Phono Preamps

Yes. Phono stage, phono preamp, and phono preamplifier are three names for the same component. It sits between the turntable and the amplifier and does two jobs: it adds gain, and it applies RIAA equalization.

A moving magnet cartridge puts out a few thousandths of a volt, and a low-output moving coil far less, far below the line level a CD player or streamer delivers. Records are also cut with the bass turned down and the treble turned up, so the grooves fit and stay quiet. The phono preamp raises the level and reverses that curve, which is why a turntable played straight into a line input sounds quiet and thin.

Usually not. A PHONO input means the stage is already built in. A separate phono preamp is an upgrade, or a way to get the extra gain a low-output moving coil cartridge needs when the built-in stage is moving magnet only.

Only if the turntable has its own phono preamp switched on, or a phono preamp sits between the two. AUX is a line input, so a turntable without a preamp in front of it will play quiet and thin.

Output and loading. Most moving magnet cartridges put out enough signal for any MM phono input. Low-output moving coil cartridges put out far less, so they need a stage with more gain, or a step-up transformer in front of an MM stage, and the right load for that cartridge.

A passive transformer that raises the signal from a low-output moving coil cartridge to moving magnet level, so it can feed an MM phono input. The Dynavector SUP-200 is one example.

The phono preamp handles the smallest signal in your system, so its noise and its accuracy to the RIAA curve carry through to everything after it. How far to go depends on the cartridge feeding it. Contact us and we will match a stage to the cartridge you own rather than to a price.