REVIEW - Arkless 640P MC/MM phonostage

[Wakefield Turntables]

Arkless 640P MC/MM phonostage
(http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?49403-Arkless-640P-MC-MM-phono-loan-list)I've been in the market for a decent MM phonostage for some time. Now this is a little weird cos I actually own 3, I have a Sugden Masterclass phonostage with a MM output and both my ATC and Croft preamp's both have a MM stage fitted. I'd heard about Jez's work on the 640 years ago and decided I wanted to check out the hype. So, it arrived very well packaged alongside a couple of RCA plugs to change the MC stage loading characteristics. I should state that you will need a donor unit if you should like to purchase this phonostage. I plumbed the 640P into my Croft system and decided I'd try a few carts to see how the thing behaved. I tried a Denon 103M, a Shure V15 mk3, a Keotsu Black, and a Ortofon Silver Meister mk I SPU. All I can say is that is handled all of these carts without even breaking a sweat. I especially enjoyed throwing in my modded Lentek headamp with the Denon 103M and smiling from ear to ear at the sonics of the Presence album by Led Zeppelin. Good decent bass, excellent timing, a truly nice way to spend 20 minutes of my time. Next album was the latest offering from the Avashi Cohen Trio - From Darkness. This album is great to test a phonostage's ability to portray stringed instruments. Well I got a nice centered soundstage with a very well defined, full bodied cello slapped in front of me, plenty of timbre, no complaints from me here. I also decided to try a little heavy rock in the form of a Vertigo pressing of Black Sabbath's first album. The opening bell chimes and cymbal work from Bill Ward's drums sounded truly excellent and again straight in front of me. This phonostage cost's ( I think £255 + price of a donor unit :scratch:). You would honestly have to pay upwards of £1K to get something to equal it. It didn't better anything I had in my system but all I can say is that for the money it's untouchable for value for money. I personally think it works better with a head amp and I would heartily recommend anyone wanting to try a MC cartridge for the first time to put this phonostage very high up the list to trial and then think about using a head amp. So this piece of kit gets a big thumbs up from me. :thumbsup:

[Bigman80]

Arkless 640P MC/MM phonostage
(http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?49403-Arkless-640P-MC-MM-phono-loan-list)I've been in the market for a decent MM phonostage for some time. Now this is a little weird cos I actually own 3, I have a Sugden Masterclass phonostage with a MM output and both my ATC and Croft preamp's both have a MM stage fitted. I'd heard about Jez's work on the 640 years ago and decided I wanted to check out the hype. So, it arrived very well packaged alongside a couple of RCA plugs to change the MC stage loading characteristics. I should state that you will need a donor unit if you should like to purchase this phonostage. I plumbed the 640P into my Croft system and decided I'd try a few carts to see how the thing behaved. I tried a Denon 103M, a Shure V15 mk3, a Keotsu Black, and a Ortofon Silver Meister mk I SPU. All I can say is that is handled all of these carts without even breaking a sweat. I especially enjoyed throwing in my modded Lentek headamp with the Denon 103M and smiling from ear to ear at the sonics of the Presence album by Led Zeppelin. Good decent bass, excellent timing, a truly nice way to spend 20 minutes of my time. Next album was the latest offering from the Avashi Cohen Trio - From Darkness. This album is great to test a phonostage's ability to portray stringed instruments. Well I got a nice centered soundstage with a very well defined, full bodied cello slapped in front of me, plenty of timbre, no complaints from me here. I also decided to try a little heavy rock in the form of a Vertigo pressing of Black Sabbath's first album. The opening bell chimes and cymbal work from Bill Ward's drums sounded truly excellent and again straight in front of me. This phonostage cost's ( I think £255 + price of a donor unit :scratch:). You would honestly have to pay upwards of £1K to get something to equal it. It didn't better anything I had in my system but all I can say is that for the money it's untouchable for value for money. I personally think it works better with a head amp and I would heartily recommend anyone wanting to try a MC cartridge for the first time to put this phonostage very high up the list to trial and then think about using a head amp. So this piece of kit gets a big thumbs up from me. [emoji106]
Good review. Jez will be pleased.

Sent from my EVA-L09 using Tapatalk

[Stryder5]

Arkless 640P MC/MM phonostage
(http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?49403-Arkless-640P-MC-MM-phono-loan-list)I've been in the market for a decent MM phonostage for some time. Now this is a little weird cos I actually own 3, I have a Sugden Masterclass phonostage with a MM output and both my ATC and Croft preamp's both have a MM stage fitted. I'd heard about Jez's work on the 640 years ago and decided I wanted to check out the hype. So, it arrived very well packaged alongside a couple of RCA plugs to change the MC stage loading characteristics. I should state that you will need a donor unit if you should like to purchase this phonostage. I plumbed the 640P into my Croft system and decided I'd try a few carts to see how the thing behaved. I tried a Denon 103M, a Shure V15 mk3, a Keotsu Black, and a Ortofon Silver Meister mk I SPU. All I can say is that is handled all of these carts without even breaking a sweat. I especially enjoyed throwing in my modded Lentek headamp with the Denon 103M and smiling from ear to ear at the sonics of the Presence album by Led Zeppelin. Good decent bass, excellent timing, a truly nice way to spend 20 minutes of my time. Next album was the latest offering from the Avashi Cohen Trio - From Darkness. This album is great to test a phonostage's ability to portray stringed instruments. Well I got a nice centered soundstage with a very well defined, full bodied cello slapped in front of me, plenty of timbre, no complaints from me here. I also decided to try a little heavy rock in the form of a Vertigo pressing of Black Sabbath's first album. The opening bell chimes and cymbal work from Bill Ward's drums sounded truly excellent and again straight in front of me. This phonostage cost's ( I think £255 + price of a donor unit :scratch:). You would honestly have to pay upwards of £1K to get something to equal it. It didn't better anything I had in my system but all I can say is that for the money it's untouchable for value for money. I personally think it works better with a head amp and I would heartily recommend anyone wanting to try a MC cartridge for the first time to put this phonostage very high up the list to trial and then think about using a head amp. So this piece of kit gets a big thumbs up from me. :thumbsup:

I'm confused and probably being thick:)

If this is a MM and MC phono stage, why do you need a head amp?

As I said probably being thick! Somebody please explain?

[Arkless Electronics]

Glad you liked it:)

Anyone wishing to join the loan unit list see here http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?49403-Arkless-640P-MC-MM-phono-loan-list

[Arkless Electronics]

I'm confused and probably being thick:)

If this is a MM and MC phono stage, why do you need a head amp?

As I said probably being thick! Somebody please explain?

You don't need a head amp. I guess Andy likes some sort of "nice" colouration coming from the head amp as all the same circuitry is in use in the phono stage whether it's set to MM or MC. A single resistor per channel is changed in value by switching from MC to MM and that's all. This suggests that the Lentek is "adding niceness" :scratch:

[Marco]

<Cough> :eyebrows:

There are some of us who are adamant (based on considerable listening experience and numerous comparisons) that a good head amp, used through a good MM stage, invariably beats a good standalone MC stage... ;)

And it's got nowt to do with "adding niceness"!

Personally, I've yet to hear a standalone MC phono stage win any such battles, and unless I hear differently sometime (and I remain open to that possibility), I'll continue enjoying the virtues of MC cartridge vinyl replay, through my head amp/valve MM phono stage :cool:

However, that doesn't detract from the desirable sonic qualities of the phono stage just reviewed.

Marco.

[Arkless Electronics]

<Cough> :eyebrows:

There are some of us who are adamant (based on considerable listening experience and numerous comparisons) that a good head amp, used through a good MM stage, invariably beats a good standalone MC stage... ;)

And it's got nowt to do with "adding niceness"!

Personally, I've yet to hear a standalone MC phono stage win any such battles, and unless I hear differently sometime (and I remain open to that possibility), I'll continue enjoying the virtues of MC cartridge vinyl replay, through my head amp/valve MM phono stage :cool:

However, that doesn't detract from the desirable sonic qualities of the phono stage just reviewed.

Marco.

Hook, line and sinker :D What took so long? And I didn't even have to pay Stryder5 for the bait:eyebrows:

We've discussed this even at length on the phone I recall and all the possible reasons and permutations... This is particularly interesting as exactly the same components and circuitry are in the signal path in the Arkless 640P no matter whether it's in MM or MC mode. Setting it to MM and then using the head amp just adds more circuitry to the signal path to end up with the same amount of gain...

Explain how that can be anything else other than something added by the head amp;) :cool:

I'll let you mull on that before I give you an explanation of why in some circumstances you could be r..... you're gonna like this I think;)

[Marco]

Hook, line and sinker :D What took so long? And I didn't even have to pay Stryder5 for the bait:eyebrows:


Haha - very good!


This is particularly interesting as exactly the same components and circuitry are in the signal path in the Arkless 640P no matter whether it's in MM or MC mode. Setting it to MM and then using the head amp just adds more circuitry to the signal path to end up with the same amount of gain...

Explain how that can be anything else other than something added by the head amp...


No idea. I can't comment on that particular scenario, as I haven't heard an Arkless 640P, either with or without your head amp.

However, if I had, I would've commented accordingly. If I'd preferred it with the head amp, then that's what I'd have said, and if the opposite had been true, then I'd have acknowledged it as the first time I'd ever preferred a standalone MC stage! ;)

The 'proof of the pudding' is *always* in the listening, and as ever, things have to be judged in specific contexts, as you can just hit upon a particular combo that works, regardless of what your preconceptions (or electronics textbook) dictates should be best.

It always pays to keep an open mind...


I'll let you mull on that before I give you an explanation of why in some circumstances you could be r..... you're gonna like this I think

Can't wait, lol :D

At the end of the day, I simply judge what I hear. I don't always need to know why that is.

Marco.

[Stryder5]

He did pay me.......:D

[Marco]

Let me guess... Two bob and a bag of jelly babies? :eyebrows:

Marco.

[Stryder5]

Let me guess... Two bob and a bag of jelly babies? :eyebrows:

Marco.

Bugger sussed, and I promised I wouldn't spill........

[Macca]

Let me guess... Two bob and a bag of jelly babies? :eyebrows:

Marco.

Is that what he pays? I'll do a review for that. Don't want no green ones though.

[Arkless Electronics]

Haha - very good!



No idea. I can't comment on that particular scenario, as I haven't heard an Arkless 640P, either with or without your head amp.

However, if I had, I would've commented accordingly. If I'd preferred it with the head amp, then that's what I'd have said, and if the opposite had been true, then I'd have acknowledged it as the first time I'd ever preferred a standalone MC stage! ;)

The 'proof of the pudding' is *always* in the listening, and as ever, things have to be judged in specific contexts, as you can just hit upon a particular combo that works, regardless of what your preconceptions (or electronics textbook) dictates should be best.

It always pays to keep an open mind...



Can't wait, lol :D

At the end of the day, I simply judge what I hear. I don't always need to know why that is.

Marco.

With hindsight I don't think I'll bother with a technical explanation... the problem with uber subjectivists is they have a "belief system" which, to them, over-rides all scientific fact!:D

Anyhow, what I recommend to customers interested in the ultimate way of amplifying the tiny signal from a MC cartridge is my MC only stand alone MC phono stages. And of course I also make high end head amps! These are for use with a MM only phono stage, which includes the vast majority of valve phono stages,

But enough of all that.... yet another rave review for the Arkless 640P... Get buying 'em folks!:cool:

[struth]

Is that what he pays? I'll do a review for that. Don't want no green ones though.

Green ones are the best....gotta eat your greens ;)

[montesquieu]

Is that what he pays? I'll do a review for that. Don't want no green ones though.


Careful. If you said that in Scotland now you'd get arrested.

[Marco]

With hindsight I don't think I'll bother with a technical explanation... the problem with uber subjectivists is they have a "belief system" which, to them, over-rides all scientific fact!:D


Ha - the irony is incredible! And you think that YOU don't have a scientific "belief system" that overrides any notion that subjective experiences outside of that can be real? :lol:

Honestly, Jez, you're a hoot!! :D

Marco.

[Arkless Electronics]

Ha - the irony is incredible! And you think that YOU don't have a scientific "belief system" that overrides any notion that subjective experiences outside of that can be real? :lol:

Honestly, Jez, you're a hoot!! :D

Marco.

"Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to their own facts" Daniel Patrick Moynihan

[Marco]

Facts have very little to do with the (subjective) sound quality aspects of audio, which in this instance is what we were debating.

I don't need a theory to explain what I can clearly hear with head amps and standalone MC phono stages, although it would've been interesting to have considered the one you had promised, rather than declining it in a strop, simply because my mindset is different from yours.

And if you think I'm the only one here who's controlled by a "belief system", you're in cloud-cuckoo land, which is the point I was making in my last post. The only difference is your 'control' comes from a textbook. Anyway, let's leave it there and not spoil the review thread any further.

Marco.