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Whest Audio TITAN Pro II

Phono stage

Relative price

well above typical

Among the 44 phono stages in the catalogue, this one is well above 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.

Competition record

Assessed against 6 rivals across the sixty systems: it takes the slot in none of its 32 head-to-heads.

Where it gives ground

The dimension the engine names as the weakest link, counted across every head-to-head it lost.

  • quietness at rest ×14
  • low-level clarity ×9
  • rhythmic grip ×4
  • bass weight ×2

Who it comes up against

Naim NVC TT MM/MC

9 lost · Anchored, Artisan, BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Characterful, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic

Against the Anchored brief, the Naim NVC TT MM/MC keeps the slot decisively.

With the van den Hul The Frog, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

With the NVA P50SA MKII, the pairing gains most on depth of bass.

On its own merits the Whest Audio TITAN Pro II is the stronger phono stage — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the van den Hul The Frog gives up quietness at rest under the Anchored weighting.

quietWhest upper-range reviews

Musical Fidelity M8x Vinyl

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.

On its own merits the Whest Audio TITAN Pro II is the stronger phono stage — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the van den Hul The Frog gives up quietness at rest under the Anchored weighting.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the phono stage position.

quietWhest upper-range reviews

Rega Aura Reference MC

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 Whest Audio TITAN Pro II is the weaker phono stage for that brief.

quietWhest upper-range reviews

Tom Evans Groove+ SRX 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 Whest Audio TITAN Pro II is the weaker phono stage for that brief.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the phono stage position.

EAR Yoshino 88PB MM/MC

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.

On its own merits the Whest Audio TITAN Pro II 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.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the phono stage position.

quietWhest upper-range reviews

Whest Audio 60Se Pro

2 lost · Silent Path

Against the Silent Path brief, the Whest Audio 60Se Pro keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Whest Audio TITAN Pro II is the weaker phono stage for that brief.

Systems it is part of

What the reviewers said

the more micro dynamics and resolution will be presented The Ear — Whest 60Se Pro review + Whest range consensus· Micro-dynamic resolution
resolution The Ear — Whest 60Se Pro· Spatial resolution
quiet Whest upper-range reviews· Electrical noise floor
dynamic Whest range reviews· Dynamic coherence
neutral Whest range reviews· Tonal consistency
not warm and fuzzy Whest house character· Harmonic texture
RIAA tracking within +/-0.1dB SPEC: RIAA accuracy +/-0.1dB (manufacturer)· Tonal body
tonally neutral, hear everything at correct levels Whest house design — tonal neutrality (stated goal, every model)· Tonal body
ultra-low noise floor Whest core specialism — ultra-low-noise Class-A small-signal· Electrical noise floor
masses of extra dimensional space PROXY: Whest TITAN Pro (flagship 3-stage)· Spatial naturalness
microscopic focus and greater harmonic resolution PROXY: Whest TITAN Pro· Micro-dynamic resolution
life-like musicality PROXY: Whest TITAN Pro· Presence & articulation

How it scores

Clarity

  • Electrical noise floor 80 from listening evidence
  • Spatial resolution 78 from listening evidence

Voice

  • Tonal body 73 from listening evidence
  • Presence & articulation 72 from listening evidence
  • Harmonic texture 70 from listening evidence
  • Spatial naturalness 72 from listening evidence

LowerVolume

  • Micro-dynamic resolution 80 from listening evidence
  • Tonal consistency 74 from listening evidence

Specifications

mm capableTrue
mc capableTrue
mm gain db37/50
mc gain db55/60/65/72
mm load resistance kohm47
mc load resistance options ohm30/100/220/470/1200
riaa accuracy db0.1
output level mv500
output impedance ohm100
balanced outputTrue
dimensions mm435/84/336
weight kg8.5
psu externalFalse
notes