Arcam rPhono MoFi Studiodeck Revisited

Click pics to enlarge. Note the passive 597 horns atop the loudspeakers.

Letter from NYC (23-4): Reconnaissance, or Renaissance? Part I
NYC Analog Log (23-I): Revisiting Arcam rPhono, MoFi Studiophono

Arcam rPhono Review
MoFi Studiophono Review

From this post on, I shall chronicle the Rehabilitation of my System(s) in NYC. Needless to say, especially now with the recent acquisition of the MoFi Studiodeck, the narrative shall be analog-centric. I shall start from the time I arrived, quite before the new TT entered in my life.

I arrived late at night. As soon as I got up the next morning, I hooked up the simplest system. As the last system I used when I exited NYC in 2020 was mostly in its original place on the TV rack, all I needed to do was hook up an amp to my Shindo Monbrison. As I wanted to ease myself in, the versatile Almarro 205A EL84 SE amp was an easy choice. Unlike its more powerful and splendid 6C33C brethen 318B, it also generates considerably less heat.

I started with CD, and was more than happy that my 1-bit Micromega Stage 2 worked perfectly from the first moment, even after 3 years of dormancy. Same with the el-cheapo 14-bit Magnavox CDB-262. Both made wonderful music, though in their very different ways. Through the Harbeth P3 ESR SE, sound was even better than I remembered. Could the enhancement be due to the presence of the 新时 597 Passive horns? More on this would appear later in this Log (maybe Part 3), or perhaps even later in an article of its own.

Pretty soon I got the itch to play vinyl. As I knew ahead I was going to play with different phono amps I forwent the phono section of the Monbrison. I quickly hooked up the Arcam rPhono and was more than delighted by how well it handled the Denon DL-103 (loading approximately 300 ohm) on my Technics SL-1200 Mk II. Particularly in jazz, where the fast transients were just brilliant. I was so taken that I even took it to head honcho Andy for him to evaluate. Andy later reported that it was very even handed and just lacked that last bit of smoothness that he prefers in a tube preamp.

The rPhono is unusual in that, like Arcam's rDac, it has a flat polymer base with no feet. I found that sound improved significantly after I placed 3 Vibrapods underneath. There is something else that I had not noticed before. The rPhono has 4 gain settings for MM, 30, 40, 50 and 52 db. Add the 30 db MC gain, MC should have 60, 70, 80 and 82 db of gain. But in actual use, even with my Denon DL-103, which has a fairly healthy output, 40 in this system definitely lacked oomph, and 50/52 had to be used. I maxed it out. So, it'd be natural to conclude that those gain spec's are  "optimistic", not an unusual occurrence for a phonostage.

I also tried out the MoFi Studiophono but not for very long because of a new arrival (next in the pipeline). The Studiophono has 4 loading options: 100, 500, 1000 and 47k and, as there is no 300(+), I loaded the Denon DL-103 at 500. The sound was quite good but I gave the nod to the Arcam. I doubt the loading difference has much to do with the outcome. This is a somewhat awkward conclusion, as the rPhono has long been discontinued (the Studiophono is still current and available). Should you be interested in the Arcam, you'd have to find one on the second-hand markets, probably for a pittance as it is a dark horse and so little known. It may not the last word in anything, but it is a surprisingly solid device.

 Every Saturday is Vegan Day at the Senior Citizen Center. Indian Food.

The Economist Obituary for pianist Andre Watts.