Transfiguration Phoenix--First Impressions

I mounted and aligned the Transfiguration Phoenix earlier today, and I've been listening for the last few hours. It was a bit more difficult to mount this cartridge for two reasons. First, it has sort of a large body and a rather small cantilever, so it was harder to see where the tip of the stylus was landing on my alignment protractor. Second, it's a $4250 cartridge, and I get a little nervous when mounting the big-dollar carts. I'm reminded of my Koetsu days, where I nearly had a heart attack every time I swapped cartridges. I busted a cantilever once due to carelessness, and I still have nightmares about having to write the $880 check for a re-tip.

That said, all went well today. My only real obstacle came when I tried to remove the stylus guard from the Phoenix. It's a stubborn little mofo. I wound up calling Colleen into the room; she has longer fingernails.

Once installed, the Transfiguration Phoenix immediately impressed me. The first thing I noticed was that surface noise was significantly reduced. That's one of the magical things about the nicer low-output moving coils, they tend to relegate surface noise deeper into the background so it's less noticeable. My Koetsus did that, and so does the Phoenix.

So what was the first LP I played? My Nautilus Half-Speed version of Ghost in the Machine by The Police. It was the last LP I'd listened to with the Unison Research UN1...just last night. While the Phoenix is going to need about 100 hours of break-in--which is why I have it in the first place--it still had an open, relaxed and effortless feel to it. This is an album notable for the black, velevety silences between the notes (I talk about this further in my next Vinyl Anachronist column for Perfect Sound Forever), and the Phoenix's low noise floor really brought these qualities to the forefront. There's still a little harshness in the upper treble, but this will go away after a few more LPs.

Together with the PureAudio Vinyl preamplifier and the Giro turntable, this is probably the best analog rig I've used for a long time--maybe even ever. As great as my old Michell Gyro SE, SME V and Koetsu Rosewood were, mated to whatever phono stage I was using at the time, this rig is less fiddly and much more solid in both sound and in build quality. Colleen sat down for a while and listened to one of our favorite reference tracks, "Yulunga" from my MoFi pressing of Into the Labyrinth from Dead Can Dance, and she said, "This is the best our system has ever sounded." I agree wholeheartedly.

PureAudio Pure Vinyl Phono Preamplifier Review at AudioEnz

This review from AudioEnz of the PureAudio Pure Vinyl Phono Preamplifier is cool for two reasons. First, we know Gary Morrison of PureAudio and he's already told us all about his new New Zealand-based company. Gary was the head of Plinius for many years and was responsible for some of their most celebrated designs, such as the 8150 and 8200 integrated amplifiers. PureAudio will be featuring more ambitious designs than Plinius; the phono preamplifier will probably cost around $4500 or so when it reaches the US. PureAudio also features monoblock amplifiers (running in class A) and a preamplifier. As you can see, the casework on these products is simply stunning.

Second, the review appeared in the New Zealand audio mag AudioEnz. For those of you who have followed the Vinyl Anachronist over the years, you'll know I wrote for AudioEnz for a couple of years. Michael Jones was a great boss, and I enjoyed working for him. It's funny, but people started assuming that I was from New Zealand for a while. Nope, I was an American who happened to write for a New Zealand magazine. I knew Michael from a couple of audio discussion groups, and we bonded over our shared befuddlement over the popularity of the Technics SL-1200.

Perfect Sound Forever, who has published my Vinyl Anachronist column since 1998, was going through some turbulent times including a temporary format switch and a new editor. For a couple of months, PSF disappeared and I assumed it was gone forever. I didn't want the column to die, so I approached Michael. He happily kept it going, but there were a couple of changes--I had to write about products that were available in New Zealand. That became a challenge over the ensuing months, since not everything I wanted to talk about was available in New Zealand. While the New Zealand audio scene was very active and represented by such well-known brands as Perraux, Plinius and a few others, this American was constantly searching for relevant things to write about.

When PSF reappeared in its original format, I started writing two separate Vinyl Anachronist columns for each publication. I found that I was quickly running out of content for columns. When AudioEnz went on hiatus after Michael had eye surgery, we let the association quietly dissolve. But I'm very glad to see the new, refreshed AudioEnz back online. It's also great to see them give such a rave review to Gary's phono preamplifier as well. Or, as reviewer Michael Wong concludes, "The Vinyl squarely hits all its design targets and in my experience is the finest phono stage ever made in New Zealand (and given the directions taken by other local manufacturers, is likely to hold the top spot for a long time to come)."

Congratulations, Gary! Great review.