Original owner. Comes with the supplied 12BH7 regulator and 6DJ8 output tubes, plus a matched pair of E80F (EF86) Valvo input tubes (recommended by Neumann, along with the pricier Telefunkens).
The top of the BH phono kit lineup, above the Reduction (heir to the Seduction, my former fave). 50 dB gain.
$695 $645+ shipping. PP friends and family, please, or add 3%.
http://bottlehead.com/?product=eros-phono-preamplifier-kitA set of 4 Herbie's Audio Lab Tendersoft isolation feet and the manual are also included.
From the BH site:
"Signal wiring is all point to point with Teflon insulated wire and solid core shielded twisted pair cable. The power supply is easily assembled on PC boards. It is an efficient Schottky rectifier supply feeding dual active loaded hybrid (12BH7/LM431) shunt regulators in parallel with each channel of the preamplifier circuit. The DC heater supply is a full wave bridge of super quiet Schottky rectifiers feeding a Linear Technology regulator. Each channel of the preamplifier circuit is a C4S isolated EF86 voltage amplifier direct coupled to 1/2 of a C4S isolated 6DJ8 voltage amplifier, with the passive RIAA equalization network positioned between the two gain stages. Only one output coupling capacitor is in the signal path of each channel – a metallized polypropylene type. Resistors are a combination of high quality metal film, carbon film and carbon composition resistors, each chosen for optimal performance in the intended application. Filter capacitors are overrated for long life. Tube sockets are high quality ceramic with aluminum shields. A ground post is provided for phono cable and turntable grounding."
The Eros has rich tone, air and articulation. Just a musical delight and a lot for your money. I'd keep it, except I now want a tube phono stage with lower gain (36 dB?) to pair with an A23 SUT and the Denon DL-103.
