Ask an Audio geek

[vorlon13]

Lirpa Labs makes some really esoteric stuff too.

[ignoramus]

That chick's wearing some serious headphones!

[Kosh]

If I won the lottery, I'd still buy Krell.
Stupid, I know, but what the hell.

I'm kind of with you there.  I would probably splurge on a pair of McIntosh MC2301's

You might not get audibly better sound quality, but you will get fabulous build quality and aesthetics that boarder on art.

[Alex K]

If I want pretty and have money to burn, Burmester it is /patriotism

[Kosh]

Without a phono preamp, the frequency response curve coming out of the speakers is going to be all wrong. Are you talking about a preamp in addition to a phono input on a receiver (which includes RIAA equalization)?

Of course you need one out of principle. He's probably talking about the various phono preamps with high four figure price tags.

Correct.  Obviously every turntable needs a phono specific preamp to deal with the RIAA equalization.  Anyone who has plugged a turntable into a regular AUX connector knows how terribly wrong it sounds    

I need to clarify the statement a bit.  All phono preamps are not created equally.  If your running a basic MM (moving magnet) catridge, you don't need to spend more than a a few hundred dollars to cap out what a phono preamp is supposed to do.  Even then your probably paying for build quality and aesthetics over any real sound quality improvement.  If your running an MC (moving coil) cartridge you might need to spend a bit more.  Moving coil cartridges have a lower output, and their tonal quality can be changed from capacitance and resistance loading.   Having a phono preamp that can modify capacitance and resistance can be helpful in some situations.   
 
The low end offerings ($75 - $160) from Rega, Pro-Ject, Music hall, or Cambridge Audio will do great for people with MM carts.   A preamp that can handle an MC cart starts at about $260.  Some preamps in the $400 range also have tubes, but this is more marketing than anything.  They use solid state components to do the amplification and RIAA equalization, and then stick the tubes in the output circuit as a gimmick.    

The most expensive phono preamp I would consider is the Jolida JD9 MKII at $700.  My current cartridge worth $250 so I stick with my Pro-Ject Phono Box SE.

---

Here is a picture of my turntable.  This is a Clearaudio concept that is made in Germany that usually sells for about $1600 with their standard MM cartridge.  I paid $1100 for mine.  It was B-Stock direct from the factory.  It supposedly had some visible blemish, but I could never find it.  To my eyes it was perfect.  The tonearm is amazing.  It's magnetically suspended vs pivot bearings.

---

  

[Alex K]

I have a Denon 103 on my Thorens, the arm was some project forgot the name thingy, goes directly to the phono in of the NAD Preamp. Had a friend's Pro Ject phono box before I got the preamp.

[Kosh]

I have a Denon 103 on my Thorens, the arm was some project forgot the name thingy, goes directly to the phono in of the NAD Preamp. Had a friend's Pro Ject phono box before I got the preamp.

That is a great cartridge.  Which Thorens do you have?

[FatAndFaithless]

Is there really a substantial difference in sound quality between a pair of $50 headphones and say, a pair of $300 Beats?

[Kosh]

I've seen an exorbitantly over priced replacement AC outlet advertised as being the ultimate AC plug in to plug your equipment into.  If it was THAT important, why wouldn't it also be necessary to replace the wire from your outlet to the electrical panel, from there to the transformer on the pole in front of your house, replace the transformer with an audiophile one, replace the overhead to the substation, replace the transformers there, replace the high tension power lines back to the generating station, replace the windings on the generators, and then make sure they are using Evian spring water to make the steam to spin the turbine ??


You can hear the difference !!!!

 

That kind of shit drive me batty.  I've seen audioquest cat6 network cables for $600...  WTF..  Make your streaming services sound their best! 
 
IMO a lot of speaker cables fall into this realm.  I've been inside enough high end speakers to know what kind of wire they use to connect the drivers to the crossover.  I'll tell you this, it isn't some "Perfect Surface Copper (PSC+), unique BiWire and solid-core conductor contruction" hogwash. 

Give me a simple set of Blue jeans cables anytime.

[Alex K]

Is there really a substantial difference in sound quality between a pair of $50 headphones and say, a pair of $300 Beats?

Yes, the 300$ beats are possibly going to be significantly worse

Seriously though, they are overpriced PR driven nonsense in my opinion. Don't buy them.
I currently listen with 300$+ Headphones, the classic Sennheiser HD 600, and they are very much
better than a good pair of 50$ headphones. They are a bit too tame and "dark"-sounding for some people, but there are others in a similar quality range
at a comparable price tag, some with a more in-your-face sound. Say, AKG or Beyerdynamic, to name some local brands. Grado if you want to go American...