Phono stage
typical
Among the 44 phono stages in the catalogue, this one is typical.
A band places a component against its peers and carries no price. It is deliberately the only price indicator on this page: a second one, measured against a different set, would narrow the two together far enough to give the figure away.
Tom Evans Audio Design — Aberbargoed, South Wales, UK. Designer Tom Evans built phono stages for John Michell (the original Michell Iso used Tom's circuit in black acrylic casework). Microgroove+ X MkII is the second-up model in the Groove range; the "X" denotes adjustable cartridge loading via rear-panel DIP switches.
Lithos voltage regulation (Tom Evans proprietary): "3 times faster, 1000 times quieter, and 5 decimal places more accurate than the best previous regulators" per Tom Evans. Lithos 7 Class A regulators on the MkII (upgrade from earlier Lithos versions). The Lithos regulator family is Tom Evans' signature technology — low noise floor enables higher resolution claims.
The Ear review (Jason Kennedy): "highly resolute and remarkably even handed phono stage that will unearth details you may not have suspected were in the signal. It lacks the thickness that give other stages a greater sense of tonal depth but [transparency advantage]." Aberbargoed Wales hand-built.
Black acrylic casework chosen for non-magnetic properties (vs aluminium chassis that exhibit magnetic interactions). Visually a small unobtrusive box; companion PSU box of similar dimensions. Build philosophy: noise-floor obsession over cosmetic appeal.
Cartridge compatibility — MC focus: 0.2-0.6mV optimum gain is narrow band; cartridges below 0.2mV (rare — Koetsu Urushi ~0.2mV, some Lyra ~0.25mV) require factory custom gain. Cartridges above 0.6mV (most MM, high-output MC like Hana EH 2.0mV) overload — order with MM gain configuration. Discuss configuration with Tom Evans before ordering.
Assessed against 10 rivals across the sixty systems: it takes the slot in none of its 55 head-to-heads.
The dimension the engine names as the weakest link, counted across every head-to-head it lost.
14 lost · Anchored, Artisan, BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Characterful, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic, Silent Path
Against the Anchored brief, the Rega Aria Mk3 MM/MC keeps the slot decisively.
With the van den Hul The Frog, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
14 lost · Anchored, Artisan, BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Characterful, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic
Against the Intimate brief, the Naim NVC TT MM/MC keeps the slot decisively.
With the van den Hul The Frog, the pairing gives up most on low-level clarity.
With the NVA P50SA MKII, the pairing gains most on tonal body.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
quietThe Ear — Microgroove+ X MkII
lacks the thickness... tonal depthThe Ear (Kennedy) 2016
8 lost · Anchored, Characterful, PRaT, Romantic
Against the Anchored brief, the Musical Fidelity M8x Vinyl keeps the slot decisively.
With the van den Hul The Frog, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
With the Audiolab 9000Q, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
7 lost · BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Intimate, Reference
Against the Intimate brief, the Rega Aura Reference MC keeps the slot decisively.
With the van den Hul The Crimson, the pairing gives up most on low-level clarity.
With the EAR Yoshino 868L (Line), the pairing gives up most on low-level clarity.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
quietThe Ear — Microgroove+ X MkII
quietThe Ear — Microgroove+ X MkII
3 lost · Vocals-First
Against the Vocals-First brief, the Tom Evans Groove+ SRX MkII keeps the slot by a whisker.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
3 lost · Artisan, Reference
Against the Artisan brief, the EAR Yoshino 88PB MM/MC keeps the slot decisively.
With the van den Hul The Colibri, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
With the Audiolab 9000Q, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the stronger phono stage — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the van den Hul The Colibri gives up quietness at rest under the Artisan weighting.
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
2 lost · Silent Path
Against the Silent Path brief, the Whest Audio 60Se Pro keeps the slot decisively.
With the Goldring Eroica HX MC, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the phono stage position.
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
2 lost · Vocals-First
Against the Vocals-First brief, the Cyrus Classic PHONO keeps the slot by a whisker.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
1 lost · Silent Path
Against the Silent Path brief, the Whest Audio TITAN Pro II keeps the slot decisively.
With the Goldring Eroica HX MC, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the phono stage position.
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
1 lost · Silent Path
Against the Silent Path brief, the Michell Apollo + Muse PSU keeps the slot decisively.
With the Goldring Eroica HX MC, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
With the Audiolab 9000Q, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.
On its own merits the Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII is the weaker phono stage for that brief.
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
the more you spend, the lower the noiseThe Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review
the more you spend, the lower the noise The Ear — Tom Evans Microgroove+ X MkII review· Electrical noise floor
quiet The Ear — Microgroove+ X MkII· Low-level noise floor
ambience The Ear — Microgroove+ X MkII· Spatial resolution
detail The Ear — Microgroove+ X MkII· Micro-dynamic resolution
reveals micro dynamics... not always apparent The Ear (Kennedy) 2016· Micro-dynamic resolution
super silent background... low noise The Ear (Kennedy) 2016· Low-level noise floor
bowed strings more textural depth The Ear (Kennedy) 2016· Harmonic texture
lacks the thickness... tonal depth The Ear (Kennedy) 2016· Tonal body
RIAA tracking within +/-0.2dB SPEC: RIAA accuracy +/-0.2dB (manufacturer)· Tonal body
| mm capable | True |
|---|---|
| mc capable | True |
| mc load resistance options ohm | 100/200/300/400/500 |
| mc load capacitance options pf | 100.0 |
| riaa accuracy db | 0.2 |
| rumble filter | False |
| output impedance ohm | 12 |
| balanced output | False |
| dimensions mm | 200/70/125 |
| weight kg | 0.5 |
| psu external | True |
| notes |