Phono Preamp Reviews

I recently spent a week traveling—it was good to get out of the basement! First up, toward the end of May, was an event at the Audio Alternative, in Fort Collins, Colorado. Owner Rick Duplisea is a vinyl fanatic and Linnie whose store—actually, his sprawling home—is packed with gear and LPs. His record collection beats mine.

I get nervous when I hear that an audio company I like is suddenly under new ownership. Are the new owners planning to carry forward the legacy of the company's founders, or will they try to move things in a different direction?

The more I listen—to gear I'm reviewing as well as other people's hi-fis—the more I believe in intangibles. One of these intangibles is the art of system building.

On the front page of its owner's manual, Greek amplifier manufacturer Lab12 describes the Melto2 ($4995) as a "Remote Controlled, Fully Adjustable Phono Preamplifier." I'd describe it as a clear-speaking, fun-to-use, cartridge- and record-collector's dream. Plus: It's got tubes.

Last night, I sat on a bright yellow velveteen sofa eating red beans and rice while listening for three hours to blues and jazz from rare 78rpm records. I walked out feeling gospel-level raised up, with a head full of dreams and cultural memories.

I was heading back home to New York in my old Mercedes diesel on a Sunday evening, having just attended the annual Capital Audiofest near Washington, DC. Riding shotgun was fellow Stereophile scribbler Ken Micallef, and as we puttered along the straight, featureless lower half of the New Jersey Turnpike, we started to reminisce about our audio show experiences.

How was last fall for you? Mine was crazy. I traveled much of October: the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest one weekend, emceeing Chad Kassem's Blues Masters at the Crossroads Blues Festival the next, and the week after that, appearing at two Audio Advice stores, in Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina. From there I traveled to Los Angeles to attend a 30th-anniversary celebration for Tron at Grauman's Chinese Theatre.