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Rega Fono MM

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jimbofisher
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Am thinking of uograding my phono stage. I am currently using the input on my Arcam A80. I remember this was considered good when i bought it but as always the upgrade bug bites. Has anybody heard it yet, they have a new one (at least new body) on the wensite. Given my system would this be the right pricepoint, roughly £200, or should i be pending less, eg the fono a2d?

 

All help greatly received.

 

Any chance of a review of this in the mag?

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Rega Planar 2 with Bias 2 cartridge, upgraded by Inspire Quest adding;

50 mm solid birch plinth with acrylic coned feet, Maccasor Ebony veneer, 20mm acrylic platter, Acri mat, Puka record weight

Arcam cd72, Squeezebox Touch fed by 2t Vortexbox, CD and Touch into Rega Dac, Arcam A80, Mission 773se Speakers

Shanka
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RE: Rega Fono MM

Hi,

I am in a similar position, after a lengthy search I finally replaced my Alpha 5 with a 9 but it did not come with a phono stage.

I was considering finding a phono stage and installing but am now thinking the Rega fono Mini maybe the way to go.

There is a review here http://www.whathifi.com/review/rega-fono-mini-a2d

I am not spending megabucks on this but this seems to tick all the boxes and you have the advantage of the usb socket.

Anyone with any views on this greatly appreciated also,

Thanks

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Roksan Caspian M2 cd/amp ; Proac Studio 140 Mk 2

Ariston RD11s SME 111 AT95e Rega Fono MiniA2D Arcam Alpha 9 B&W CDM1NT

chebby
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RE: Rega Fono MM

I have compared the old Fono MM and the old Fono-Mini and bought the Fono-Mini. The Fono MM was not £100 better. (Money better spent on a better cartridge in my case.)

The new versions of both could be completely different, so see what you think first.

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Marantz M-CR603 + AirPlay • Rega R3 loudspeakers • iPhone 5 32GB • iMac • Apple Airport Extreme 802.11n • Panasonic TX-L32D25B • Sony BDP-S390 • Ruark Audio R1 Deluxe • Humax HDR-Fox T2

Shanka
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RE: Rega Fono MM

Hi,

Have just ordered my Fono Mini a2d, hoping to get it for the weekend and give it a go, have been told if I'm not happy can swap for something else so all looking and hopefully sounding good.

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Roksan Caspian M2 cd/amp ; Proac Studio 140 Mk 2

Ariston RD11s SME 111 AT95e Rega Fono MiniA2D Arcam Alpha 9 B&W CDM1NT

nopiano
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RE: Rega Fono MM

Hope it works well for you.  Assuming it is brand new, you might want to leave it on for 24 hours before listening - but I bet you won't!

Like chebby, I use the older non-USB one, but it is ridiculously good.  The dealer I got it from considers the next upgrade at about £400!

 

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Hi-Fi: Krell KAV-300cd, Michell TecnoDec/RB250/Grado Prestige Black1, KAV-300i amp, Transparent balanced interconnects and bi-wire to Sonus faber Concerto grand piano speakers, Nakamichi ZX-7 cassette deck, Logitech Squeezebox Touch, Hitachi FT-5500 and Sony S570ES tuners, BCD Engineering stand, RA Powerlink, Chord powerchord, Grado SR60i cans.

AV: Sony Bravia KDL-32EX503 telly, BDP-S370 player with QED HDMI. Currently unused: Denon AVR-1705, DVD-1710, KEF KHT1005.2 

gregory
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RE: Rega Fono MM

jimbofisher wrote:

Am thinking of uograding my phono stage. I am currently using the input on my Arcam A80. I remember this was considered good when i bought it but as always the upgrade bug bites. Has anybody heard it yet, they have a new one (at least new body) on the wensite. Given my system would this be the right pricepoint, roughly £200, or should i be pending less, eg the fono a2d?

 

All help greatly received.

 

Any chance of a review of this in the mag?

Sell the P2 and get a better deck, you will hear a big difference, cheaper option go with Chebby's recommendation.

Shanka
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RE: Rega Fono MM

Hi,

Well I did what you said, plugged it in and played it straight away !!
Sounded a bit muddy but still sounded ok, was just great to be listening to lp's again.

I listened to the same lp's today and a great improvement, lot more open, more space between everything , treble lifted as this was quite recessed yesterday and bass has tightened up as well.

Just listened to bridge over troubled water as I adore where the bass comes in, no cd system i have ever heard has ever come close to the depth of this, i must add my system is bass heavy which is how I like it.

Just gonna have a bit of Neil Young before the neighbours get back.

I have never used a seperate phono stage but can not fault this, my system is not high end but purely for my listening enjoyment which is what I have as a lie here writing this, now where are the papers..................

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Roksan Caspian M2 cd/amp ; Proac Studio 140 Mk 2

Ariston RD11s SME 111 AT95e Rega Fono MiniA2D Arcam Alpha 9 B&W CDM1NT

nopiano
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RE: Rega Fono MM

Pleased to hear you are enjoying your LPs again!  Thanks for sharing.

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Hi-Fi: Krell KAV-300cd, Michell TecnoDec/RB250/Grado Prestige Black1, KAV-300i amp, Transparent balanced interconnects and bi-wire to Sonus faber Concerto grand piano speakers, Nakamichi ZX-7 cassette deck, Logitech Squeezebox Touch, Hitachi FT-5500 and Sony S570ES tuners, BCD Engineering stand, RA Powerlink, Chord powerchord, Grado SR60i cans.

AV: Sony Bravia KDL-32EX503 telly, BDP-S370 player with QED HDMI. Currently unused: Denon AVR-1705, DVD-1710, KEF KHT1005.2