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Eddie Current Transcription Phono Preamp?

post #1 of 56
3/16/10 at 10:19pm
Thread Starter 
Anybody here running this new phono preamp yet? According to the Eddie Current web site, the first run is shipping. I have a Graham Slee Reflex/Elevator combo (solid state) which sounds very, very good, but I am so pleased with my Zana Deux SE that I am tempted to try another Eddie Current product and this phono preamp just might be it! Please post any experience you've got with this unit here. Thanks...
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post #2 of 56
3/18/10 at 1:47pm
Thread Starter 
No replies... Oh, well. I went ahead and ordered one anyway!
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post #3 of 56
3/19/10 at 4:40am
I'm a big analog fan and I haven't heard a phono stage for even close to the price that Craig's asking for the TA that sounds as good.
Something that might be a little closer to home for you, a friend of mine has the Graham Slee Revelation/Elevator and also a Herron phono stage and IMHO, the Herron is much better than the Slee. From the time I've spent with the TA, it's on a par or perhaps better then the Herron (I'd really have to spend more time with both to say for sure).
It's extremely quiet and has a nice liquid character that I doubt will ever come from a solid state design.
I have to admit that I'm a big tube fan so YMMV.
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post #4 of 56
3/19/10 at 10:12am
Thread Starter 
I can't really fault the Slee combination. It sounds great (very clean, dynamic, balanced frequency response, etc.). It's just that it makes records sound somewhat 'CD-like'. I don't mind a little coloration to sweeten up the sound a bit. Maybe I'm old-school, but I am a tube lover and I want my records to sound distinctly different and more involving than my digital source. I have experience with only one Eddie Current product, and that's my Zana Deux SE (serial #001). I like it so much, I ordered the phono preamp just trusting that Craig has designed and built a superb product. I am confident that I'll be satisfied, but I will certainly compare it (when it arrives, shipping today) to the Slee units I currently have.
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post #5 of 56
3/19/10 at 11:04am
I've got an Art Audio Vinyl Reference ($5k tubed phonostage) that I'm considering selling to get Craig's unit. I heard it at CanJam last year and thought it was amazing. I just remember it being very quiet with drive. I remember Craig specifically saying he designed it to sound the way he remembered records sounding.
The AA Vinyl Reference is sorta the romantic/old school tube sound.
I'm not sure how much, if at all, he changed the design between CanJam and the production model.
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post #6 of 56
3/21/10 at 2:00am
Arg! Wish I knew about this stage sooner. From the design details is looks really, really nice. For the money and what you seem to get with the Transcriptor, it makes a good portion of the phono stage market look like a flat-out ripoff. I might still pick one up to give a try at some point. My Kontrapunkt "c" is listed by Ortofon as optimally loaded at 100 ohms, but 150 should be close enough for a good go. Would likely be up against a PS Audio GCPH and Rogue's new Ares tube/SS hybrid stage in my system.
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post #7 of 56
3/21/10 at 4:30am
The version I listened to at CanJam '09 was superb. If I recall, it was used with a DL103 and fed through a Zana into a HD-600. I own a Zana, use the DL103 and owned the HD-600 for awhile (sold to fund the HD-800), so I think I got a pretty accurate bead on the Transcriptor.

I've been sorely tempted to order one, but am in a few dilemmas. For one, I don't know if I could bring myself to part with the Fi Yph - it sounds great and I love Fi gear almost as much as Eddie Current. Next, I have the parts for a DIY phono stage I want. Complicating things are finances... they're good. But I just got ahead of the curve into a good place and am loathe to give into temptation. Maybe in a year or two. We'll see. This is a great piece of gear.
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post #8 of 56
3/21/10 at 11:14am
Wow...I'm really tempted to get one of these. I like my Audio Electronics DJH a lot, but it's MM only, and I'm not 100% happy with the Denon step-up transformer I'm using for my Benz LPS. 150 ohms is just a touch low for the Benz, though - it really likes 300 better. Maybe I'll ask Craig if it's possible to order with custom loadings
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post #9 of 56
3/21/10 at 12:01pm
I've got one on order

if it is one thing Craig knows it's analog the man's been tweaking this design for over two years. I can't wait to hear the results.
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post #10 of 56
3/21/10 at 5:02pm
Thread Starter 
Mine should arrive on Thursday according to FedEx tracking...
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post #11 of 56
3/22/10 at 1:18am
I heard it at the last NorCal meet and was very impressed. If I remember right it was a 3
stage, split RIAA design. 2 12ax7 stages followed by a 6sn7 output. External power supply. Cinemag step-up transformers for mc. Very detailed, very dynamic, and very quiet. I spent a year in the 90's building exotic phono stages, and ultimately what I returned to was very similar to this. Well done and definitely worth a serious look.
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post #12 of 56
3/23/10 at 9:56pm
Eddie you fiend. Next thing you know ... you've got a Tri-Planar Tonearm and you're hunting down a copy of Van Halen II in Oklahoma.



Bravo !!! Can't wait to hear this.
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post #13 of 56
3/24/10 at 4:21pm
Hope to have one by next week
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post #14 of 56
3/24/10 at 4:29pm
I will look forward to your comments
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post #15 of 56
3/26/10 at 1:03am
Thread Starter 

It's here...

My Transcription Amplifier (TA) arrived today. My first album through it was Mobile Fidelity's remastered Rush - Permanent Waves. It sounds spectacular! There's TONS of gain on tap, and background noise is virtually nonexistant. How Craig managed that with tubes is a mystery to me. The fit and finish are superb inside and out. I popped the hood and the circuitry is tidy with very high quality components - extraordinary build quality throughout. I'd post an internal pic, but I haven't sought Craig's approval to do so. Trust me, the insides are very nice. Here are some pics of the outside, and one of the TA and hefty power supply in my component rack (with my Zana Deux SE and SOTA Nova turntable somewhat visible)...





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