Analog Corner

In the April 2000 issue of Stereophile, I reviewed SME's Model 10, which was an attempt by that storied company to produce an "affordable" turntable. I described the Model 10's $5500 turntable-only price—about $7600 in today's dollars—as "stiff." (At the time, the Model 10 cost $5995 with SME's M10 arm, or $8250 with their IV.Vi arm.) But 16 years later, the same Model 10 costs only $5000 ($7000 with the more recent Model 10 arm, which is superior to the M10).

Designer Bill Hutchins, of LKV Research, builds the 2-SB moving-magnet/moving-coil phono preamplifier in North Conway, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire; he uses as many US-sourced parts as possible, and sells his products factory direct. I reviewed the 2-SB in March 2014, on AnalogPlanet.com: the 2-SB's sound was exceptionally fine—especially if you like refined, solid-state quiet and detail, and especially considering its then-price of $2500. Since that review's publication, the 2-SB has been upgraded with a version of the third gain stage from LKV's JFET-based Veros One phono preamp ($6500; see below), and its price has risen to a still-reasonable $3000.

In May 2014, Bill Hutchins introduced the Veros One phono preamplifier ($6500).

Recently, when a reader questioned my hearing acuity on account of my age—I'm 69—I didn't argue: I don't hear as well as I did when I was 40, or 50, or even 60, and it would be foolish to claim otherwise. However, while my hearing isn't what it once was, neither is my listening—which has never been better. Audio perception is a combination of what the ear delivers and what the brain does with it.

My upper-octave response still sounds to be all there. Are there some lumps and bumps below? Probably. And some tinnitus noise encroaching on very-low-level material? No denying it. But as far as I'm concerned, at least for now, I'm still quite capable of doing this job.