from those speakers since. So shindo has always had a great place in my heart and I know their preamps are supposed to be just wonderful. So my plan is to try one and if it does not beat the Berning, I will re-sell it. This is also one reason I need to buy used.

Yea I love my v4 amps. I run them with KT-150 tubes, even though they are the early versions, not the KT-150-optimized ones. Formerly an el-34 fan, I have been converted to the KT-150. It mates a great midrange with bigger dynamics and a bit more frequency range. And not crazy nos tube prices. I save my nos crazy for input tubes ;)

Hi guys. Returning to this thread because I actually bought a Masseto! I have had it up and running for a few days now. It sounds beautiful and seems to have adequate gain for my koetsu rwsp, just as you all predicted.

An unexpected oddity emerged though. I have a audio note 2.1 kits DAC with some modifications. I don't believe it's known to have a very high output (2v a friend of mine tells me). Yet with the volume control at 9:00 on the Shindo the volume is very loud. Comparable volume for the phono is more like 10:30 or 11:00. I just can't understand it. 

Any thoughts? I believe I read somewhere that the mosseto has only 16DB gain line stage.

Thanks for the responses. I was only surprised because with my Berning preamp I have to dial the digital higher than the phono. But I realized after reading your comments that the Berning mc transformers  were adjusted to high gain. That explains it 

No real downside to listening to digital at 8:30 or 9 o'clock on the volume control, right? It doesn't signal possible overload of the linestage does it? I have heard volume pots are less accurate about channel balance in their lower range but I am not concerned about that.