Mani 2 vs. Denon Integrated

[KThaxton]

Help an indecisive, uneducated fellow out....

I have an Audio-Technica LP-120XUSB going to a Denon AVR-X2800H and I'm using the Denon's phono stage. Is a Mani 2 a worthy upgrade over the integrated phono stage in the Denon? I've only started nerding out on vinyl for about a year now and don't know how to compare the two without actually making the purchase.

I've honed in on the Mani because of its good reviews (quality for price) and likely wouldn't spend more than the cost of a Mani on a preamp as I'm still primarily a CD guy and just curious if I can get a bit more out of my system...... and......I like to tinker.


Thanks

 

[Laika2]

Help an indecisive, uneducated fellow out....

I have an Audio-Technica LP-120XUSB going to a Denon AVR-X2800H and I'm using the Denon's phono stage. Is a Mani 2 a worthy upgrade over the integrated phono stage in the Denon? I've only started nerding out on vinyl for about a year now and don't know how to compare the two without actually making the purchase.

I've honed in on the Mani because of its good reviews (quality for price) and likely wouldn't spend more than the cost of a Mani on a preamp as I'm still primarily a CD guy and just curious if I can get a bit more out of my system...... and......I like to tinker.


Thanks

Running a Denon 6800. The on board phono preamp is fine but I tried a Fosi X5, a noticeable improvement, the a Cambridge Duo, even better lower noise floor and now a Waxwing, that's a game changer, amazing. Can't comment on Mani but the Fosi that was a improvement from the internal was a noticeable improvement at 99 bucks, look at a Waxwing before you decide. It's amazing and you can EQ sound on the fly in endless easy ways.

 

[DVDdoug]

The most likely difference would be noise. You've got two preamps now, so is noise a problem under normal listening conditions? Usually once the stylus is in the groove the record's surface noise dominates anyway.

It's tricky to compare noise because they have to be gain matched... Higher gain boosts the signal and noise together so when you adjust the volume control you might be back to where you started. And there's more than one way to measure noise so you can't compare specs unless you are comparing the measurements here which are consistent and comparable.

A different cartridge will likely sound different (better or worse) but the biggest difference is usually frequency response which can be tweaked with tone controls/EQ.

IMO - Chasing vinyl sound quality can be a long road and you'll never get "CD quality". Especially when it comes to noise. You'll never get the dead-silent background that you get with digital. And there are sometimes frequency response variations or audible distortion.

But yeah, the Waxwing digital processing and noise reduction might get you "near digital quality". If we didn't have digital I'd probably get the Waxwing. The Waxwing is for people who don't really like vinyl.

 

[KThaxton]

The most likely difference would be noise. You've got two preamps now, so is noise a problem under normal listening conditions? Usually once the stylus is in the groove the record's surface noise dominates anyway.

It's tricky to compare noise because they have to be gain matched... Higher gain boosts the signal and noise together so when you adjust the volume control you might be back to where you started. And there's more than one way to measure noise so you can't compare specs unless you are comparing the measurements here which are consistent and comparable.

A different cartridge will likely sound different (better or worse) but the biggest difference is usually frequency response which can be tweaked with tone controls/EQ.

IMO - Chasing vinyl sound quality can be a long road and you'll never get "CD quality". Especially when it comes to noise. You'll never get the dead-silent background that you get with digital. And there are sometimes frequency response variations or audible distortion.

But yeah, the Waxwing digital processing and noise reduction might get you "near digital quality". If we didn't have digital I'd probably get the Waxwing. The Waxwing is for people who don't really like vinyl.

Thanks, I am not using the phono preamp in the turn table, only the Denon. Also, I don't have an issue with noise or anything else really, nor am I expecting digital quality, I just see reviews (professional and otherwise) talking about how much better their systems sounded with XXXX phono preamp. I'm just curious if I can eek out better sound with something like the Mani 2, as I said, I like to tinker.

I'll look into the Waxwing. I guess the harder question to answer is the quality of the preamp in the Denon.