Great DIY experience, even better sounding phono preamp
For Muffsy Phono Preamp - Kit
If you want to build a phono stage preamp and you're not an expert, your options are pretty limited. You could find something on that big auction site, but, chances are, it'll come with missing and poor-quality pieces and incoherent instructions and if you get stumped on something you won't find much help there, either.
Not so with the Muffsy preamp. I bought the power supply, phono stage and front panel. All were a breeze to assemble, had all the high quality parts and detailed instructions. I didn't need to ask the seller anything to complete the project, but that didn't stop me from asking him a million other questions about a thousand other things I'm working on. Great communicator who is extremely knowledgeable about all things audio.
A few tips: The kit takes time. It took me several hours and a few beers to complete everything. I did the project over several nights and moved slowly, checking the orientation of things and the values of the parts before assembling them. I did the kit with a $20 Weller solder kit. An inexpensive vice or $5 helping hand would make the job a little easier. You might want to grab a bit of 60/40 solder to practice a bit on something else. Not necessary but it's nice to get a few tries in on something cheap or free.
The circuit boards are thru hole and are the nicest I've ever worked with, by far. That's great that it's high quality and durable BUT not so great if you solder a piece in the wrong spot. All that thru-hole solder is hard to get out with a solder sucker or braid, so try to get it right the first time.
The seller knows this product inside-out, so be sure to hit him up if you have a custom idea for it. I plan to grab a couple more of the phono stage for other projects.
Also note that this thing is infinitely customizable, and many of those customizations are detailed on the seller's website. No matter how much your equipment changes, you'll be able to ready this phono stage for the task, even MC cartridges, a rarity in this price range.
Many other reviewers have noted the sound quality, so I'll keep that brief. It's true that this is the best sounding phono stage you'll find south of $500 USD. I have plenty of other integrated amps, including the Harman Kardon 430 Twin Power, noted for its phono awesomeness, and I'll never plug it in on phono again. This thing blows all my other amps out of the water. The soundstage is flawless, and it perfectly melds the highs, mids and lows of music together.
One thing I love, as a listener of R&B and other bass punchy music, is the preamp's ability to not turn those sounds into mushy bass soup. Even music like Pink Floyd or Radiohead or Miles Davis benefit from the crispness in the lowest of lows to the highest of highs. Nothing gets muddled. Nothing.
To summarize: Great experience, top-notch, knowledgeable seller who cares more about the product than the sale, and a preamp that makes you hear all that you've been missing in that priceless collection of records you've amassed.
