HiFi Subjectivist ¦ Audio Forum ¦ NVA User Group

I get very fed up with the Valve v Solid State stoooooopidity. Each has its assets and each has its problems - good product means how you deal with them.

Ironically the Phono 2 is the most 'valve like' solid state stage I have heard without the inconvenience and expense of tube replacement. It reproduces music as 'accurately' as I can possibly tell irrespective of how it measures and what components are used. Therefore Firebottle's 'review' comes over as a rather silly attempt to push his own product.

Dr Bunsen Honeydew wrote: ↑Tue Jul 17, 2018 2:43 pm I get very fed up with the Valve v Solid State stoooooopidity. Each has its assets and each has its problems - good product means how you deal with them.

+1

Music is music...

Classicrock wrote: ↑Tue Jul 17, 2018 3:09 pm Ironically the Phono 2 is the most 'valve like' solid state stage I have heard without the inconvenience and expense of tube replacement. "It reproduces music as 'accurately' as I can possibly tell irrespective of how it measures" and what components are used. Therefore Firebottle's 'review' comes over as a rather silly attempt to push his own product.

EDIT - ad hominem removed

"It reproduces music as 'accurately' as I can possibly tell irrespective of how it measures" and what components are used"

This is a nonsense. There is nothing on offer here but an opinion and there is no substance to hold this against whereas the measurements are easy to prove or disprove by further measurement. .

Likely, the degradation of one's hearing by age can only hinder the assesment of any equipment. Measurements are the only way of knowing for sure.

Dr Bunsen Honeydew wrote: ↑Tue Jul 17, 2018 2:43 pm I get very fed up with the Valve v Solid State stoooooopidity. Each has its assets and each has its problems - good product means how you deal with them.

Yes, I agree with this entirely.

Personally I think the accuracy of the RIAA eq is a data point. I prefer to be as close as I can to it, but there are various reasons why it can and can't matter.

1. RIAA is spot on, but making that so has hurt the sound of the thing - Problematic
2. RIAA is more than close enough, making it any closer would not be noticed - Fine
3. RIAA is not perfect, but making it any closer would hurt the sound of the thing more than any advantage gained by closer eq - Fine
4. RIAA is intentionally broken, its a intended trick to make the unit sound "different" from others - Bogus.

I suspect that the NVA is either in case 2 or 3, I have seen a few in 4 and there are probably some examples of 1.

You can measure Dave's one if you want. I don't object to measurement I object to the motivation and agenda.

Dr Bunsen Honeydew wrote: ↑Tue Jul 17, 2018 4:14 pm You can measure Dave's one if you want. I don't object to measurement I object to the motivation and agenda.

That's an excellent stance Doctor.

Lurcher makes sense too, no point killing the life and soul of the unit to reach the RIAA. As close as possible whilst retaining the life is a compromise, much like the rest of the build.

Yes and what Lurcher says about RIAA can be applied to having or not having a rumble (plus warped record) filter.

I can see the sense in not asking the power amp to feed large amounts of subsonic power to the woofers on warped records.
And I can see the less is more sense in not having a filter.

Somethingfunny wrote: ↑Tue Jul 17, 2018 3:49 pm

Classicrock wrote: ↑Tue Jul 17, 2018 3:09 pm Ironically the Phono 2 is the most 'valve like' solid state stage I have heard without the inconvenience and expense of tube replacement. "It reproduces music as 'accurately' as I can possibly tell irrespective of how it measures" and what components are used. Therefore Firebottle's 'review' comes over as a rather silly attempt to push his own product.

EDIT - ad hominem so removed

"It reproduces music as 'accurately' as I can possibly tell irrespective of how it measures" and what components are used"

This is a nonsense. There is nothing on offer here but an opinion and there is no substance to hold this against whereas the measurements are easy to prove or disprove by further measurement. .

Likely, the degradation of one's hearing by age can only hinder the assesment of any equipment. Measurements are the only way of knowing for sure.

It's an opinion based on owning and extensive listening. I didn't like the tone of Firebottle's so called review as he didn't say why he preferred his own product and made illusions as to inaccuracy. What I'm saying is if it sounds good I am not overly worried about measurements and if it sounds good it probably measures well enough. Perhaps you would like to withdraw the Ad homm in your post pertaining to ass licking and my hearing. My hearing is still quite fine by the way in as much as ability to hear differences in hi-fi components.