Step Up Transformers….Are they Worth the Trouble?

Based on your experience, I should rule out a transimpedance phono since both of my carts are spec’d over 2Ω. Right?

In my experience, no need to limit this way. What I found to be a reasonable determinant of matching was the ratio of output level divided by ohms. The transimpedance amp, in theory, should provide an amplification factor inversely proportional to the cartridge’s DC ohms rating. So higher ohms cartridges are OK so long as their "starting output" level is proportionally higher to compensate. Of course for simplicity, we’re ignoring losses and the stage’s (obviously) nonzero input impedance.

So from that perspective, 200 uV (micro volts) output at 2 ohms should be roughly equivalent to 500 uV at 5 ohms...etc. Koetsu with 300 uV at 5 ohms was an excellent match, by the way. In the end, I still preferred a good SUT.

Cartridges with non-magnetic armatures - like Benz’s Ruby / Gullwing / LPS, and maybe weird designs with with air coils - will (relatively) struggle to achieve the appropriate destination output (~ 5mV to MM level) with transimpedance amplification.

@lalitk I can not speak to every cartridge out there. All I can say is that I have not had good luck with cartridges in the 3 to 10 ohm range. They either do not have enough output or the signal to noise ratio is not so good. Under 2 ohms with outputs down to 0.2 mv I have no problems recommending transimpedance operation. That limits the number of cartridges that for certain will be satisfactory and they tend to be expensive ones at that. If you had to choose one to the other I would stick to Voltage mode. People interested in the Lino C 3.0, which is a Stereophile A+ phono stage right up there with the CH Precision, should get it with the optional Voltage mode input and I would also add the MM input. You will never need another phono stage. 

Try the Hagerman Piccolo Zero transimpedance step-up. Excellent sonics for $250.

Dar @maxson  : Good that you are hapy with the Piccolo current design.

As @lewm  posted exist several phono stages designed that way and I already posted that that kind of design is an old phono stage kind of design from the 80's when I owned one. In those time never had success.

In the last ( more or less ) 10 years that old kind of phono stage design is the fashion, mainly for each one of us knowledge levels in that specific regards ( including mijos. ).

Here what and Agoner posted:

"  I was recently reading a Unami test report and the reviewer used the unami with a CH Precision P1 using both the voltage and current imputs. He indicated the unami sound better with the voltage input vs current. He stated from experience low internal resistance alone less than 10 ohms doesn't guaranty good sound with a current input phono stange and listed a few very expensive cartridges with resistances in the 2ohm range that sound better with voltage input phonos. "

Btw, he owns the Umami along the Lino C and he feels no " confortable " with that phono stage.

Other that the cartridge is a voltage item and looks for a voltage phono stage design and that almost 100% of cartridges were and are voiced by its designers/manufacturers with voltage phono stage designs we need to know what marketing mades/makes inthis specific regards.

Some top phono stage designs as CH gives us both alternatives  voltage/current owner choice and doing that they take advantage with a higher price tag but not because the current design be the main characteristic of its units where the main characteristic is voltage choice and current choice is only a " side line ".

Now is way easy to design and manufacture a phono stage current design but a truly good phono stage voltage design require not only higher knowledge levels from the designer but higher skills too . With a current design we always are at random of the kind of sound we will listen, is full of limitatios and with the voltage designs we can use 100% ( active high gain units ) of vintage and today cartridges at any price tag levels.

As an audiophile and audio item buyer each one of us is absolutely free to makes his choices because is him who must live with those choices. 

The Audio Life is a day by day learning open book, the issue is if we can learn or willing to do it from that open book.

The pleasure to listen MUSIC as nearer to the recording in our systems will be as high or low as all our choosed trade-offs quality levels to build that audio system.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,

R.