After years of well-deserved success with the Phono Box RS, Pro-Ject now offers a high-end version of its best-seller. The Phono Box RS2 phono preamplifier clearly displays high-end ambitions and is currently the most advanced phono preamp from the Austrian manufacturer.
PRO-JECT PHONO BOX RS2: HOUSING
The Phono Box RS2 is designed in a steel chassis covered with screwed aluminum panels. This construction provides excellent rigidity and a perfect shield against electromagnetic interference and high frequencies emitted by connected devices.
PRO-JECT PHONO BOX RS2: FRONT PANEL
The front panel is very different from the Phono Box RS. On the left is an impedance selector that allows adjustment in MC mode between 10 and 1000 ohms. This is only active when a gain suitable for moving coil cartridges is selected. Below this, the gain can be set between 40 and 70 dB. The initial values of 40 to 50 dB are intended for MM or high-output MC cartridges and have a fixed impedance of 47k ohms.
On the right side of the front panel, a potentiometer allows balance adjustment from -2 to +2 dB. This may seem unusual, but Pro-Ject notes that phono cartridges naturally suffer from slight imbalances between the left and right channels. To correct this, the Phono Box RS2 offers fine adjustment capabilities, which is very rare in this price category.
Below is a capacitive load selector offering a range of 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, and 400 pF! Additionally, there is a Subsonic filter acting at 18 dB per octave at 20 Hz, and a choice between RIAA or DECCA equalization.
PRO-JECT PHONO BOX RS2: CONNECTIONS
The back of the Phono Box RS2 features RCA and XLR inputs, as well as RCA and XLR outputs. A front selector allows choosing between asymmetrical or symmetrical input. This phono preamp is truly symmetrical, with XLR output increasing the gain by 6 dB regardless of the selected value.
PRO-JECT PHONO BOX RS2: TECHNOLOGY
The Pro-Ject Phono Box RS2 features a fully dual mono and fully symmetrical circuit. It is as if it is equipped with four Mono phono preamplifiers! The signal is treated and fully balanced from input to output. The electronics use no integrated circuits or operational amplifiers, relying solely on discrete components. Equalization, whether RIAA or DECCA, is done entirely separately and passively, with no active components in the correction path.
PRO-JECT PHONO BOX RS2: POWER SUPPLY
Like all new Pro-Ject products, the Phono Box RS2 comes with a 20V/3A DC power supply, ensuring high-quality current and greater stability than traditional power supplies. The Phono Box RS2 can be further enhanced with an optional power supply, the Pro-Ject Power Box RS2 Phono.
PRO-JECT PHONO BOX RS2: TEST AND LISTENING
The sound reproduction is very neutral and uncolored. The Pro-Ject Phono Box RS2 is particularly transparent, highlighting all the qualities of the phono cartridge and turntable. This phono stage reveals numerous details in the record grooves, with instruments perfectly separated and a very realistic representation across different sections and registers, creating a particularly holographic and credible soundstage.
The Phono Box RS2 does exactly what is expected of a phono preamp, without losing information or distorting it. It does not seek to embellish or hide flaws in the source or vinyl record. However, when everything is right, the result is simply stunning in its realism and musicality.
The Pro-Ject Phono Box RS2 is certainly the most versatile phono preamplifier on the market! It works with 98% of MM or MC cartridges and offers features rarely or never seen at this price. Its circuitry and symmetrical inputs and outputs allow it to be paired with very high-end Hi-Fi components. Additionally, the significant upgrade potential with an optional power supply is also noteworthy.
Highly recommended!
FranckInput impedances: fixed 47 Kohms, variable between 10 and 1000 ohms
Load capacitance: 50, 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, 350, 400 pF
MM RCA gain: 40, 43, 46, 50 dB
MM XLR gain: 46, 49, 52, 56 dB
MC RCA gain: 60, 63, 66, 70 dB
MC XLR gain: 66, 69, 72, 76 dB
S/N ratio: MM 89 dB, MC 79 dB
Distortion: MM 0.0015%, MC 0.0024%.
RIAA curve accuracy: 20 Hz/20 Khz = 0.4dB
Eq: RIAA and DECCA
Sub filter: 18 dB per octave at 20 Hz
Inputs: RCA and XLR
Outputs: RCA and XLR
Power supply: external +/-20v DC/3A
Dimensions: 206 x 72 x 200 mm
Weight: 1.6 kg (without power supply)
Customer reviews
Récompensé
Il a obtenu la récompense Meilleur Achat du magazine Haute Fidélité de décembre /janvier 2022.
Un très beau produit
Ce produit remplace un prépré Aqvox qui drivait une DL103 mais qui était trop juste en gain maintenant. Le Pro-Ject drive une ATOC9xsl montée sur bras tangentiel (Pre Audio). La finition est superbe, le gain élevé, les possibilités de réglages étendues, le silence parfait et le son me satisfait parfaitement sur un système Origami conçu par Gilles Milot. Les timbres y sont, l'espace sonore aussi et la dynamique conforte le caractère vivant de la reproduction. Un produit qui vaut largement son prix. Je compléterais surement avec l'alimentation renforcée chargeur. Quel dommage que tous les bras ne sortent pas le signal en symétrique et perdent du gain et du rapport SB.