The top of the range MM PRO phonostage, sister to often sold-out MC PRO, has now assumed its final form with an enclosure style to match the pitch-black levels of background noise it brings to the music, thanks to its uniquely quiet active loading front end circuitry.
MM PRO in black
Noise-cancelling low-frequency crossfeed, precision ±0.1dB RIAA equalisation, 3rd order subsonic filter, gain switch for high-output moving coil cartridges, and fully balanced outputs capable of 20V RMS, make for what might be the best moving-magnet listening on the market.
Balanced line outputs
The $800-range phono preamp market is a fiercely competitive arena, populated by well-established brands. Classic Audio’s MM PRO by Michael Fidler is a relative newcomer, yet it is a formidable contender with serious build quality and a superbly smart design.
Despite the lack of widespread recognition, Fidler’s phono preamp delivers a solid performance that impressed. Regardless, Michael Fidler’s masterful MM PRO undoubtedly deserves a spot on any audiophile’s shortlist when considering phono preamp options in this price range.
Ken Micallef, Analog Planet
Hot off the heels of the critically acclaimed and recently discontinued SPARTAN 10 phonostage, the SPARTAN 15 could be perfect for MM performance on a budget. Black versions were all snapped up before summer ended, but there's still some time left to get hold of the diminishing original silver version.
Silver SPARTAN 15
After enjoying great popularity for nearly two years, production of the SPARTAN 15 has now ended for 2024, with all parts exhausted. Will this deceptively simple box of tricks be continued next year? Or will the massive 19x overload margin, precision RIAA accuracy, and worryingly quiet input stages be re-imagined into a higher-end project with a corresponding price tag?
SPARTAN 15 rear connections
The first thing that struck me about the Spartan 15 was just how quiet it is when idle; clearly, Michael’s two-stage amplification design and choice of components are paying off from the very start. On firing up a number of very familiar records, I was equally impressed with the playback performance.
Transients are sharp, fast, and incredibly clean, bringing a sense of confidence to the overall presentation. The clarity in the low-mids, in particular, is exemplary, allowing me to hear more precise and clean bass notes compared to much of the competition.
Marc Henshall, Sound Matters
When the PRO series were first released, many people didn't believe that the published measurements were real, or even possible; not surprising in a market saturated with magical claims and snake-oil products. To prove this wasn't just more of the same, an MC PRO phonostage was submitted to Audio Science Review for independent measurements.
MC PRO on Audio Science Review
True to its advertised performance, the MC PRO then went on to gain the coveted 'Golfing Panther' award for the highest-ranked category of products.
YouTube summary of the MC PRO tests
What is extremely nice is flatness of the equalisation. The variation is just stunningly small, so very nicely done. This is one of the most important things where tonality is concerned.
I sweep it at different frequencies and basically it doesn't care which is very very nice and unusual. If I throw out noise and measure distortion you see distortion levels are extremely good, we're talking digital audio levels of distortion.
So bottom line: this is just a fantastic phonostage. It looks good, it's got good innovation in the feature set and I highly, highly recommend it.
Amir Majidimehr, Audio Science Review
All too often, cheap switching power supplies are commonplace in consumer audio, leading to ill effects ranging from audible mains buzz, all the way to damage to the equipment unfortunate enough to be connected up to these cheap and noisy devices. To suppress the switching noise to the legally required levels, the output has to be coupled back onto the mains with a small capacitor, injecting mains currents into the audio ground path.
To make things worse, these cheap units mostly use a sub-optimal 'single supply rail' arrangement, where the audio reference ground is injected with the highly non-linear power currents of active amplifying devices which often significantly degrade distortion performance. Sometimes an internal DC to DC converter is used to generate a split supply, but that brings the screeching switching electronics into the enclosure right alongside the sensitive linear audio path.
Linear transformer PSUs
Bucking the current cost-driven trend, Classic Audio Ltd believes in investing in high quality parts to avoid trouble straight out of the gate. Instead of having a switching supply that injects noise, and makes a prerequisite for a compromised design, Classic Audio uses an old-fashioned low frequency transformer based design, that takes the transformer and its troublesome magnetic field out of the enclosure and down to the wall socket.
Symmetrical linear rail generator
To ensure the customer gets excellent sound straight away, no products are advertised with optional premium 'upgraded' (read adequate!) parts. All Classic Audio components are optimised as standard, with literally 100 times less capacitative coupling to the mains than other manufactures who offer linear upgrades that only partially improve a design intrinsically compromised for use with switching adapters. That standard means that Classic Audio power supplies are low frequency, linear, split supplies that keep the power currents out of the ground path, just like the one pictured above; a power supply you can truly rely on not to get in the way of the music!
Want the low down on new products, projects in development, and general regular updates?
SPARTAN 6 phonostage using surface-mount technology
Follow the Michael Fidler - Classic Audio Ltd. Facebook page for early information.
