Oh, there’s no doubt the Stellar phono will blow the doors off anything we’ve ever done. This is a real game changer and what Darren’s managed to do with this product is nothing short of a miracle. It’s about as dead quiet as anything I have ever heard and I cannot wait for it to hit the street.
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Will the Stellar phono have an A to D converter as well?
That would be the dream but I think Paul said that wasn’t in the plans. I love the NPC and use it for its ADC, not the phono preamp. It would be nice if the Stellar was good enough to give me an all-in-one solution, but I don’t think that’s happening. I hope he changed his mind, though!
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If the new ones don’t have A/D that beats the existing they are of no interest to me.
I bought the NuWave ONLY because of the A/D. If not I would have kept my ASR Basic MK3. I do not want a preamp in my setup again, so digital out is a must. And if I have to, I will be crawling back to Bryston.
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No, it will not. Purely analog. If we make another A/D it will be separate. While the several thousand NPC owners “get it” like many of us, that a built in A/D is the way to go, the rest of the world didn’t see it that way. Which is why we eventually killed the product. Not going down that road again, at least not for awhile.
It’s always hard when you’re first in line. We pioneered the idea of a combo unit in the NPC but it may have been before it’s time. Hard to know.
In any case, the Stellar phono will be spectacular in its all analog state.
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As a new member on here, following my purchase of a NPC in the better sounding black, I’m more than delighted with my phono converter.
I was not aware of the fact that this excellent product had in fact been discontinued, had I known I would still have bought it. My decision was made following a home demo and it certainly sounded superior to any phonostage previously owned which have included a WHEST Two.2, Cyrus, Rega Aria and a Trichord Dino. The ADC is a huge bonus which I intend to make full use of.
As it’s now discontinued and is not being replaced anytime soon, it will probably be very sort after S/H. As for mine, it’s a keeper.
Today I heard Darren Myers give a presentation on his thought/design process behind the new Stellar phono. Sounds amazing, and I hope it will sound amazing! ETA is May / June, priced a little higher than current Stellar products, but hearing just how many discrete components are going to be in this phono pre, it’s likely going to be worth every penny. Priced midway between a Parasound Halo JC3+ and JC3-Jr, let’s hope it’s nipping at the heels of the +.
As a SGC owner I am certainly going to be in line for one of these. I’m expecting it will be a big step up from my current Jolida JD9.
Did you mod the JD-9? A couple simple mods really help the JD-9.