Optimize your Hi-Fi system sound quality: 3 - Pre-Amp your turntable! 

Glad u spent time explaining value of a used Lehmann Black Box, beter external PSU, and power cord.

I just came across your video right now. Thank you for featuring the Black Cube SE. I will gladly discuss the improvements of the current versions over the vintage versions especially when people are looking for a bargain. Keep on with the good work and kind regards, Norbert Lehmann - Lehmannaudio

Picked up a battery operated pre amp form Space-Tech. Outstanding handmade by a genius in Vancouver. Been using MC cartridges since 1981

For years I used the phono preamp built 8nto my Conrad Johnson PV10, it was tube based and used high end passive components in the RIAA section. I then tried the vinyl to analog converter that was being sold by audio alchemy. It was very quiet but in the end the magic of the Conrad Johnson just wasn't there. I then built the LaPacifica circuit using a kit of parts and PWB I bought online. I used better resistors than the kit came with and I designed my own power supply. I put all in an aluminum case and powered it with an external wall wart that was grossly over rated, the rectification and regulation was done inside the preamp chassis. The result is very quiet and I enjoy the sound this phono preamp affords me. All in the project cost me about $150 that includes all the parts including a pre-preamp (for the MC cartridge I was using) that added 10 db of gain to the LaPacifica circuit, the plain case and the outboard wallwart.

I'm on a fixed income, and don't have the highest quality setup (but at least I don't have a crosley)! Your information is very helpful into improving (as much I can), my meager setup!

Thank you I AM DOING THE 3-Pre-Amp

thank you for having your knowledge

No way! You have exactly the same preamp as I do with the same power supply! Yeah, the Lehmann Audio preamp is a great piece of gear. Very underrated.

Good advice , totally agree !

Beautifully illustrated !! How to connect a condenser microphone to the Black Box & Pre-Amp.

Hi Ana[dia]log. Thank you for your very isightful recommendations on phono preamplification. After I carefully watched your video and looked at your recommendations for phono preamps below the video, I'm seriously thinking of bying the Tisbury Audio Domino. Can you recommend a good amplifier to go with it?

Great info, when you gonna give us a music room tour, I'd love to see your setup?

I use a Cambridge 651p pre amp. Awesomeness.

Thanks, informative video. What’s your thoughts on the Lindemann Limetree phono?

I respect your knowledge and love your videos. With hundreds of phono stages on the market, I feel the Lehmann is too expensive for what it is. I’ve been looking at the Parks Audio line, especially his new puffin dsp phono stage.

Lehmannaudio is also what I got. After buying my Clearaudio Concept MC I ended up with Lehmannaudio Decade.

I have just purchased a Musical fidelity phone amp that has had all the caps replaced with Nichicon caps and I'm pleased with the sound but I wanted a better PSU, because of the price of linear PSUs of quality being so high I have purchased a kit model that has been assembled at a very good price, I need to make a case to house it in now, I do love a project.

The Black Cube was my second external pre-amp and it just made so much difference to vinyl replay. The difference between Black Cube and the SEII is not subtle and I was happy with the BC.

I am focusing on the preamp now. I have a pioneer plx-500 that has an internal preamp. So in order to connect an external preamp, i have to switch to the line mode (not sur if i understood the tip). Great video! Respectfully

hello, I have an old preamplifier, the rts systems 405, tell me with the new technologies that you recommend will be better the quality of the latter against the rts or would it be the same ?? Any opinion about the quality of art phono plus ??

Guido, finally ditched the phono in for my rt85 and bought preamp, i cant explain how it sounds better but it just does

I have been out of using a turntable for many years now, I was going to buy a Audio technica lp -120 But after listening to you Im not so sure now I want a decent sounding turntable So let me see If I got this right 1) I should buy preferably a moving magnet cartridge turntable and then 2) pre Amp 3) To a Amplifier/ receiver 4) to my speakers is that correct or am I missing something, I dont have too much money to spend ,..Can you recommend A good turn table vintage or other that will sound good without breaking me I have about $350 For just the turntable with the set up your Describing and I will buy the rest to complete it, I would rather buy good components piece by piece and build a nice system that later I can upgrade then have something that I will not be Satisfied with.

Congratulations on your 200th broadcast. I always enjoy watching you. I have a question. Yesterday I was watching your topic about phono preamplifiers and you talked about the Black Cube. I saw that you are very enthusiastic about it. My question is: do you happen to know the Pro-ject Tube Box S2? And if you compare it with the Black Cube: which comes out best? I would love to hear your answer. Greetings from the Netherlands and a happy holiday season.

Your videos make me sad , I am one of those people with very good ears and certain vinyl records have amazing sounds that just can't be heard on any other format , but my budjet is very low , so I have to settle for whatever sound I can get , my turntable is an 80s linear techniques , so the cartridge and stylus are easy to match up , but are also inexpensive moving magnet , the preamp is built into the reciever which is an early 90s pioneer , but I also have another thing to consider , I use a CD recorder , and have transfered lots of records to that , and they all seem to work well together , I do wish I had more money to invest , I like your videos though , you have good info , and well presented , I have spent more money on one record than the cost of my whole setup ! Was that OK ? Thank you

Your thoughts about the ifi zen phono?

Hello! I want to upgrade my Schiit phono preamp for my Hana SL moving coil and I am considering Moon 110 Lp or Lehmann Black Cube.May I have your opinion,please_Thank you.

Hey, what about statement demo model is it so good as this one ? Thank you !

Pretty ticked off that the $320 Cambridge Audio Alva Duo preamp I got emits a hum. For the price I didn't think this would happen. Too bad bc it has a headphone jack. I'm going to have to go exchange it and get a separate headphone amp

Great channel, and an interesting accent! Are you Portuguese? 🙂

Hello, i really like your videos,so i become a your fan.I would like to buy MM/MC pre amp ,but i have budget around 300-400$ i think about Cambridge audio Alva Duo.What can you say about this?Thank you in advance and keep going man.

My Optonica SM 4646 intergrated amp has 2 phono pre stages....one has a variable out put...the other has 22 47 & 100 ohm settings I use a Technics SL 1200 MK 5. The synergy of them is mind blowing playing vinyl. I also use Cerwin Vega SE 300 speakers......Rated at 255 rms 6 ohm....And 98db sensitivity

Power cords make a difference? Please do a blind test video to show us, that'd be a great help to the community.

Did you try schiit preamplifier. Those are regarded very highly here in the US

Nice video, thanks for explaining things. But I can't bring my self to spend 1000$ on that, so I'm going to try the behringer ufo 202 to see if I can use my 200s Yamaha amp that doesn't have a phono. My Technics amp just won't play surround properly.

Hi, I have an Audio Technica AT LP3 with built-in preamp. Do you recommend update external preamp, the sound will improve ? Thanks

I have an NAD 3130, best phono stage preamp ever

i have a decent Yamaha amp from the 90s? with a built in phono input and my Mk2 12010 sounds pretty good. would adding a dedicated pre-amp be a smart upgrade or do you think i should look at other things like a better cartridge? (i'm using an AT95e)

DON'T CHEAP OUT ON THE PHONO STAGE!! The differences are HUGE!!!

holy shit look at your collection

The Schiit Mani works with any cartridge !!

I'm planning on buying a Technics SL 1200G turntable and a SU-G700 amplifier. Do I need a pre-amplifier for that? Thanks for your advice.

My turntable has a p mount cart, not much to pick from,certainly no ortifon blues in p mount

I know this is an older video but I prefer the term phono stage, less confusing. Otherwise if I have to describe my current system I would say I have an MC cartridge running into a preamp running into another preamp running into a power amp. Very confusing!

Thank you. This can sure be a confusing topic. Please help me to understand. Is the "Black Cube" a standalone preamp? In other words, can I go from this Black Cube phono preamp directly into a power amp or do I still need to go from the Black Cube into another standard line-level preamp and then into a poweramp? I'm referring to separate components here. Thank you.

Would be great if you could explain the differences between gain and impedance, some preamps have these options... explain it to me as if I am 10 years old. My understanding so far about impedance is some MC cartridges have a Low impedance so the impedance on the preamp is usually set to 100 ohms. Increasing the impedance on the preamp to lets say 500 ohms would give a higher pass through of the signal resulting in more highs?

I have a denon avr-2500h that has a dedicated phono input with a ground, do i still need to get a external pre amp, to me my technics sl-q30 sounds really good hooked up this way.

Might seem like an obvious question, but I just want to be sure. If I get a preamp, I should not connect it to the phone input on my receiver, because that would be preamping it twice?

Hi! I'm using a an AT-LP120X together with a Nikko TRM-750 amplifier which has two Phono inputs and I think I'm getting a great sound out, do you think I still need a preamp? And if I do, will I have to use the phono inputs on my Nikko or do I use Aux/Tuner? Thanks so much!

A phono preamp must do three things: first, it has to match the impedance of the cartridge with the input impedance of the preamp; second, it must implement correctly RIAA reproduction curve and third, it must bring the signal to a line level. All that while adding no coloration to the sound and no distortion, of any kind. This is the ideal and there is no real preamp that can do this perfectly, but there are some that came close. The idea is that, having a minimum of skill for building electronic devices, anyone can use a schematic (such is the one provided for free by Elliott Sound Products, for instance) and build an preamplifier as close to perfectly sounding as it can be, with a cost of only a few bucks. I think I spent about $50 on my preamplifier I have built, using off the shelf components (good quality ones but nothing overrated). And it sounds extraordinarily good, especially in comparison with the same recording on different format (CD, or compact cassette), as far as I can tell. Any added cost must be the good old branding hype and the snobbery of owning something worth hundreds or thousands of dollars and which really MUST sound better since the device costed so much, isn't it? There are differences between preamps but one included in the amplifier (or receiver) is not automatically bad; it can conform thoroughly to the standard and might be as good as any; I think, as most things in the thin air of highest audiophile strata, all is down to personal preference. And you can have much more impact on the quality of the sound you get from vinyl by varying things like the acoustic treatment of the room you are listening in, having a good set of speakers, a capable audio amplifier (I didn't said ”good” since an ideal amplifier should NOT color the sound in any way or shape) and finally a good turntable and cartridge. And I believe this is the descending order of importance for a good listening experience. Obviously, that's my opinion, I'm not saying that I possess the final truth. Just something to be commented upon, for sure. :)

Weak is the wrong term as what comes out of tbe cartridge first must eqed with riaa eq than Amplified. I feel phono stage is a better term because we have phono stage than preamp & volume to the power amp to speakers. Just my 2 cents Thanks for the video's

Hello My questions is , I have a Project Phono Tube Box DS preamp . My speakers are Klipsch RF7 . I don't believe I get rumble but have read using the subsonic filter helps tighten the bass. Should I use it or not ? The rest of my system is technics sl1200g and yamaha as 1200. Thank you for your time . I will be installing a denon dl103r this weekend currently using denon dl110.

Thanks ! What do you think of this product I am about to buy for my Clearaudio concept turntable ? : Mobile Fidelity StudioPhono And when I will have the money I will buy this : Aurorasound Vida Prima...

Can I use this pre Amplifier with my Pioneer Elite VSX47TX receiver?

Per un suono caldo e potente con bassi in evidenza ed effetto punch, meglio black cube se o goldnote ph10?

Can anyone recommend a good preamp with USB out? Or if the ART USB Phono Plus Turntable Preamp is any good? I have an AT-LP120 turntable which I plan on removing the internal preamp on it and replacing the cartridge with the At440mlb. I only want to be able to rip my vinyl collection in lossless (flac) audio files in the best quality possible, any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated.

do u need preamp if u have a mixer ? most likely u dont but maybe I'm wrong

I would like to upgrade to a pre-amp. My question is what function do I need to use for the pre-amp? I'm using a late 90s Pioneer receiver. Since I can't use phono, I have VCR/Tape1...Monitor Tape2...DVD TV... LD/ Sat... CD. Suggestions?

OK... it costs like 5x more than my turntable is worth these days :) And where do I plug this thing in? In to the "regular" pre amp phono-in?

Should I use the preamp that's built into my lp120 and use just a aux in my receiver or bypass and use the phono? I do want to eventually take out the preamp, I was going to do that and use the phono on my receiver. Until I saw this video lol

100-200 pounds? I just looked up your Black Cube. It’s selling for $629.00 in the States. Many people here are purchasing the Schiit Mani for $129.00 with great analog results. Cheers

I have an audio technica at lp120, my question is, is it worth adding (129 dollars) Pro-Ject Audio Phono Box DC? or there will not be much difference with the internal preamp of my turntable, thanks

Very useful learning ! Any chance to avoid the background music please ? It makes it harder to focus on your explanations. Thanks

Hello, i finaly got my fist ext pre amp from cambridge audio. I am curently testing it. I am wondering about the low frequencies. Is it normal that they feel less present than with my internal preamp? Do i have to keep it working so the bass will emerge?

I am not a Vinyl Guy, I am a FLAC lover. But there is one thing I completelly dont understand about turntables. All cartridges are by design balanced, then why even audiophile turntables and phono preamps are single ended on output?. The signal is quite low so the balanced version would much more immune for distortion and give much better SNR. I dont get it. The first thing I would do if I buy turntable, I would modify it to have TRS or XLR balaned output. Just directly from the cartridge. Oh, but there are no balanced preamps. I whink I wouldnt even use a dedicated preamp. I would use microphone preamp in the audio interface (they are by design balanced and ~130dB SNR) and implement RIAA in digital domain. I know running ADC and DAC looks wired. But I would do it anyway because of room correction. The second approach would be to use two phonopreamps in balanced mode. iwonder if anyone used thsi approach. The most important benefit from this approach is that I listen to the vinyl only once,if I rip it to a FLAC, then the next time I can use the FLAC instead of the original Vinyl. So it will last longer in perfect condition.

Hello i have a lehman audio préampli but i have a little buzz in the background and when il m touching the arm sometimes it makes noise crack...And where do you put the earth of the turntable and the earth of the préamplificateur?

It was a night and day difference going from the pre-amp build into my Yamaha receiver to a Phono Box S. I was skeptical, but now I tell everyone they need a separate preamp. There are some vintage receivers or amps with good built in phono preamps but they are few and far between, and are usually models that hold their value.

Bad phono amps in integrated amplifiers/receivers ? How can that be when NJM2043 (obsolete), NJM2068, NJM4558, µPC4570, NJM4580, AN6558 Op Amp ICs and 3300µF electrolytic capcitors (NO low ESR, in negative feedback) are installed ?🤣

needing a preamp, lol. That's why my records had barely no sound when I was 9-10 years old, my cheap turntable had no preamp. hahah I know better now

Lehmannaudio Black Cube use OPA2227 on first stage and second stage are OPA2134 Op-Amps. Lehmannaudio Black Cube cost £635 with PWX power supply. This preamp is not bad but this preamp is too expensive for normal user. Also, optimise Hi-Fi system are not to buy better preamplifier (on paper), it is to adapt preamplifer input with phono cartridge what you use. This is only possible with correct imput loading (RC filter) and measurements. Sound on ears may be good but this not mean that this sound is correct. Try to change this OPA2227 with OPA1642 and see what happen. Black Box use OPA2227 only because that this Op-Amp have low noise and good sound precision and this is what is need in preamp first stage but how many OPA2134 have louder noise than OP2227? Only 3dB and this noise floor is under -130dB.

do you guys ship to the uk

Technically you are discussing phono preamps which are there to impedance-match the cartridge to the system and, to equalise the signal from how it is stored on the record ( high frequencies are stored at an enhanced level and, bass frequencies are stored at a reduced level compared with the master tape). The equalisation, normally the so-called RIAA curve allows the signal to be more compact and give long playing times per side. It also reduces high frequency mechanical noise because the conversion to a flat frequency response lowers the treble gain. The phono preamp restores the flat frequency response by applying inverse equalisation. Cartridge signal levels are in the millivolt range so, signal gain is added by amplifying the signal to line level. The best systems allow accurate adjustment and matching of impedance, capacitance and gain whilst not introducing noise or, distortion. Some high-end turntables have their own built in phono preamplifiers that are incredibly good. Some preamplifiers have their own built in phono equalisers that are incredibly good. The best phono preamplifiers will have excellent dynamics, microdynamics, resolution and will be utterly compelling when presented with good signals from good turntables. The Lehmann black Cube is a compelling and charismatic performer especially with its upgraded power supply. Phono preamps therefore, are technically equalising interfaces or pre, preamplifiers since you use them to correctly connect a turntable to a preamplifier.

I have a critique for ya. Please don't have the intro music so much louder than the rest of the video, especially when your mic level is as low as it is before the intro. The intro music suddenly blasting after I turned up the volume to hear you is not good. Normalize the levels across the entire video. There are many video podcasters on RU-vid who fail to do this.

get a rolls bellari

Great review, buddy! Couple mV signal definitely needs dedicated pre-amp-eq, which would have significantly add to cost of all-in-one turntable. Another point is a separate case and even power supply, to minimize interference with weak signal from mm/mc head. I’m about to buy such device, and now inclined to Schiit Mani, basically due to affordable cost (129$) and very positive reviews. Ian from His famous HiVinyls channel rated as a top phono preamp, even better than Black Cube SEII (1100$). If you are interested in making your own comparison of your Black Cube against Schiit Mani,it would be cool to watch. Especially, if you sample sound via mic and compare both signals at least visually, to see which one is more detailed and wider in dynamic range. This link to Ian’s review: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-TaARB28ZHkw.html

I don't think pre amps are good at the purchase level being recommended. My perspective in building a hifi system spend most of your budget on the speakers, the the next largest proportion on the amp then the turntable. At moderate( €600 to €25000) costs an integrated amp is going to give you more bang for your buck. The reason I say that is a well designed integrated amp is going to have a shorter signal path with less interference than a cheap amp combined with a cheap Pre-amp. It will produce a better sound than a budget amp with a budget pre-amp. ( The pre-amps recommended in this video are budget). You only start to see massive change in sound performance with high end pre-amps and amps. So you understand comment in context I am running a modified/ upgraded Thorens TD160 into a Magnat RV3 integrated( and hybrid) amp. In the price range I was working in a separate amp and pre-amp would not out perform the RV3, Add a €1000.00 budget on top of that and then you start to hear a significant difference that would recommend for a separate pre-amp and amp. Basically what I think is best, at the budget prices being recommended, I would suggest stick with an integrated amp and put the $100-$200 into a better cartridge, or a slightly more expensive integrated amp.

Go to triode dick and build youre own pre phono amp!!! all tube its a phonodude and there is a us discription. the best thing happend to my system. also build the kt88 bill with high qaulity parts! supurb for analog die hards!!!

The 12 longest minuets of my life.

QuatschAudio

we are not 3 yrs. old stop talking down your nose at us.

I have a turntable Technica LP 120 with pré AMP and a Yamaha Receiver. Would you recommend to install between the turntable and Receiver a external Pre- Amplifier?