I'd be interested in anyone's experience of RCM phonostages, both outright and vs competitors, specifically the RCIAA Mk 2 and Big Phono. I currently have the RCIAA Mk 2 and think it's very good but my knowledge & experience of phonostages is pretty limited. I'm also interested in whether people think the upgrade from RCIAA to Big Phono is worthwhile or not.
Any thoughts / experience of RCM phono stages?
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Surprised there is little to no experience of RCM here. I decided to answer my own question and get the Big Phono. I'll report back once it's here and settled in as to whether it represents value or not! Here's hoping it is!!
Big Phono arrived last weekend so is now fully installed and warmed up, although it has less than 10 hours playing time on it (apparently improves all the way to approx 100 hours).
I had high expectations of this based on reviews and the UK distributor's feedback, and I have to say they've been exceeded. The level of detail extraction is incredible as are the dynamics, but perhaps the most impressive aspect is the delineation of instruments particularly front to back. This creates an incredible soundstage particularly when listening to orchestral works. Timbre is also spot-on, particularly around violins.
I re-read Alan Sircom's review, which notes that initial listening sessions are likely to be short given the intensity of the experience, and have found the same! This is not fatigue in the sense of your ears tiring, but rather the fact that the music demands attention - 2 albums and I'm done!
Switching back to the Horizon 360 this evening for the first time and it's definitely not as captivating. Worth noting that I'm still using the AMG Teatro cart the Viella came with.
I'll report back once the Big Phono is run in. Am surprised how little interest / experience there is on WBF for the RCM phonos - my experience so far suggests they are very good.
I had high expectations of this based on reviews and the UK distributor's feedback, and I have to say they've been exceeded. The level of detail extraction is incredible as are the dynamics, but perhaps the most impressive aspect is the delineation of instruments particularly front to back. This creates an incredible soundstage particularly when listening to orchestral works. Timbre is also spot-on, particularly around violins.
I re-read Alan Sircom's review, which notes that initial listening sessions are likely to be short given the intensity of the experience, and have found the same! This is not fatigue in the sense of your ears tiring, but rather the fact that the music demands attention - 2 albums and I'm done!
Switching back to the Horizon 360 this evening for the first time and it's definitely not as captivating. Worth noting that I'm still using the AMG Teatro cart the Viella came with.
I'll report back once the Big Phono is run in. Am surprised how little interest / experience there is on WBF for the RCM phonos - my experience so far suggests they are very good.
Just as an fyi, I also have the RCM Big Phono and think it is an amazing phonostage. I compared it with the D'Agostino Momentum one and to me there was no comparison, it was significantly better.
I am very surprised more people dont have / discuss this brand!
I am very surprised more people dont have / discuss this brand!
There's little point in discussing a brand that next to no one knows about, struggled to sell in the USA, from company that is not interested in making many units (about 1,500 in total over about 15 years) because it's not their main business.
That said, not having grandiose hifi aspirations, I very happily used a RCM Sensor2 Mk2 for the last three years, only recently taking it out for a replacement that has two inputs and fully balanced inputs with XLR connections and all the controls on the front. I tried the balanced input option on the RCM with a cable wired per their instructions, but it was noisier than unbalanced.
I think I heard the Big Phono at my dealer once. It is very big, I'd need a bigger house and higher aspirations.
Really? I thought this forum was about discovering niche manufacturers and sharing that experience with other members, rather than just shilling for the big boys!
I continue to be amazed by the Big Phono, and has encouraged me to progress the vinyl side of my system to see what can be achieved.
There are many reasons to discuss RCM phono amplification here, your initial paragraph is clearly your personal view, others differ in experience and aspirations.
I'm sure we all have different experience and aspirations. Mine is good sound and simplicity within 1,100mm x 650mm x 450mm
Besides agreeing that RCM make exceptionally good phono stages at 3 very different price points, one owned and one heard, what would you like to discuss? Of course mine costs £4k and yours £44k, the middle one £14k.Within my aspirations, for a single tonearm, I'd certainly recommend it for a listen, but there are other excellent solid state units at the same level from, for example, Whest. Both are available in the London area.
Nice to hear you enjoyed your Sensor mkii, for the money it is excellent and does outperform most if not all of the competition at this PP.
IMO, the RIAA and Big phono do the same at their respective price points (17k THERIAA), I've yet to hear a phono amplifier that has the flexibility, cool running and sonic capability of the RCM's at each price point. They all share the ability to portray depth and space of a recording, giving the sense of being more detailed than others (in a good way), with the feeling of being right at the front of the stage of the orchestra at times.
IMO, the RIAA and Big phono do the same at their respective price points (17k THERIAA), I've yet to hear a phono amplifier that has the flexibility, cool running and sonic capability of the RCM's at each price point. They all share the ability to portray depth and space of a recording, giving the sense of being more detailed than others (in a good way), with the feeling of being right at the front of the stage of the orchestra at times.
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Exactly my findings from listening to the RCM audio phono stages...
Sometimes these more niche brands concentrate more on the actual product build and components rather than the bling factor and additional costs for marketing and advertising. There is definitely a place for both in the market place though.
I have not heard it but to be a cost no object product I would expect more features, like a steeper or variable rumble filter, and more MM loading choices . The MM capacitance is high 100-150pF depending on where you read, and not selectable. Probably owners will not use MM anyway, so likely not an issue.
Interesting review here
Interesting review here
For a small scale business It is easier to make money by selling a few extremely expensive items than selling budget components to a large market.
But some small firms do really well with reasonable prices. Parks Audio is one example . And RCM is at the other extreme end of the price scale
RCM is not a small scale business. It is a distributor of a lot of high-end audio, I'm told the largest such company in Poland.
RCM Hi-Fi Atelier
RCM - Dystrybutor i sprzedawca najwyższej klasy sprzętu audio. Studio odsłuchowe, porady i konsultacje przy doborze systemów High-End i Hi-Fi.
Their phono stage business is obviously commercial, but seems to be as much a labour of love. From speaking to them, they have no intention to expand, they simply want to offer to a range of budgets, and they do that with only 3 products. They sell by reputation and performance without any apparent need to advertise or promote.
Also interestingly, Roger's passion is tubes, yet his preference for the demands of phono cartridge amplification is solid state, which makes sense once all 3 units are heard coming from tube amps. Masa at Concert Fidelity also prefers SS for phono, vintage JFet in his case.
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