I have been testing the phono pre-amp mostly. I, too have a Bugle. My impression is the RIPPER is better, but hey it's mostly a Bugle. But there are upgrades in it and a power supply for convenience. Then, it has a very nice case. I have been playing around with the gain control as well. This is an interesting feature as well. I found it stone quiet with the gain at full....pretty amazing I think. But, remember when you say "is it worth the extra $$"....you can't compare apple and oranges. The RIPPER has the case, volume control, better RCA's, a headphone amp/output and the ADC's for burning CD's. The thing I really like about these Hagerman products is the quality PCB you get. I'm far from an experienced techie, but everything I've taken apart, e.g. Parasound, Rotel, etc (good stuff, but reasonably priced) has a really flimsy PCB in comparison. If the Hag kits came with such a cheap board, it would be so much harder. There MUST be good sonic advantages to a well-designed PCB that is as sturdy as the ones used in the Hag products. I have some very nice electronics, but the build-quality of the Hag stuff is the best I have, want and believe, need.
