BRINKMANN: La Grange and one of the world’s first fully balanced vinyl replay systems

[Neil McCauley]

http://www.hifianswers.com/2017/06/q-brinkmann-and-world-first-fully-html/

[sq225917]

So if the Ayre stage was fully balanced, and all cartridges, (except odd regas) are inherently balanced anyway, I'm struggling to see where the claim to being the first to own a fully balanced vinyl replay systems comes from. Was the Ayre the first ever balanced phonostage? Was Howard the first to own one?

[Neil McCauley]

Probably, and yes.

[Barry]

I can't see any dates mentioned in the article, and since the internal wiring of most pick up arms is balanced, the question as to who was the first to use a "fully balanced vinyl replay system" is somewhat moot.

[Arkless Electronics]

I can recall fully balanced phono stages being around (but rare) in the early 80's and would guess it would have been done decades before where a SUT was used into a probably valved RIAA stage which then had a balanced transformer output... the latter probably in a professional scenario.. a recording studio or record cutting QC area.

[sq225917]

Atmasphere introduced the first commercially available balanced/ fully differential phonostage in 89, the MP1. Since Ayre weren't incorporated until 1993 that pretty much puts the lie to your article and Howard's misplaced belief.

[Barry]

But is an RIAA phonostage which simply has a centre-tapped SUT at the imput and an output transformer with a centre-tapped secondary winding, but uses unbalanced circuitry between the two, a fully balanced device?

[Arkless Electronics]

But is an RIAA phonostage which simply has a centre-tapped SUT at the imput and an output transformer with a centre-tapped secondary winding, but uses unbalanced circuitry between the two, a fully balanced device?

It's a point worthy of debate yes.

I have design by Barry Porter in an ETI mag from , IIRC, around 1983 which has true balanced inputs and an option of balanced output. It uses op amps.

[sq225917]

All long before the existence of Ayre

[Barry]

It's a point worthy of debate yes.

I have design by Barry Porter in an ETI mag from , IIRC, around 1983 which has true balanced inputs and an option of balanced output. It uses op amps.

What is your opinion of that design? Is it suitable for MC cartridges? How is the equalisation realised?

[Arkless Electronics]

What is your opinion of that design? Is it suitable for MC cartridges? How is the equalisation realised?

I'm afraid I can't be arsed to plough through piles of old mags to find it but I recall that it looked like a good design and was suitable for MC and MM carts. It used the super low noise LM394 matched pair before NE5534 op amps but I can't recall how the RIAA was realised...