My Cambridge azur 651p phono preamp review

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Been eagerly awaiting the phono preamp. Finally got my brand new Cambridge azur 651p ! And oh boy! 'Effin beauty!

Here's a small background. I have a Philips 242 turntable with a cartridge that says E400 on it. Denon 520BT and Polk audio TSX440t floor standing speakers.

Got the product shipped in less than 12 hours on eBay. Arrived box packed. All good. Opened her up ,and with shaking hands plugged her into the 242 and connected the lil box to the denon AVR. The lil box itself is about 8 inches maybe,a lil less.

Toggled the switch to MM on the back and turned on the subsonic filter. Put in one of my favourite lp by the Commodores,cranked up the volume and viola! NOSTALGIA!!!

I am in love all over again with my records! Few pops and crackles occasionally but heck, it's a blood 40 years old record!

Just for the heck of it, I put in a puff daddy lp ( yes I listen to rap occasionally)

New pressing. Zero pops and crackles. Heard the same song through my usb stick. Regular MP3. I can swear the vinyl kicked the lil MP3 into orbit!

Next up.....sit and wash my collection with lil soap and water. Free up those pops and crackles a bit.

This is my review. This is my first phono preamp. I have no basis of comparison. But I'm in love with the lil thing! Cost 14700 rupees which is more than what I paid for my Philips 242 btw.

Thanks for reading!
 
Congratulations and welcome to the world of vinyl. I can understand your feelings. Enjoy your set-up.

Cheers
Vinay
 
Been eagerly awaiting the phono preamp. Finally got my brand new Cambridge azur 651p ! And oh boy! 'Effin beauty!

Here's a small background. I have a Philips 242 turntable with a cartridge that says E400 on it. Denon 520BT and Polk audio TSX440t floor standing speakers.

Got the product shipped in less than 12 hours on eBay. Arrived box packed. All good. Opened her up ,and with shaking hands plugged her into the 242 and connected the lil box to the denon AVR. The lil box itself is about 8 inches maybe,a lil less.

Toggled the switch to MM on the back and turned on the subsonic filter. Put in one of my favourite lp by the Commodores,cranked up the volume and viola! NOSTALGIA!!!

I am in love all over again with my records! Few pops and crackles occasionally but heck, it's a blood 40 years old record!

Just for the heck of it, I put in a puff daddy lp ( yes I listen to rap occasionally)

New pressing. Zero pops and crackles. Heard the same song through my usb stick. Regular MP3. I can swear the vinyl kicked the lil MP3 into orbit!

Next up.....sit and wash my collection with lil soap and water. Free up those pops and crackles a bit.

This is my review. This is my first phono preamp. I have no basis of comparison. But I'm in love with the lil thing! Cost 14700 rupees which is more than what I paid for my Philips 242 btw.

Thanks for reading!

Brilliant Initial Impressions. Congratulations. :clapping:

Need a detailed review of both and do you know its a crime not to post pictures. Do try to shoot a video too for those like me who have never heard an LP.

MaSh
 
The 242 is a very under-rated machine. People don'r realise that when new (circa 1963) it used to cost 300 Rupees which means 15 grams of gold at that time. That apart, practically nothing happens to this machine except, perhaps, the belt getting broken, does not cost even Rs. 50.

At the moment, I would suggest, you don't do anything, but after a few months, just get a good cart with new stylus. You would be fine for the next few years. Enjoy your music and all the best!
 
Hi Eddie/guys,

So I turned the subsonic filter off. I honestly didn't see any change. That can be due to my ears most probably which are still getting used to the sound of vinyl. So I'm going to keep it off and occasionally ill toggle it on just to see if I can pick out slight differences. Thanks.
 
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