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Stellar Phono Preamplifier

Stellar Phono Preamplifier

Our finest phono preamplifier in the company's 45-year history. All analog from input to output, this stunning addition to the Stellar line will bring new life to your vinyl in ways you never dreamt possible.
PS engineer Darren Myers wiped the tradition slate clean by hand-fashioning a new approach to capturing all the magic trapped in the grooves of our records. The results are breathtaking. Music that might once have been locked into the confines of our loudspeakers is suddenly free. Stellar phono features dual inputs that can support either a moving coil or moving magnet cartridge. Cartridge loading and gain options are easily adjusted from your listening position via the supplied remote control. Input to output, Stellar is a fully discrete FET design with extraordinarily low noise and high overload capabilities so even the wildest dynamics from the punchiest cartridges sail through Stellar with no limitations or compromise whatsoever. If you love vinyl you’ll love Stellar.
Regular price $2,999.00 USD
Regular price Sale price $2,999.00 USD
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  • Design

    Phono preamplifiers at anywhere near this price range are almost always integrated circuit based, but not Stellar. Input to output, Stellar is a fully discrete FET design with extraordinarily low noise and high overload capabilities so even the wildest dynamics from the punchiest cartridges sail through Stellar with no limitations or compromise whatsoever. Stellar Phono stands out in a crowded field of conventional IC designs. Its sound is rich, warm and enticing as only vinyl through hand-tuned class-A circuitry can be.

  • Application

    Stellar is the perfect phono preamplifier for any resolution system or cartridge type. From the lowest output moving coil to the most dynamic and punchy moving magnet, Stellar Phono will deliver incredible performance, low noise, and world class sonics. Use Stellar as your reference preamplifier in the highest end systems in the world. Stellar comes complete with remote control so users can select between two turntables, or adjust cartridge loading and gain settings from the comfort of their chairs.

    Technology

    PS Audio’s first product was a phono preamplifier that took the Hi-Fi world by storm in 1975. Its designers, Paul and Stan, labored for years over every circuit detail with one goal in mind—making musical magic. Stellar Phono shares that same ethos. Stellar Phono is the finest preamplifier PS Audio has ever built in its 45 year history and sets a new standard within the industry. It is a triumph of performance and value that you’ll instantly recognize from that first needle drop, as music emerges from a velvet blackness, filling the room as if there were no speakers. Stellar handles all cartridge types and employs no ICs in the signal path. Its all discrete, class A analog design produces over 20V rms output for unparalleled headroom and dynamics.

    • MOVING MAGNET AND COIL
    • FIXED AND VARIABLE LOADING
    • 70dB ULTRA LOW NOISE GAIN .15mv CARTRIDGES
    • 2x INPUTS FOR 2x TONEARMS
    • SINGLE-ENDED BALANCED INPUTS
    • DISCRETE FET DESIGN
    • CLASS 'A' ANALOG CIRCUITRY
    • NO ICs IN SIGNAL PATH
    • 20v RMS OUTPUT
    • PASSIVE RIAA CURVE
    • HAND SELECTED DISCRETE COMPONENTS
    • DC COUPLED FROM INPUT TO OUTPUT
    • LOW NOISE PRE + POST VOLTAGE REGULATION
    • NO COMPLIMENTARY FET TRANSISTORS
    • OVERSIZED POWER TRANSFORMER
    • REMOTE CONTROL
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    Specifications - Stellar Phono Preamplifier

    Reviews

    Like a new record collection

    I'd say the addition of this new preamp has really elevated my system and so far I see no downsides. I have not found a record yet that I think, “nope just can't listen to that.” In fact, the opposite is true - I feel like I have a new record collection waiting to be discovered.

    Sending shivers down my spine

    For me, in my room, this is an amazing new box and I can't wait to hear it today, especially after the overnight burn in. My Sutherland is for sale.

    Spoiler alert!

    The Stellar phono stage is an impressive piece of work. Once you move past the $2,500 price point for these devices, things get crazy pretty quickly. For the vinyl newbie or someone looking for their first high-end separate phono stage, this is pretty much a no-brainer. For anyone who is contemplating a $5k - $10k spend on a phono stage upgrade, this is a must audition product at the very least. Darren's creation is going to cause some heartburn elsewhere in the industry.

    BLACKEST background I have EVER heard

    I had time to swap out my Gold Note for my Stellar Phono Pre and after all connections were made, I switched inputs from CD to Phono and I heard NOTHING. I got worried thinking the Stellar had a problem even though I was certain I connected everything correctly. I started Clapton Unplugged and WOW !! This wonderful sound came from the BLACKEST background I have EVER heard in a Phono Pre (and I have had MANY) Don't know HOW you could achieve the kind of QUIET I heard (or NOT heard :) I only care that you did and it sounds AMAZING !!

    How did they pull this off?

    I wrote James and told him PS Audio should be PROUD!!! I am impressed and that is simply not easy to do at this stage of my audiophile path. Bravo gentlemen for making one of the top 3 SS phono stages I've heard, the others being the SPL Phonos and the iFi iPhono 2 although the SPP is better than the iPhono but at 5 times the price I would hope so:) The SPL Phonos just does things dynamically with the London that I've not heard another stage do. This is a golden age for phono stages when a company can build something that sounds as good as the Stellar at that kind of price. Build wise, sound wise, I actually don't know how they pulled it off.

    Questions?