What was the last bit of gear you bought in 2024?

The Sumiko Pearl is very good indeed, it’s based on the ES-70 generator made by Excel Corporation, the makers of Hana, and likely designed by Masao Okada-san himself.

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And yet it costs next to nothing and looks like it is from another era. Wish I’d gone with my gut three years ago. Alas, it’s boxed up with a power supply ready to go to my sister’s turntable upgrades.

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The latest iteration of the ES-70 generator, and arguably among the top MM cartridges in production, is The Vessel Cartridge made by Excel Corporation for LP Gear/LP Tunes. Affordably priced and offered in several cantilever options (aluminum with variable wall density, single crystal cylindrical ruby, boron) and stylus profiles, Shibata and Miro Line among them. Well worth checking out for MM devotees, I will certainly do in the near future.

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I had a look on their website and the specs, etc seem reasonable. I considered that. However, the closest dealer is a five hour drive each way, so chances are low I can home audition. But I don’t really need an alternative to Boulder. I really like it.

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That’s ( boulder) a phono pre right ?

Yes, the Boulder 1108 is a fully balanced, dual-input SS phono-stage. It’s the dual inputs and solid state that are key to my search. I also don’t want anything that’s a downgrade sonically from my Superline/SupercapDR and the Boulder is better.

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I heard boulder w dynaudio , very good.

My dealer’s main listening room is Boulder 2000 series. I have heard that with Dynaudio Consequence and also with Confidence 50s. It’s a great sound. If I ever decide to get rid of my Naim 8-box system it might be for a lower box count Boulder system, or possibly Simaudio North.

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The last I could find, used by some here and saying it’s a major upgrade vs Superline/ Supercap dr.
2 outputs.


Whest Titan pro

I have a doubt. You need two outputs or imputs. I tend to confound them :thinking:

This Whest is opposite what I need. I have two tonearms, one for mono and the other for stereo. I need a phono-stage with two inputs so I can switch between the arms without swapping cables.

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BBE Sonic Maximiser Rack Mount version.

It will empty your pockets… Take a look inside these products….

Are there pictures showing the inside now?

Like I said… Not my wallet ie not buying…

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Have you considered Soulnote E2 four inputs and comes in black. Haven’t heard it but there is some buzz around this brand…

Yes, so as I wrote, I tend to confound imputs and outputs.

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Naim Flatcap 2. Lots of empty space but no snake oil.

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Looks very well organized inside.

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But don’t ask me how it works :joy:

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Thanks for pointing it out, but no, I never heard of it before now. Looks interesting but I don’t want to take a chance on anything I can’t hear for myself first. And at $9k I’m skeptical it would equal or better my Superline/SCDR.

Phono-stages are a tough call. You really want to make sure they gel with you have (up-signal and down-signal) so home audition is key. As I stated, I feel like my search is done. Now it’s a matter of affording it. That will require some patience.

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