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Phono Pre Shootout

Discussion in 'Vinyl Nutjob World: Turntable and Related Gear' started by sphinxvc, Aug 26, 2017.

  1. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    I've decided to step down from being a Gear Master and to try to have some more fun on the site for a change. @PTS let me borrow his RSA Nighthawk to compare with the VTA PH16-X, which I bought blind when I got my Space Deck.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    I'll listen through the weekend and post evolving stream-of-consiousness thoughts as I go through my box of records.

    So far, PH16-X is more spacious and engaging. Nighthawk is tighter/deeper in the bass.

    Update 1:
    It breaks my heart that the Nighthawk doesn't kill the PH16-X, because it matches my Space Deck and Nagaoka MP-500 so perfectly! Vain, but true.
     
    Last edited: Aug 26, 2017
    sphinxvc, Aug 26, 2017
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  2. Daveheart

    Daveheart Friend

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    You could always remove the top from the PH16-X and anodize it black and replace the screws with black screws. Anodizing something with a tremendous amount of surface area like heatsinks takes more current than I'm comfortable working with, but that top plate shouldn't be too bad.
     
    Daveheart, Aug 26, 2017
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  3. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    Update 2: The Nighthawk is a bit darker than the PH16-X. I'm still getting impressions of deeper and tighter bass, but perhaps the first part is just a byproduct of the darker tonality, and the latter genuinely faster transients. Bass quantity-wise they are about the same. On some tracks, the PH16-X out resolves the NH, has more presence, better dynamics, and like I said yesterday, just plain sounds bigger. Surface noise is more apparent on the PH16-X, while the NH comes through with a blacker background. I'll be listening again this week to confirm today's findings, and will use my Andromedas to compare tonality.
     
    sphinxvc, Aug 27, 2017
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  4. Dr. Higgs

    Dr. Higgs Boson - Member

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    You're welcome to borrow my Chinook if you really want to complicate things @sphinxvc lol
     
    Dr. Higgs, Aug 27, 2017
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  5. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    Bring it over on the 9th. :)
     
    sphinxvc, Aug 28, 2017
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