Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 This has probably been done to death by now... but does anyone have any advice on a good inexpensive DIY tube phonostage? Who has built one and has actually compared to an off the shelf item? I have enough confidence to DIY, and would rather get the satisfaction of building something myself, but don’t want to pay a premium for a kit that is just as good as an off the shelf item. I would budget $50-250 - looking for clever/smart bang for buck I don’t actually mind the Phono stage in my Yamaha AS501, but I am not really comparing it to anything... rest of my system - Pioneer PL15 with AT95E with hyperelliptical stylus upgrade and sometimes an AT11E Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 One is the Thorsten Loesch modified EAR 834P circuit, think this is it in the link below, lots of references to this one all over the internet, with some like Romy the Cat doing their own slightly different take on it. http://www.jogis-roehrenbude.de/Leserbriefe/Carsten-RIAA/Carsten-RIAA.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decky Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 You cannot do a decent tube phono stage for less than $1000 DIY or around $2000 retail. Well, you cannot do a decent phono stage for that money regardless of the design. Go for Pearl or Pearl 2 from DIY Audio forum - it will be more expensive with all the parts included but well worth every penny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 1, 2019 Author Share Posted April 1, 2019 1 hour ago, Decky said: You cannot do a decent tube phono stage for less than $1000 DIY or around $2000 retail. Well, you cannot do a decent phono stage for that money regardless of the design. Go for Pearl or Pearl 2 from DIY Audio forum - it will be more expensive with all the parts included but well worth every penny. I know I am not going to get audiophile quality for cheap, I was looking for something different, something that will give me a different sound - perhaps even better than the phono stage in the Yamaha Amp. So far I have had a lot of fun researching and just playing around with different gear and seeing what really gets my attention, (I would not have ended up with a set of Ascension Summoners if I hadn’t spent a few months reading about them first). I don’t really like the idea of putting a $1000 -$2000 phono stage on a $600-800 amp, I am looking for something that someone has put together that is “better than it should be for the price”... the whole philosphy of being a “Beerbudget Audiophile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Decky Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 (edited) Fair enough. In that case, if you want a simple and cheap MM phono stage opamps are the way to go. Heaps of them in sub $500 mark - DIY should be in your budget. Just check out Pearl - you won't regret. https://www.passdiy.com/pdf/PEARL 2.pdf https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/pass-labs/204336-building-pearl-2-a.html Edited April 1, 2019 by Decky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batty Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 Pass labs gear is really good, I am running their B1 pre amp I built from a kit, souns quality is very good, but will not fit into your beer budget unfortuneatly. I did build the AKITIKA solid state MM phonostage, really goo quality for the monet, in fact once I had it up and running I sold my Musical Fidelity X-LPSv3. Here is the link https://www.akitika.com/PhonoPreamp.html but you will need to add cost for a PSU and chassis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 1, 2019 Author Share Posted April 1, 2019 (edited) 7 hours ago, Muon N' said: One is the Thorsten Loesch modified EAR 834P circuit, think this is it in the link below, lots of references to this one all over the internet, with some like Romy the Cat doing their own slightly different take on it. http://www.jogis-roehrenbude.de/Leserbriefe/Carsten-RIAA/Carsten-RIAA.htm I actually hadn’t even thought about modifying something, not sure why I didn’t consider. This is something that could pop up second hand from time to time cheers (logic :- if bought secondhand and not bastardised by myself or others, it will hold value and may be sold if unhappy) Edited April 1, 2019 by Beerbudget audiophile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Full Range Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 If you are looking for a tube phono just to try out The best of many model options is a Little Bear unit as they range from $70 to a couple of hundred 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batty Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 You could try this ... http://oatleyelectronics.com//product_info.php?cPath=81&products_id=936 for under $50 plus case and other hardware. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCAJack Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 53 minutes ago, Batty said: You could try this ... http://oatleyelectronics.com//product_info.php?cPath=81&products_id=936 for under $50 plus case and other hardware. That's an amazing deal. I have to get one just to try it! Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCAJack Posted April 2, 2019 Share Posted April 2, 2019 At least with most valve kits, you can recycle or sell the expensive parts (like valves/transformer/case etc.) into another project if you're not getting the results you want. Maybe you already have a junk box to raid for some of the hardware? I'm personally curious about the kits on eBay/Aliexpress for knock-offs of various valve phono stages: the EAR 834P, and others from Audio Note, Marantz, Shure etc. Including a PCB, passive components and valve bases, they might be ~$100, to which you'd add valves, a power supply and case. Might be a stretch to do it for under $250 but not impossible? But I can't vouch for them at this point. The circuit I'd like to try out is a version of the RCA 7025 phono preamp. Very basic (2 x 7025 valves for a stereo amp) but would need another stage so it could drive an input on your amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted April 2, 2019 Share Posted April 2, 2019 3 hours ago, Beerbudget audiophile said: I actually hadn’t even thought about modifying something, not sure why I didn’t consider. This is something that could pop up second hand from time to time cheers (logic :- if bought secondhand and not bastardised by myself or others, it will hold value and may be sold if unhappy) I was suggesting that the circuit by TL be built from scratch, many do it with this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclekanus Posted April 2, 2019 Share Posted April 2, 2019 1 hour ago, RCAJack said: I'm personally curious about the kits on eBay/Aliexpress for knock-offs of various valve phono stages: the EAR 834P, and others from Audio Note, Marantz, Shure etc. Including a PCB, passive components and valve bases, they might be ~$100, to which you'd add valves, a power supply and case. Might be a stretch to do it for under $250 but not impossible? But I can't vouch for them at this point. I picked up a board from Aliexpress for around 100 bucks. Audio Note circuit. The board is fully popuated but some of the parts are ordinary. I already had a power supply and a ton of tubes and passive parts. Up and running in no time and with a few (lots really) tweaks it sounds extremely good. I would rather have paid less and bought an unpopulated board but it was still fun to play around with. It needs 265vdc and it's set up for 12.6v filaments. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tesla13BMW Posted April 2, 2019 Share Posted April 2, 2019 Have a look at the tubes4hifi page. Certainly cheap enough to give a go in a re purposed case and if you like it go all out on enclosure and sockets etc. http://www.tubes4hifi.com/home.html I built the PH14 and really like it. Ousted my Graham Slee ReflexM. If I was doing it again I'd build the power supply in a separate enclosure to remove the "I wonder if the PS is coming through" thoughts. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 2, 2019 Author Share Posted April 2, 2019 (edited) 4 hours ago, Batty said: You could try this ... http://oatleyelectronics.com//product_info.php?cPath=81&products_id=936 for under $50 plus case and other hardware. The more I read about this, the more I think it will be the kit I choose It will probably be good enough for me to get an idea/insight cheers Edited April 2, 2019 by Beerbudget audiophile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian McP Posted April 2, 2019 Share Posted April 2, 2019 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Douk-Audio-United-Kingdom-MM-RIAA-Tube-Phono-Amplifier-DIY-KIT-For-HiFi-/271980796972 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Rutter Posted April 2, 2019 Share Posted April 2, 2019 10 hours ago, Decky said: You cannot do a decent tube phono stage for less than $1000 DIY or around $2000 retail. Well, you cannot do a decent phono stage for that money regardless of the design. Go for Pearl or Pearl 2 from DIY Audio forum - it will be more expensive with all the parts included but well worth every penny. Rubbish I build mine for around $300 with premium everything Don't do kit, build the whole thing yourself Kits teach you to solder not much else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 2, 2019 Author Share Posted April 2, 2019 9 hours ago, Muon N' said: I was suggesting that the circuit by TL be built from scratch, many do it with this one. Having another look at this, I only briefly typed in details into google and my German is amateur. This looks possible, but will involve a little a little more dedication, I suspect it will be the better option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted April 2, 2019 Share Posted April 2, 2019 9 minutes ago, Beerbudget audiophile said: Having another look at this, I only briefly typed in details into google and my German is amateur. This looks possible, but will involve a little a little more dedication, I suspect it will be the better option. Kits will be easier, and some it will cost less overall maybe. Depends how confident you are with diy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 2, 2019 Author Share Posted April 2, 2019 41 minutes ago, Muon N' said: Kits will be easier, and some it will cost less overall maybe. Depends how confident you are with diy. Electrician, but haven’t played with an amplifier build yet. The basics and all the pitfalls are all fairly well laid out for the EAR834p on the internet - a very popular build, and one that can be tinkered with. I will be reading up about this one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted April 2, 2019 Share Posted April 2, 2019 @Beerbudget audiophile Thorsten made a fair few changes to improve the original circuit, really no longer the same one, but he does know his stuff well. I guess his record speaks for itself. Should be a fun project for you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 3, 2019 Author Share Posted April 3, 2019 (edited) On 02/04/2019 at 9:08 PM, Muon N' said: @Beerbudget audiophile Thorsten made a fair few changes to improve the original circuit, really no longer the same one, but he does know his stuff well. I guess his record speaks for itself. Should be a fun project for you I think that I will try one of the slightly better cheap chinese kits (minus tubes and transformer) first, and order the parts required to modify to how I think it will suit me by Thorsten recommendations. If it looks possible to solder-suck and remove/replace components easily enough on the board it will be interesting to listen to the 2 versions. the kit/board looks neat enough and I can already imagine it in an enclosure with a clear cover. I think it would be wise to mount the power supply completely separate in another enclosure am I wrong in thinking this? (I’m hoping the 2 boards can be split) otherwise the transformer at least in another enclosure... Edited April 3, 2019 by Beerbudget audiophile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted April 3, 2019 Share Posted April 3, 2019 (edited) @Beerbudget audiophile That board is perforated between the PS section and the rest, but I think you may know this already A few guys doing this one over on Lenco Heaven. Edit: if a separate chassis you will need to connect with an umbilical cord, but again! I think I'm preaching to the choir That would men a HV line as well as the heater line, so not sure, you might be better in a roomy case and just shield between sections? Edit: just as a disclosure, I'm just a hobbyist, and a bit of a tweaker, not a hard core DIY electronics dude Edited April 3, 2019 by Muon N' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 7, 2019 Author Share Posted April 7, 2019 (edited) IN FOR A PENNY, IN FOR A POUND... Board ordered, transformer, ordered. My initial plan is to have a box made from mirror polished stainless... if I am going to build bling, it may as well shine. The 834p really does have a cult following.... Edited April 7, 2019 by Beerbudget audiophile Dodgy spelling... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerbudget audiophile Posted April 27, 2019 Author Share Posted April 27, 2019 This is nice, not sure what I was expecting actually. The gain alone was worth building this for, the sound is nice and clean and the channel separation seems to be a little better than the integrated preamp on the Yamaha. I’m not sure of the correct audiophile wording... some sound really appears to be coming from a separate speaker in the centre that doesn’t exist and the music sounds a little more “complete” than it did before, only 3 albums in so far. I am definitely going to keep this and build the rest of the enclosure. cheers for the advice 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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