[Listening test] A survey of three phono preamps costing from $100 to $1300 USD

Products name: Lehmann Black Cube SE II, Hagerman Bugle 2 and the ART Audio Precision Phono
Manufacturers:
Lehmann Audio - Germany
Hagerman Audio Labs - USA
ART Applied Research and Technology - USA
Approx. prices: Lehmann $1300, Hagerman $259, ART $100; each in USD
Reviewer: M.L. Gneier - TNT USA
Reviewed: February, 2024

Whenever I evaluate analog products I frequently rediscover some of my most precious LPs. Sadly, some of those moments can remind me of the many LPs I lost some years ago. Those LPs were lost in a flood caused by a hot water leak inside my house. As luck would have it, I was on a three-week vacation when it happened. The flood caused thousands of dollars in damage. Even worse, I lost nearly 1,500 LPs in the flood. The insurance settlement, after a lot of argument, was decent. It paid $5 per LP. They started at $2 and it took months to validate the LP's value and prove how difficult, if not impossible, many of them were to replace. I know, $5 doesn't seem like much. But, back then used records were a lot less expensive than they are now so the $5 was about right. As I surmised, many of the lost records were never replaced. Though I enjoy rediscovering LPs I've not played in a while it's also sad to be reminded, even after all these years, that an LP I didn't realize was lost is in fact gone, for good.

What does this have to do with phono preamps, let alone the ones I'm writing about here? Just this: back when I bought my first phono pre I thought I was looking at a lifetime of LP purchasing, both new and used. It hasn't quite turned out that way. Sure, new records are still being pressed and new turntables are being purchased by people who are about the same age as I was when I bought my earliest tables, cartridges and LPs. But, there's a big difference. Today, LPs have become a novelty. There's nothing wrong with a novelty but we have to be honest about that fact. I'm sure some see this is a new golden age of analog but that's illusory. I've probably purchased fifty new LPs over the last two years or so. What do all of them have in common? Marginal pressing quality, poor vinyl and lots of surface noise. These defects occur no matter whether the LPs is from a major label or a so-called audiophile label. This observation has been confirmed by trusted colleagues who work in the relevant industries. I own forty-plus year old LPs that sound better and have less surface noise, even after thousands of playings, than virtually every one of those fifty new LPs. So, new LPs suck and used LPs are getting older everyday and are generally too expensive for the quality of music you're getting. You might see where I'm going already.

If I was buying a new phono preamp today I would be disinclined to spend a lot of dough on it. Sure, if I had cash burning holes in my pockets I'd dump some of it into a sexy phono stage just because. Today, as I look at many of the new turntables, some of them made by new or transitioned (think of McIntosh's MT10 Precision) companies. These firms are seeing dollar signs, at least for now. If you're a dyed in the wool capitalist this is OK but if you know enough about what's really happening in LP production it might give you pause. Much of the new analog gear seems designed to visually impress rather than sonically satisfy. That's simply wasteful in terms of design, engineering and materials. But, hey, at least for now, it sells.

It happened by accident, this look and listen to the group of phono preamps discussed here. Rest assured that this is as close as I will ever get to writing an article that compares products. That said, I found each of the preamps both interesting and musical. The range of prices goes from $1300 USD to a little over $100 USD. I lead off with the undeniable cream of this particular crop, the Lehmann Black Cube SE II. Shall I quit wasting time and get to the bottom line? This is all the preamp anyone will ever need. If you truly want to buy once and forget, this is your phono preamp. It is a very sensible product in nearly every respect. I must say that I don't especially care for the direction Lehmann has taken both above and below this product. The Black Cube variants that brought the company to the forefront of high end audio back in the 90s are simply not my cup of tea. Cable management is a real thing and having the inputs going one way and the outputs another is quite annoying, especially with thick and unwieldy cables. All of the Cubes are admittedly classic products but in actual use it is an unmitigated pain, at least to me.

You would be wise to save your money and buy a Black Cube SE II. You will not regret it. I have two main criticisms of this product. Let's get those out of the way. First, I dislike outboard power supplies especially ones attached via a permanent umbilicus as with the Black Cube SE II's audio section. I know the mission is lower noise (more on that soon, however) but it's not worth it. Second, it's a little noisy. It's important that I'm talking about noise levels that a reviewer might notice not noise levels that the average audiophile would be bothered by. Interestingly, the noise levels were pretty much the same (perceptibly) regardless of the output of the cartridge or the gain level. Again, this is not the kind of noise you're likely to hear in daily use but it's there so just be aware of it. Noise aside, the Black Cube SE II is a fantastic phono preamp not least because of its superb adaptability. Through the use dip switches and jumpers you can adjust it to virtually any imaginable system or source. You're unlikely to use many of the adjustments, but it's nice to know that if the day comes, you'll be ready for whatever system changes may present themselves.

When I was a younger writer my father warned me that the right word or words would not always come as readily as when I was young. He was right. I've been trying to get to get to a word or two or three that describes the sound of the Black Cube SE II. I'm trying hard to avoid typical audiophile jargon like transparent, detailed and the like. Those words do nothing as well as they have confused decades worth of audiophiles with their vagueness. I will say that the Black Cube SE II is especially good at rendering timbre. Often when I'm swapping back and forth between phono preamps I will hear that the timbre of a lone instrument like a violin or even female voice will be presented with poorly differentiated timbre. This is primarily heard in direct comparison but if you listen long enough you'll hear that something is missing when a component or entire system is devoid of the kind of fidelity that ensures proper retrieval of timbre.

I've long suspected that this issue with timbre might be attributable to hysteresis distortion, but for this I have absolutely no evidence. It's not even clear whether the lack or information about timbre is an issue with commission or omission. Think about it. When listening to an LP you are listening to layer upon layer of processing, all with the goal of retaining the un-retainable qualities of what? The sound of the master or master tape? Good luck. This also begs the question of whether the information about timbre was ever there in the first place. In many cases, even with well-regarded classical releases I would say that it's often not. But, timbre is where the Black Cube SE II excels.

It's also an excellent retriever of natural dynamic shift and flow. I'm often amused that even with the superior dynamic range of digital we are often left with recordings with little recorded dynamic range. Go figure. The Black Cube SE II captures subtle dynamics superbly and it does so at every listening level. This is not a phono preamp that needs to be turned up to sound good. In fact, I found myself relishing in the Black Cube SE II's ability to maintain its fundamental presentation at very low levels. Its presentation is simultaneously sophisticated and unobtrusive. It's there, it's good, yet it's easy to forget it's there and all of the things it's doing so well. The Lehmann Black Cube SE II is a magnificent phono preamp. If you're an honest musical lover, you will never outgrow it.

A colleague of mine told me about Jim Hagerman and Hagerman Audio Labs. His Bugle preamp has gone through four iterations and I was lucky enough to spend time with the latest, the Bugle MC. At $259 it is pretty much free so if you want to go ahead and buy one instead of enjoying the rest of this article you will not hurt my feelings. The Bugle MC is a flexible preamp offering gain settings from 40 to 60dB and commensurate adjustments for input loading. Best (to some folks) would be the fact that all of these adjustments are done via rotary knobs on the front panel. Me? I'd prefer that kind of stuff, stuff that's adjusted pretty much only when a new cartridge is being installed, be handled elsewhere (like inside or on the back panel). The Bugle MC is a small preamp with a big, bold presentation. The flip side of this boldness is a subtle sense of congestion that creeps in when the music becomes dense, heavily produced or particularly dynamic. Over time I wished that the Bugle was a little more suave and gentle in its presentation. While the Lehmann went overboard in an effort to not to call attention to itself, the Bugle was a bit more of an extrovert.

In my system the Bugle was also a tad more noisy that the Lehmann. But hold on a minute. I just got an email from Jim Hagerman and he told me that he's upgrading the first opamp in the BUGLE MC with an OPA2210 that delivers an astonishing 6dB better noise floor (quieter). I'll be evaluating the Bugle update and reporting on it soon. Anyway, I admit quite readily to being a bit of a noise freak. I just don't like it. For years it made me generally dismissive of tube gear (that was until I heard some genuinely quiet tube gear and then I fell in love). I don't dismiss noise in tube gear or solid state. I simply don't think it needs to be there. If some designs can get rid of it then it has no business in any competent design. Please don't take this to mean that I find the noise level of either the Lehmann or the Hagerman to be excessive or inexcusable because I don't. Again, it's largely in comparison that noise is noticed and most especially while doing formal comparisons that are, truly, very far away from listening for pure pleasure. I enjoy the Bugle MC for the bold, gutsy, quirky little guy it is. Its shortcomings are actually a bit endearing when compared to relentless unflappability of the Lehmann. Both are fine phono preamps and you will not find two designers who are more dedicated to their craft than Jim Hagerman and Norbert Lehmann. They are two of the good guys within their profession.

Do I have any idea whatsoever who designed the ART Audio Precision Phono Pre? Nope, but I wish I did because I'd like to shake his hand. I imagine him as a guy working in anonymity, someone who knew that no one would ever know his name or associate him with a product, who was nonetheless dedicated to designing an excellent preamp with very little to work with in terms of its final cost. The ART (like the other preamps here) provides RIAA equalization and 43dB of gain in moving magnet mode and 63 dB of gain in moving coil mode. When moving coil is selected you can choose a load of 100 or 24 Ohms with a push-button on the rear panel. In moving-magnet mode the unit provides a load of 47k Ohms, suitable for all moving magnets and high-output moving coils. There's a handy gain knob up front that I used to keep everyone's volume pot adjusted toward afternoon as my old friend Roger Modjeski liked to call it. You could even be wondering why the ART Audio Precision Phono Pre is included in this article at all. There's a good reason. It is an undeniably fine phono preamp that looks bad and costs nearly nothing. It's true; it lacks any semblance of visual appeal. You could use the power indicators as reading lights. And yes, ART likes to use lots of colors in their LEDs; blue for power green or red for clip and yellow for MM/MC selection. The sight of the ART Audio Precision Phono Pre will NOT impress your friends and neighbors. Still, with all of the money you save you can easily afford some kind of enclosure to hide the little devil from view altogether. Yes, I'm joking...or am I?

The performance of the ART preamp means at least two things to me. First, it means that for a bill of materials plus labor that cannot possibly exceed $15 to $20 (and I think that's probably a generous estimate) ART can create a rugged (if ugly) phono preamp that is stunningly good for little more than the price of a fast-food meal. By inference the performance of the ART also means that many far more expensive phono preamps are not anywhere near as well executed from the standpoint of technical circuit design and execution.

Playing an LP means your system is creating and amplifying noise. There's no avoiding that reality. The inherent noise floor of vinyl is very high. You can think of it in comparison to enlarging a photo or attempting to record a quiet conversation that's happening in the next room. In the case of the photo just imagine you're trying to zoom in on some text that's very small but as you continue to zoom in the text actually becomes even less readable. You'll end up with more noise (blurred pixels) than you have actual signal (text you can read). The same goes for the recording of people talking in the next room over. You can crank up the mic gain all you want but in the end there's a good chance the recording will yield little retrieval of the conversation. The signal you want (the sound of conversation) will be swamped by noise. So it is with a noisy phono preamp. It's trying to amplify the information that's in the LP's grooves but the essential weakness of its design is simply adding too much noise of its own. Gain is dandy but gain with low noise is what you're really after when it comes to a really good phono preamp.

The sound of the ART is greatly informed by its amazingly low noise. It is easily one of the quietest phono preamps I've ever used. You don't hear quiet any more than you see darkness. But, the ART's comparative silence reveals signal in your LPs that a noisy preamp cannot help but obscure. And, this obscurement will happen all the time, at every volume, with every LP you play. That's why the ART is so unbelievably good.

Am I saying the ART is better than the Hagerman or the Lehmann? Nope. Am I saying that either of both of them are better than the ART? No, I am not. I know many reviewers enjoy comparing one product to another and judging what they believe to be the winner and loser. And, I understand why that kind of reviewer is popular to some casual readers but that's just not the job, at least in my opinion. It's my job to tell you what I experience as the advantages and disadvantages of what I review and what it's like to actually use a given product. The final judgment of value is and should always be yours alone.

It's up to you. It's your job to decide whether you spend $1300, $259 dollars or $100 on a phono preamp. Each sum will buy you a phono preamp that many people enjoy but only you can decide what's right for you, your system and your music. For what it's worth, I enjoy the charm and bravado of the Hagerman and I respect the sheer competence and versatility of the Lehmann. And then there's the horrible looking little ART and its front panel that resembles nothing so much as a multicolored series of headlights. For me, it does it all. It is quiet, revealing and musically unobtrusive. It's not that I can't afford to spend more. Heck, the cables that connect the ART to my system cost over five times its price. It's just that I'm unsure there's any reason to spend more with the ART Audio Precision Phono Pre out in the world. You may never hear the ART and your may never believe me but it is truly that good.

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Lehmann Black Cube SE II, Hagerman Bugle 2 and the ART Audio Precision Phono

Let's find what is achievable in a $100, $259 and $1300 USD phono preamp