Pro-Ject Phono Box S2 (Black)

I did allot of research on the top preamps for under $200. The choices were between The Pro-ject Phono Box S2, the Schiit Mani and the ifi Zen preamp. Two things that really set the Pro-ject apart from the other two are: the Pro-ject has an on/off switch on the front of it. You may feel this is no big deal, you can just plug it into the "switched" outlet of the amplifier. The problem with that is whenever you turn the amp on, if you don't turn the volume down, they'll be a huge pop threw your speakers that can ruin them. The second, and bigger reason, the Pro-ject you can adjust the capacitance load out of your preamp. The other two have a set capacitance load of around 100pF. This made a huge difference for me in the sound output to my speakers. I'm using an old school Shure m97xE cartridge because it's a great cart for rock and roll but has a slightly rolled off high end. So I swapped the stylus out for a LP Gear vivid line stylus which brightened the high end up too much with my preamp that had a capacitance out of 100pF. With the Pro-ject, I can set the capacitance load to 200pF and WOW, what a difference. The sound was no longer overly bright and the bass now had a punch to it that was perfect for my rock albums.The gain is also much more in line with what my setup needed. I tried the 40db setting at first and found that even too low. So I changed it to the 43db gain and was much more in line with the other components in my system. A gain of 36db would be much too low for what I needed. This is what steered me away from the iFi Zen preamp.I had no problem at all understanding the instructions on how to set the dip switches. There are two banks of switches that need to be set the same. One for the left channel and one for the right. I have them set @ 47Kohms, 43db, 200pF.Another thing I really noticed about this preamp was the stereo separation was much better than my old preamp. Probably because this amp uses two separate mono circuits to keep the sound separated.The amp is also dead quite with not the littlest bit of noise or hum that I can hear. The enclosure seems to work perfectly. Even when turned up loud this amp is dead quit.

I was hesitant on going with an external preamp because I thought my system sounded great as it was. Well, once I decided to make the plunge, my soundstage opened up immensely. Details were flying out of my speakers. Channel separation was so much greater. I cannot say enough good about this thing. Once you dial in the DIP switches on the bottom per your cartridges specs, (by the way, there are two sets of switches because left and right channels get their own set of switches. It had my confused for quite awhile at first) it’s sublime. Plus it’s just got one button on the front, on or off. Simplicity!! Oh and it’s solid metal construction so it’s a freaking tank. You can feel the quality Pro-ject puts into their products.To sum it up: it’s worth every penny. You can hear all the nuances that you didn’t know existed and the overall sound is just amazing.

I’m recently getting back into vinyl after a 30 year hiatus. I picked up a Pro-Ject Debut Carbon Evo last November and have really been enjoying it. My current setup consists of the Evo, a Yamaha a-s301 and Klipsh rp160m.As I’m building up my vinyl collection some records sounded better than others. This is to be expected, but even the better sounding ones were not great from a separation and fidelity perspective. I started thinking maybe the amp wasn’t well suited to vinyl playback or that I had just become to used to digital. I stream YouTube Music and listen to FLAC via a Raspberry Pi with a Hifiberry Digi+ Pro HAT running MoOde Audio into the coaxial of the a-s301. It sounds great.Back to the vinyl. As I started researching new amps I learned about external phono preamps. Prices ranged from $25 - $2500 and more. I decided to see what was available in the $200 and under range and picked up the Pro-Ject Phono Box S2. It was at the limit of my budget, but I figured it should pair well with the Evo and the reviews I could find were all positive.Suffice it to say, I’m no longer in the market for a new amp (for now). The S2 has been a game changer. It’s really quiet. Records that had previously been unlistenable due to the pops and cracks now sound good. The records that already sounded good are phenomenal. There is better bass, separation and dynamic range. It’s the vinyl sound I was craving.If you’re using the built in phono stage on a lower end amp or turntable, get a quality external unit. I’m thinking the $100 - $200 range will be a noticeable improvement for most.A couple of Records that sound awesome are:• ⁠Bob Marley: Rastaman Vibration• ⁠Art Blakey: Roots and Herbs• ⁠Fania All Stars: Live at Yankee Stadium• ⁠Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings: Soul Time

I put this on a fluance rt82 +++ with a vintage sure v15 type 3 and a lpgear vivid and its magic. The dip switches on the bottom are easy to figure out if you take the time to read and understand that your switching left and right channels independantly. Theres enough adjustment to go from the factory om10 to a orto blue to a pickering tl3 to a shure v15 with the flip of a couple of switches. Very small footprint and sounds as warm as my highbred yaquin b23 tube preamp.I liked it so much i bought a second unit for my project xpression iiiMy only complaint is for 200.00 bucks each the ground lugs are junk, i replaced them both with quality Vampire brand ground lugs.