Parks Audio Puffin Review (Phono Stage)

[Bob from Florida]

No, just something more professiobsl looking and without buried functions—which in the case of the Test item are bizarrely hidden behind a hamburger icon. Plus, the gear icon which is supposed to be to access settings instead accesses an about menu.

It’s pretty much a mess. Usable? Yes. But ugly and confusing.

Do you have a Waxwing?

There are no "hamburger" icons in the app on my iPhone. Unless you call the standard stacked horizontal lines that mean a "sub-menu" a hamburger. I don't have Android so cannot say anything about that version. I can say that the function and layout are very intuitive and work fine in use. "Ugly and confusing" - I don't think so. Then again, I am more interested in something that works versus something "pretty" that serves no purpose.

 

[Billy Budapest]

There are no "hamburger" icons in the app on my iPhone. Unless you call the standard stacked horizontal lines that mean a "sub-menu" a hamburger.

1). That icon is commonly called a “hamburger” and I have no clue why you do not know that.

2). It does not ordinarily signify the presence of a “sub-menu.” Rather, it is a control for a slide-out menu.

See here for your own edification:

https://www.howtogeek.com/720214/what-is-a-hamburger-menu-button/

 

[Billy Budapest]

"Ugly and confusing" - I don't think so. Then again, I am more interested in something that works versus something "pretty" that serves no purpose.

The hardware deserves professional looking software, commensurate with the quality of the product.

 

[Balle Clorin]

Get a Puffin…?

 

[Snoopy]

Guys don’t fight about a GUI if it’s open to 3rd party developers I’m sure there will be soon enough a alternative. if not, isn’t this a set it up once and forget app?

I’m currently thinking about all the option this phono stage actually provides with the multiple outputs. Would there be a benefit of going from the waxwing into a (better or different) external dac and would the dsp still work by doing that ?

 

[Balle Clorin]

maybe-Yes

 

[Billy Budapest]

Do you have a Waxwing?

Yes. I thought this went without saying.

 

[Bob from Florida]

Guys don’t fight about a GUI if it’s open to 3rd party developers I’m sure there will be soon enough a alternative. if not, isn’t this a set it up once and forget app?

I’m currently thinking about all the option this phono stage actually provides with the multiple outputs. Would there be a benefit of going from the waxwing into a (better or different) external dac and would the dsp still work by doing that ?

You have digital out via optical and RCA. You also have analog out. You can select Analog only or digital at 24/48 or 24/96. You could use 2 outboard DAC's - one coax and one optical - or one analog out.
I use the optical out to the optical input of my Schiit Modius. I do this for level matching reasons. The Modius is fed by my music server via USB. I use the balanced outputs to one of my balanced inputs in my Luxman integrated. The Waxwing gets an extra 6 db boost because of using the Modius balanced output. This allows me to tune the gain on the Waxwing to better match volume with the music server without approaching the limits of the ADC on the Waxwing. Because the Waxwing app shows you the peak and average ADC input values, you can easily tell when your gain is getting too high and risking clipping on the ADC. I run the AT95SH at 38 db - which when you add the 6 db gain from the Modius - gives you 44 db overall for a 3.5 mv cartridge. The Hana gets 56 db plus 6 for 62 db gain for a 0.5 mv cartridge.

There are many features like this to be explored. It is a really fine phono preamp!

 

[Billy Budapest]

I find Shannon to be an excellent human being.

Yes—he is very responsive to his customers and to members of the public at large. Plus, he seems like a really nice guy both in the email exchanges I have had with him and in the videos he has posted.

 

[Billy Budapest]

Guys don’t fight about a GUI if it’s open to 3rd party developers I’m sure there will be soon enough a alternative. if not, isn’t this a set it up once and forget app?

I’m currently thinking about all the option this phono stage actually provides with the multiple outputs. Would there be a benefit of going from the waxwing into a (better or different) external dac and would the dsp still work by doing that ?

The quick reference card actually recommends using the optical out to lower leakage currents and noise. The DSP still works.

 

[Billy Budapest]

 

[cgallery]

The Waxwing interface on my Android looks just fine. Seems well thought out and is reminiscent of many instrument interfaces I've used.

 

[redjr]

I wonder why he simply didn't cascade switched 20dB and 40dB dedicated MC and MM flat stages along with an attenuated and switched line input for the strange "CD" option. He could have trimmed the levels with digitally switched attenuators and/or fixed gain stages like the AP and other test gear does for range changing to keep the signal in the sweet spot of the A/D and not hit the wall.

I guess it's the price you pay for flat amplifying un-equalized signal straight from a cartridge and doing RIAA in DSP. There's 40dB chopped out of the A/Ds range just for RIAA REC/EQ and then the music dynamic range on top of that. I can see why it runs out of DR and clips.

View attachment 108470

I'm glad you got to review this Puffin. It has intrigued me for a long time.

I bought one about 5yrs ago. My version did do have the Toslink out, nor did I make the modd. I went looking for a good commercial MC cartridge, but alas they all either did not have enough gain, had significant noise, or were so expensive as to be unusable. After I got the Puffin dialed in to my liking, I've been using it daily without any issues and IME sounds very good - both with older vintage LPs, and the newer 160g albums. To my ears it does not sound digital, nor are there any noticeable digital artifacts. I'm using the acclaimed Denon DL-103 cartridge.

 

[Gravitypush]

Just hooked up the Puffin via its coax SPDIF output to the HOLO MAY KTE DAC > HOLO SERENE PRE AMP > PSI A17-M active near field studio monitors. (Canare 75ohm SPDIF and Canare L-4E6S XLR cables) Source: Roksan Xerxes, RB300, Sure V15 Type 5, Silver external tonearm wiring. (Grace F9E waiting in the wings to try)

Mobile Fidelity recording of S'gt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band.

I'M TOTALLY SPEECHLESS. This is the closest I've come to recreating the sound of an analog master tape from LP playback. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that blaspheming the "precious" analog signal from a cartridge into digital would yield such fantastic results. But here I am picking my jaw up from the floor.

Lesson: Once the signal is in the digital domain via the Puffin/Waxwing Etc. do not use the built in analog output, hand it off to a proper DAC.

 

[watchnerd]

So with the additional 24/96 outputs vinyl lovers are now able to squeze the hell out of their platters make "hi-res" digital backups?

Yeah, I store mine on a 4 TB SSD drive

 

[watchnerd]

So for my amp (Luxman L-509AXII), the relative noise floors specs of the Puffin vs amp look like:

MM input: -83dBV

Puffin: -72 dBV

MC input: -67 dBV

If I use the Puffin with 66-68 dB of gain, I can hear the noise floor when nothing is playing at the volume knob setting (-34 dB) I usually use. Same for the MC input on the amp. Although I can't really hear it at the listening position.

However, if I use a SUT to bump MCs up to MM levels, I can get 11 to 16 dB of noise reduction vs either the Puffin or the MC input.

 

[mike70]

So for my amp (Luxman L-509AXII), the relative noise floors specs of the Puffin vs amp look like:

MM input: -83dBV

Puffin: -72 dBV

MC input: -67 dBV

If I use the Puffin with 66-68 dB of gain, I can hear the noise floor when nothing is playing at the volume knob setting (-34 dB) I usually use. Same for the MC input on the amp. Although I can't really hear it at the listening position.

However, if I use a SUT to bump MCs up to MM levels, I can get 11 to 16 dB of noise reduction vs either the Puffin or the MC input.

That's how I use my MC cartridge (SUT and dedicated MM preamp) and subjectively ... I think I have better SNR / dynamics.

 

[watchnerd]

That's how I use my MC cartridge (SUT and dedicated MM preamp) and subjectively ... I think I have better SNR / dynamics.

Napkin math tells me my SNR should go up by about 30 dB using high gain on the SUT.

Configuration	Output Voltage	Phono Gain	Noise Floor	SNR (est.)
Direct to MC input	0.2 mV	63 dB	–67 dBV	~7 dB
HM-7 @ 15:1 → MM input	2.22 mV	36 dB	–83 dBV	~30 dB
HM-7 @ 30:1 → MM input	4.88 mV	36 dB	–83 dBV	~37 dB

 

[Balle Clorin]

So for my amp (Luxman L-509AXII), the relative noise floors specs of the Puffin vs amp look like:

MM input: -83dBV

Puffin: -72 dBV

MC input: -67 dBV

If I use the Puffin with 66-68 dB of gain, I can hear the noise floor when nothing is playing at the volume knob setting (-34 dB) I usually use. Same for the MC input on the amp. Although I can't really hear it at the listening position.

However, if I use a SUT to bump MCs up to MM levels, I can get 11 to 16 dB of noise reduction vs either the Puffin or the MC input.

I have Puffin too using Either a 20db SUT with 39dB or MC setting with 59db gain .
Very close to dead silent with my ear into the loadspeaker .It is difficult to determine if the system is on or not.
The noise floor is -85db on the display. Using SUT gives 2-3dB improvement over MC setting.

 

[watchnerd]

I have Puffin too using Either a 20db SUT with 39dB or MC setting with 59db gain .
Very close to dead silent with my ear into the loadspeaker .
The noise floor is -85db on the display. Using SUT gives 2-3dB improvement over MC setting.

View attachment 454130

The noise floor on my unit's display is never that low, even with nothing connected.