Post your stereo system!

mrussel1 · March 2018

I believe that is the best PJ pressing.

mrussel1 · May 2018

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5021252/uploads/editor/92/ik574yu43kag.jpg

Preamp shootout! Emotiva xps1 ($179) vs Cambridge duo ($299). Both are mc/mm. The Cambridge also has a headphone amp, balance and volume switch. I'm unhappy with the voltage on my Yamaha pre, so I thought this might be interesting.

mrussel1 · May 2018

back of the duo... Notice the power line. I'm hopeful this will be amply powered.

reesdog · May 2018

mrussel1 said:

Preamp shootout! Emotiva xps1 ($179) vs Cambridge duo ($299). Both are mc/mm. The Cambridge also has a headphone amp, balance and volume switch. I'm unhappy with the voltage on my Yamaha pre, so I thought this might be interesting.

So your amplifier doesn’t have a phono stage or you’re just trying these preamps over another preamp?

mrussel1 · May 2018

reesdog said:

mrussel1 said:

Preamp shootout! Emotiva xps1 ($179) vs Cambridge duo ($299). Both are mc/mm. The Cambridge also has a headphone amp, balance and volume switch. I'm unhappy with the voltage on my Yamaha pre, so I thought this might be interesting.

So your amplifier doesn’t have a phono stage or you’re just trying these preamps over another preamp?

It does have one, but it is inferior to a separate. It's on a Yamaha a Aventage Rx1030. I was using a Cambridge Azur for the last few years but it has developed a left channel fuzz, hence these purchases.

reesdog · May 2018

mrussel1 said:

reesdog said:

mrussel1 said:

Preamp shootout! Emotiva xps1 ($179) vs Cambridge duo ($299). Both are mc/mm. The Cambridge also has a headphone amp, balance and volume switch. I'm unhappy with the voltage on my Yamaha pre, so I thought this might be interesting.

So your amplifier doesn’t have a phono stage or you’re just trying these preamps over another preamp?

It does have one, but it is inferior to a separate. It's on a Yamaha a Aventage Rx1030. I was using a Cambridge Azur for the last few years but it has developed a left channel fuzz, hence these purchases.

Nice, so the pre-amps have sorted the fuzz, its not the speaker then?

mrussel1 · May 2018

reesdog said:

mrussel1 said:

reesdog said:

mrussel1 said:

Preamp shootout! Emotiva xps1 ($179) vs Cambridge duo ($299). Both are mc/mm. The Cambridge also has a headphone amp, balance and volume switch. I'm unhappy with the voltage on my Yamaha pre, so I thought this might be interesting.

So your amplifier doesn’t have a phono stage or you’re just trying these preamps over another preamp?

It does have one, but it is inferior to a separate. It's on a Yamaha a Aventage Rx1030. I was using a Cambridge Azur for the last few years but it has developed a left channel fuzz, hence these purchases.

Nice, so the pre-amps have sorted the fuzz, its not the speaker then?

No definitely not. Speakers are clean. I have been doing most of my listening with my Sennheiser HD 600 headphones, so you hear everything with those. I pulled and switched everything including the cables to isolate the issue and it was the azur. I was worried it was the pro-ject, but thankfully that's clean. Also know it's not the headphones since the flac listening is crystal clear as always.

Interestingly, the new Cambridge has a hum. That's not encouraging. Started after about a half hour of listening. I'm pretty frustrated with that. It was sounding great, lively, smooth, up to that point. The headphone amp didn't make a difference compared to the headphone amp in the Yamaha, so this is going back and I might try the Cambridge "solo" to see if that sorts out the hum. I think I'm being too tough on the Yamaha headphone amp. After trying a few different discrete ones, I'm sure pretty sure it has enough volts. The issue is that the Senn's require a ton of power.

I've been listening to the Emotiva for a week. This phono stage is dead quiet, very fast, and super, super clear. It's almost too clear, to the point of being overly-analytical if that makes sense. It's not quite as musical as I would like. Also, the connections are not great, which is surprising. The ground isn't made well for a typical Y type ground and the RCA's seem a little looser than I would like. The moving coil side allows resistance adjustment which is a cool feature, if you have an MC (which I don't).

I"m concerned about the Cambridge quality now, and I have no such concerns about the Emo. But I like the sound of the Cambridge a little better. It doesn't reveal the flaws of the vinyl as obviously. The Emo picks up everything on the vinyl.

lolobugg · May 2018

the Cambridge looks nice. as for the hum.... does it have a grounding wire?

mrussel1 · May 2018

lolobugg said:

the Cambridge looks nice. as for the hum.... does it have a grounding wire?

yeah it does... and I tried to mess with the connections. I'm also sure I don't have a ground loop, so that's not the issue. If I turn off the record player, the hum stays. Turn off the cambridge, and the hum stops. Emotiva is dead quiet.

lolobugg · May 2018

mrussel1 said:

lolobugg said:

the Cambridge looks nice. as for the hum.... does it have a grounding wire?

yeah it does... and I tried to mess with the connections. I'm also sure I don't have a ground loop, so that's not the issue. If I turn off the record player, the hum stays. Turn off the cambridge, and the hum stops. Emotiva is dead quiet.

Weird. I wonder if it is a power supply issue with the Cambridge. have you tried a different AC adaptor?

mrussel1 · May 2018

lolobugg said:

mrussel1 said:

lolobugg said:

the Cambridge looks nice. as for the hum.... does it have a grounding wire?

yeah it does... and I tried to mess with the connections. I'm also sure I don't have a ground loop, so that's not the issue. If I turn off the record player, the hum stays. Turn off the cambridge, and the hum stops. Emotiva is dead quiet.

Weird. I wonder if it is a power supply issue with the Cambridge. have you tried a different AC adaptor?

Well it's not an AC adapter, it's a standard plug that you see on desktops and monitors. If you scroll up, you can see input, it will look quite familiar. It's one of the things that attracted me to this product, believing a strong power supply sat inside the unit. But to answer your question, the unit came with two power cords and I tried them both. I thought it was curious that it came with two of the same plugs.

I think either way, I would try the Cambridge solo instead. It's the same phono amp, minus the headphone amp. Since I didn't hear any difference between the Cambridge and my Yamaha headphone port, no reason to spend an extra hundred bucks for it. Yes, it allows you to keep your stereo off, but you also don't have remote volume control.

lolobugg · May 2018

mrussel1 said:

lolobugg said:

mrussel1 said:

lolobugg said:

the Cambridge looks nice. as for the hum.... does it have a grounding wire?

yeah it does... and I tried to mess with the connections. I'm also sure I don't have a ground loop, so that's not the issue. If I turn off the record player, the hum stays. Turn off the cambridge, and the hum stops. Emotiva is dead quiet.

Weird. I wonder if it is a power supply issue with the Cambridge. have you tried a different AC adaptor?

Well it's not an AC adapter, it's a standard plug that you see on desktops and monitors. If you scroll up, you can see input, it will look quite familiar. It's one of the things that attracted me to this product, believing a strong power supply sat inside the unit. But to answer your question, the unit came with two power cords and I tried them both. I thought it was curious that it came with two of the same plugs.

I think either way, I would try the Cambridge solo instead. It's the same phono amp, minus the headphone amp. Since I didn't hear any difference between the Cambridge and my Yamaha headphone port, no reason to spend an extra hundred bucks for it. Yes, it allows you to keep your stereo off, but you also don't have remote volume control.

oh yes. I see now. that thing takes a direct 3 prong plug. wow. that's weird. never seen that on pre-amp that size before.

mrussel1 · May 2018

I just ordered the solo, but I stand corrected on one part. The solo is only MM. Definitely a smaller footprint. Still has a balance switch, which seems useless without the headphone amp.

Image: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61lQPjXXnEL._SL1000_.jpg

BB162610 · May 2018

All vintage McIntosh setup I have been slowly building. I think it sounds great, McIntosh headquarters is only a few hours from me, so I love that it is gear that was designed locally even though now they are owned by a Japanese company.

MA-6100 using as a Preamp
MC-2105 Amp
ML-1C Speakers with the MQ-101 Equalizer
Technics SL-3300

BIGDaddyWil · May 2018

^^^^^^^ Fantastic system!!!!

mrussel1 · May 2018

What did you replace? Curious if you hear a discernible difference from quality equipment that isn't mc. I've always wanted to buy some but was never sure it was a big enough difference to justify the investment. No other equipment comes close to how beautiful it is.

BB162610 · May 2018

I had a Marantz 2230B receiver I was using, which also sounded great, but lacked the power I have currently. I do feel like I can hear the difference between the two.

I have a Thorens TD-124 I am in the process of restoring that I am really excited to add to this setup.

reesdog · May 2018

BB162610 said:

All vintage McIntosh setup I have been slowly building. I think it sounds great, McIntosh headquarters is only a few hours from me, so I love that it is gear that was designed locally even though now they are owned by a Japanese company.

MA-6100 using as a Preamp
MC-2105 Amp
ML-1C Speakers with the MQ-101 Equalizer
Technics SL-3300

Very nice gear, bet it sounds wonderful. How old are these pieces, 70's?

BB162610 · May 2018

Yes, most are mid 70's. Speakers are a little earlier.

tempo_n_groove · May 2018

mrussel1 said:

lolobugg said:

mrussel1 said:

lolobugg said:

the Cambridge looks nice. as for the hum.... does it have a grounding wire?

yeah it does... and I tried to mess with the connections. I'm also sure I don't have a ground loop, so that's not the issue. If I turn off the record player, the hum stays. Turn off the cambridge, and the hum stops. Emotiva is dead quiet.

Weird. I wonder if it is a power supply issue with the Cambridge. have you tried a different AC adaptor?

Well it's not an AC adapter, it's a standard plug that you see on desktops and monitors. If you scroll up, you can see input, it will look quite familiar. It's one of the things that attracted me to this product, believing a strong power supply sat inside the unit. But to answer your question, the unit came with two power cords and I tried them both. I thought it was curious that it came with two of the same plugs.

I think either way, I would try the Cambridge solo instead. It's the same phono amp, minus the headphone amp. Since I didn't hear any difference between the Cambridge and my Yamaha headphone port, no reason to spend an extra hundred bucks for it. Yes, it allows you to keep your stereo off, but you also don't have remote volume control.

If the hum is only when you play vinyl is the dust cover up? When I had the dust cover down on my Pro-ject it would hum. Put it up and no hum.

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