Advice preamp

Nicola Fini

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good evening, i have 2 yamaha hs7 speakers, and i would like to connect a turntable to them.
i saw your article on pro ject maia pre, (3 stars) .not very encouraging.
I would need its own functionality.
mainly for listening to turntables.
to listen to music with bluetooth.
do you have any advice?
sorry for my english, i hope i was clear.
 

Nicola Fini

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ok, I would like to upgrade my system.
at the moment I have:
- sony ps-lx300 turntable
- 2 yamaha hs-7 speakers
- UGREEN Bluetooth 4.1 receiver

all these elements are connected to a mixer:
BEHRINGER Xenyx 802.

this mixer does not have a phono input.

to upgrade the system, I have to replace turntables and mixers.
what do you recommend to buy?
budget 500/1000 €
 

John Duncan

Well-known member
Hi Nicola. I use HS5s as the fronts in my home cinema and my first thought would be to get an AV receiver that has Bluetooth in it (and has preouts to feed the Yamahas).

One example is eg the Marantz NR1606 which has preouts for front stereo pair and sub and also has Bluetooth/Wifi.
 
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John Duncan

Well-known member
Hi Nicola. I use HS5s as the fronts in my home cinema and my first thought would be to get an AV receiver that has Bluetooth in it (and has preouts to feed the Yamahas).

One example is eg the Marantz NR1606 which has preouts for front stereo pair and sub and also has Bluetooth/Wifi.

Having a quick scan of alternatives that aren't wasting a bunch of amplification I found the Yamaha WXC-50 which is a bluetooth preamp and has one Aux in channel for your turntable. Might be a neater solution.

Note that the PS-LX300 has a built in phono stage so you don't need anything between it and either of the solutions above.
 
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Nicola Fini

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Thanks for the reply. my idea was to replace my Sony ps-lx 300 turntable and get a better one. are you sure the Marantz is a preamplifier?
p.s. the budget of 500/1000 € is for the preamplifier and the turntable. Marantz has a lot of inputs that I wouldn't use.
 
Thanks for the reply. my idea was to replace my Sony ps-lx 300 turntable and get a better one. are you sure the Marantz is a preamplifier?
p.s. the budget of 500/1000 € is for the preamplifier and the turntable. Marantz has a lot of inputs that I wouldn't use.
The WXC 50 is indeed a pre amplifier and a good choice connect everything to it then connect it to your speakers.
 
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rainsoothe

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The WXC 50 is a great call. And I think the remaining budget allows you to get an Audio Technica LP5x - which is a great tt for the money (you need to look at Rega P3 upwards to improve on it, Imo). And if that still leaves you with cash, spend it on music or a Nagaoka mp110 cart :)
 
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Nicola Fini

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it seems to me that wxc 50 does not have a phono input.
I know there are turntables that have an integrated phono, but reading various forums everyone recommends a turntable with the ground.
I want to be clear, my main use will be for the turntable.
using bluetooth is a plus that I would use for spotify.
Thanks again for all the very interesting answers.
I still think that the Pro-Ject MaiA Pre is right for me.
 

John Duncan

Well-known member
Thanks for the reply. my idea was to replace my Sony ps-lx 300 turntable and get a better one. are you sure the Marantz is a preamplifier?
p.s. the budget of 500/1000 € is for the preamplifier and the turntable. Marantz has a lot of inputs that I wouldn't use.

That particular Marantz does have pre-outs for stereo L/R and sub, yes. That and the Yamaha are just examples, I’m sure there are others like the Pro-Ject you mention, sure (if you can get hold of one).

At these levels though I’m not sure I’d be that worried about having an off board or built in phono stage tbh (whether in amp or deck), though it will of course be more flexible in future.
 
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rainsoothe

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could you recommend some turntables with integrated phono?
Budget 500 €
I did - the Audio Technica LP5x - it's inbuilt phono pre is really decent, and comes equipped with a great budget cart - both the TT and the cart are better than either the Sony or Rega P1, imo. I'll say it again, it takes the likes of Rega P3 to better it. And I think it will also let you budget for a protractor and an electronic scale, which you should use whatever tt you end up getting, since the balancing weights are almost always off, on any TT.
 
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ClarkNovember

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Does it make sense to upgrade to a turntable that is only @ 100-200 Euros more than the existing one? In a year or so you will be itching to upgrade again. I’d save up for a more long term option (Rega Planar 3, a mid-range Pro-Ject or Technics SL-1500C).

I don’t want to put you off but I’d go back to the start and reassess your plan and budget.
 
Thanks for the reply. sorry for the ignorance, but I see that it still has ground, and therefore it would not be good if I didn't want to buy a preamp. or am I wrong?
I think you have to consider a preamp of some description.
Perhaps this thread may help:-
 
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rainsoothe

Well-known member
Thanks for the reply. sorry for the ignorance, but I see that it still has ground, and therefore it would not be good if I didn't want to buy a preamp. or am I wrong?
You only need to use the ground if you plan to use it with an external phonostage. If you use it with the integrated one, no need to use the ground binding post. That is used to ground the tonearm wires to the phonostage, not to ground phonostage to amp or whatever.

Also, the point about upgrading to a higher end turntable is not bad. On the other hand, the likes of Rega P3 or Technics SL 1500C might be overkill for a Yamaha HS7 system, which will probably be a bottleneck. I use the HS7 on my desktop, by the way, and I think they're great.
 
You only need to use the ground if you plan to use it with an external phonostage. If you use it with the integrated one, no need to use the ground binding post. That is used to ground the tonearm wires to the phonostage, not to ground phonostage to amp or whatever.

Also, the point about upgrading to a higher end turntable is not bad. On the other hand, the likes of Rega P3 or Technics SL 1500C might be overkill for a Yamaha HS7 system, which will probably be a bottleneck. I use the HS7 on my desktop, by the way, and I think they're great.
I think you're thinking on the earth wire is wrong. There is no difference in grounding to a phono preamp or grounding to the phono preamp built into an integrated amp......
The deck can of course be used without connecting the ground to anything as long as this doesn't result in issues.
 

rainsoothe

Well-known member
I think you're thinking on the earth wire is wrong. There is no difference in grounding to a phono preamp or grounding to the phono preamp built into an integrated amp......
The deck can of course be used without connecting the ground to anything as long as this doesn't result in issues.
No, that's not what I meant - I meant that if the TT has a ground wire binding post, it's there for usage with an external pre (external to the TT, so that can also mean a phono pre that's integrated into an amp). But if the TT also has it's own integrated phono pre, you don't need to use a grounding wire. And I was also saying that a ground binding post that's present on a standalone phono pre is only for linking to the TT, not the grounding post on an amp that has an internal phonostage.
 
No, that's not what I meant - I meant that if the TT has a ground wire binding post, it's there for usage with an external pre (external to the TT, so that can also mean a phono pre that's integrated into an amp). But if the TT also has it's own integrated phono pre, you don't need to use a grounding wire. And I was also saying that a ground binding post that's present on a standalone phono pre is only for linking to the TT, not the grounding post on an amp that has an internal phonostage.
Apologies then, misinterpreted what you meant.
 

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