Yeah, that phono stage is killer! I had a SL1 Signature for 12 years before buying the Ultimate. I hate to think what some guys would charge for just the phono stage. I listened to the other full function preamps before upgrading,.. the Hovland was beautiful but the bass was absent, the Ayre K1x was a close second but it was a tad cold. One of these days I need to send the CAT back to Ken for upgrading (mines a Mk-1) but I'm so happy with it, I think it's the last thing in my system I'd ever really need to upgrade.
Heck,.. it even has a tape loop!
Agreed. I have tried at least 4 or 5 high end preamps/ phono stages, but after several days of close listening, I always went back to the Cat Ultimate. I have not sent mine back for the Mark II upgrade either. I have 3 friends that all have the Mark II, and the only difference I can hear in their systems is a slightly lower noise floor. If mine needed work ( repair ) I would get it upgraded. Other than that, I not just looking for things to spend money on! Seen the stock market lately?? Ouch! :-)
I did pull out my reverse RIAA adapters. The guy closed them up with large pieces of heat shrink tubing. Looks like there are 2 caps, and they are probably those custom Cat caps with probably no markings. I need to find some large heat shrink before I rip them open. Anyway, the way he made them is there is a rca male on one end, a rca female on the other, and between them are a pair of caps, and several resistors all neatly wrapped up in heat shrink.
Ken
ken