Stand out phono stages

hi Soundlistening,

was wondering if you could elaborate on yr phono stage shootout?! what cartridge did you use, & in what ways was Kondo M7 Phono superior over the others? did the M7 contain stock tubes?

i'm considering getting a 2nd phono stage. 2 of the units you've mentioned are on my shortlist. appreciate any insight. thks in advance.

hi Soundlistening,

thk you for yr detailed reply. i currently use a Lyra Connoisseur 4-2P SE. fantastic phono stage but only has 1 input, & therefore rather troublesome to switch cables every time i switch tonearms.

it's interesting that you mentioned "pressing eras". i'm trying a little experiment whereby a diff cartridge/tonearm is set up & optimized for a diff pressing era. it would seem logical (perhaps borderline obsessive?) to extend this reasoning thru to the phono stage, & hence my interest in a 2nd phono stage.

this 2nd phono stage will primarily be used with my "late mono" (SME 3012/R + Ortofon Mono SPU CG25 DI mk.2) & "early stereo" (F.Research FR-66s + FR-7f) setups, & any experience/feedback you might hv with either of these combinations paired with Kondo M7 Phono, Lamm LP2, &/or Zanden 1200 would be of great interest to me.

btw, i do own a Kondo Ongaku & a wide range of NOS tubes (incl. GE 5 star w/triple mica, & Tungsol 5687 input tubes you've mentioned). all tubes sound different, but i generally agree Kondo's stock input tubes are pretty good (NOS rectifier & output tubes can however bring significant improvements across the board - at least in the context of Ongaku & Gakuon). but i think this is digressing fm the phono stage discussion...

Larryi: yr description of the Lyra phonostage is spot on.

Thuchan: i'll most likely add at least 1 more phonostage, but the Uniswitch you've mentioned does sound very interesting. would you happen to hv a link?