[Zkidd]

For several years I searched for a phonostage that was going to let me get the most out of my vinyl collection. I admit that I had a budget so I was not free to "go crazy" and I limited myself to between $3K to $3.5K. I was (and still am) using a Rega P8 table with a Sumiko Blue Point No.3 (a cartridge that should not be underestimated merely based on its cost). So the journey started..

I first started off by reading as many reviews as possible. At the time I was looking there were not many tube based phono preamps that were in my price range so that limited me to solid state units but that was okay for there were several brands that were highly recommended; Sutherland, Parasound, Plinius, Avid, Phonomena and others. I bought a lot to include that were highly recommended by several audio magazines to include one very well known analog expert. Nothing worked - they were all duds. I had Parasound, Plinius, Phonomena, Sutherland, and a few others. I was losing hope (and money).

By this time I had purchased a Modwright LS100 as well as a Modwright KWA100SE (all are highly recommended BTW). The dealer from whom I bought these mildly suggested I try the Modwright PH 9.0. It was tubed, within my budget, I had some equipment I had sold so I was within budget. So I bought a PH 9.0. Dan built it and it was shipped to me within a week of ordering it. Since I live in Washington state it only took a day to ship. When it arrived I anxiously opened the box and removed a very well crafted and engineered phono preamp. It only took a matter of a few minutes to install. I fired up the whole system and let it cook for a few hours.

After those hours passed I sat down and put on my first LP, a 45rpm recording of Melody Gardot and played "Maybe I am a fool". And there it was. Magic! There was the sound that only analog can give and it was there in spades! Even my wife came in from another room and asked what had I bought for whatever it was it was NOT to be sold! LP after LP came out and I sat for six hours soaking it all in. It was like the first time I had heard great vinyl being played.

That was some months back and with boredom setting in and convalescing from some intense surgery, I decided to have Dan upgrade the PH9.0 with the "X" upgrade. This removes the caps, some chokes and replaces them with two hefty Lundahl transformers so the 9.0 will be truly balanced and transformer coupled. The upgrades are listed on the Modwright website. Today I received the 9.0 back with the X mods. Oh my...Oh my, my, my. I have never spent money more wisely than I did when I had Dan modify the 9.0 with this X upgrade. How he does this for so little money is beyond me. The man is a genuis and also a magician! Even cold with a mere few minutes to get the tubes up and running the 9.0 X is a stunner. And I do not say that lightly. The word(s) I keep coming back to are clear, alive, real, dynamic, intoxicating and simply bone chilling. The soundstage grew in all directions, the clarity of the performers, orchestra or whatever you have on the table is beyond belief. I feel as if I bought another $50,000 worth of gear - amps, speakers, wire, you name it. Simply stunning...

I do not want to take up a lot of room or time but I did want to let anyone who is thinking about buying a 9.0 or a 9.0X this: you will not do better anywhere. Please trust me. I spent a lot of time and effort trying to get my vinyl rig to play like I know it should and it never sang until the 9.0 arrived. Even if you do not get the X upgrade (but you should) the 9.0 will amaze you. It is highly adaptive so there will be a lot of cartridges you can use. I am not using an expensive cartridge by any means and I am loving this! It is music as music should be.

Dan is a man who deserves your attention. He answers emails personally, his staff is kind and fun and they take care of you. It is the type of service one longs for and you get it in heaps. I am so impressed I am planning on selling some body parts to get to the LS300 preamp for if that does a tenth of what I think it will do, I would die a happy man.

I cannot say enought about Modwright. If you are looking for a phono preamp, you need to look no further than the 9.0 or 9.0X. It is a true game changer...

Thanks for your attention and patience...

[SteveFord]

Interesting review.
To help put this in context, what were you using before?

[twitch54]

Interesting review.
To help put this in context, what were you using before?

Like Steve, I'm curious as well. Also curious as to what made the Parasound and Sutherland phono-pre's seem like 'duds' , what models did you use ?

[Zkidd]

Parasound, JC 3 Jr. and the full sized JC 3+ as well as the Sutherland Insight. Neither Parasound gave me anything that sounded more than just two dimensional and perhaps I was taken in by the reviews but I heard nothing that was any better than I had heard with my Phonomena II. The Sutherland was better but again not great. I should have spent more on the Sutherland I suppose but I wanted to hear perhaps what I could expect with Sutherland before maybe moving up. I had an Acurus P10 that sounded better than the smaller Parasound.
I realize in audio there are always synergistic matches ; I get that. But one would think that with all the different tables, cartridges etc. available to a reviewer someone might have come across some issues such as I experienced. If folks love theirs I am happy for them. I simply wanted to let others know that for all the time and money I spent on several brands trying to get them to work for me, I hit the home run with the 9.0 and better still the X.
I try to be open minded and again realizing that "one man's meat is another's poison" but with so, so many glowing reviews on the Curl designs I thought I could not fail. The clincher is always when the bride, who rarely comments on things audio, comes to me and asks me just what did I do? That is a signal that her superior hearing is not happy.

Thanks...I hope that helps some.

[Zkidd]

Re-reading SteveFord and twitch54 emails, I see I neglected some detail so I will try again.

I had an Acurus P10 that gave way to a Phonomena II that gave way to the JC3 Jr, that evolved into a Insight that morphed into the JC 3+ that became a Plinius Koro that became the Modwright 9.0 and then the X.  The turntable was (is) a Rega P8 with the Ania cartridge.

I have always experienced a more "truthful" and "alive" musical presentation with analog. In my youth and college days I played in high school and college orchestras as well as marching bands. I attend (or used to until the plague) Seattle Symphony no less than a half dozen times a year. I include that just for reference that I have some idea what I want from recorded music. I do not expect recorded to ever duplicate the real thing but there are some times that I feel I am pretty darn happy with what I hear. Prior to the PH 9.0 and 9.0 X I was not getting that sense of "alive" and "truth" in the music. Frankly, a lot of what I was hearing sounded "mid-fi". Like a play on the words of the former Supreme Court justice describing pornography, I will apply a small twist here and say I might not be able to define what music is but I know it when I hear it. I did NOT hear it with the other phono preamps.

Again, considering the time and money spent on purchases, selling fees (PayPal), shipping time etc, I simply am trying to let people know to audition before they buy, if they can. And even then the returns can be problematic, is there enough break-in before the return etc. And too, Dan's company is not huge like some of the others so I would like to call attention to him and his products and to let people know that here is a product that can easily slew dragons and with ease.

Thanks. I hope I did better that time answering questions...

[twitch54]

'Z', thanks for the chronology of your phono-pre's. All I can say is.... WOW !! I counted 8, not sure what your time span was but I've been spinning 'black pizza' since the sixties and while I didn't go the separate route with respect to phono-pre until about 16-18 years ago I'm only on my third !

Glad you've found happiness with the Modwright !!

[SteveFord]

Yes, that really helps.
Great review!

[Zkidd]

Thanks gents, for the patience and kind words. I never intended to have so many phono preamps but I think it illustrates the need to audition wisely as well as the differences we all hear, plus the fact that not all "little black boxes" deliver on their promise. But nice to know I am now done. I cannot imagine doing better unless I spent an obscene amount of money and even then I believe all I would get is a small incremental change.

Nope, the 9.0 X is (to me) a true game changer. I believe this story helps illustrate it some: I have a neighbor who has two teenage kids and those kids were collecting food for their church and stopped by my home just yesterday. I had Christmas music playing in the background, some older LP from my sister from years back. The older of the two kids, a boy aged 18 said he really liked the music. I asked him if he wanted to see how it was being played and he and his sister came in. My wife and I showed the kids the turntable and a few other things. They went through my LPs and played a Beach Boys LP of all things (Surf's Up). I put it on and the two kids were just sitting there with the mouths hanging open. The 16 year old girl said she has never heard music so clear in her entire life. Anyway, the kids now know what vacuum tubes are and how music sounds when it is not compressed. I do not feel that the demonstration would have gone as well with the prior "pieces" in play but I could be wrong.

Thanks again for the patience. Have a wonderful holiday season and I hope the Audio Santa is good to you both!

[Zkidd]

Hi twitch54,
All of those were over the course of about six years, give or take a few months. Sometimes there were two phono preamps in the house at one time. If I saw something that I wanted to try and it was a good deal or opportunity, I grabbed it and then would decide what to do with it later. I have to give my wife two  for being patient with me.