Modwright PH 9.0XT phono stage
Modwright got its name from founder Dan Wright’s early work modifying digital products in an attempt to make them sound better in the days before high res and streaming. The company started in 2000 when Modwright upgraded a wide range of digital products using valves/tubes to enhance their sound, today their website lists a few of the components that they used to upgrade in this way but it seems that their modification days now in the past.
Instead Modwright makes the Analog Bridge which is a tube circuit that takes the analogue output of any source and gives it a bit of glass audio magic. It is essentially what the company used to do inside component from other brands but without the rebuilding complications. They also make a range of amplifiers alongside a tube based preamp and two phono stages of which the PH 9.0 is the more affordable with a starting price of £3,500. Despite its tube operation this is an MM and MC phono stage which uses Lundahl step-up transformers to bring the low level output of a moving coil cartridge up to something approaching the voltage provided by a moving magnet.
The PH 9.0 supplied for review was the full fat XT version with a number of upgrades that bring this preamp close to the spec of Modwright’s reference PH 150. There are two upgrade stages, the first is PH 9.0 X which incorporates Lundahl 1660S gapped output transformers to provide balanced outputs. A move that eliminates chokes and coupling capacitors from the signal path and means that I will have to go back and listen to the balanced output to see what the benefits are! The second upgrade step is called PH 9.0 T, where the T stands for tube rectified power supply rather than the stock solid stage version, and which includes a high voltage pre-regulator in this supply. Tube rectification is what differentiates the best tube preamplifiers and is rarely found on their more affordable competitors. The fully loaded PH 9.0XT comes in some £1,750 above the stock version with the X element being the more pricey of the two mods.
I mentioned step-up transformers above, these are a popular way of combining MC cartridges with tube phono stages and are often found in separate boxes, but this approach adds to cost and can often give hum problems related to grounding. One of the most impressive things about the Modwright PH 9.0 is that it is so quiet, this is not something that you can take for granted with glass audio when it’s having to amplify something as miniscule as an MC cartridge signal – I have wrangled with enough separate step-ups in the past to appreciate that this is no mean feat.
The PH 9.0 offers three gain levels each for MC and MM, a toggle switch on the front allowing you to reduce gain by 6 or 12dB relative to the 0 or max gain setting which is 64dB for MCs and 52dB for MMs. Loading for MMs is fixed at the standard 47kohms but there are six impedance options for MCs and these start at an unusually low 10 ohms and rise to 470. As a rule you only get such low impedance where transformers are used and these can be very handy if you have an MC that thrives at such settings.
The PH 9.0 has separate inputs for MM and MC cartridges as well as balanced and single ended outputs on the XT version reviewed, these are accompanied by an inlet for the Truth cable that delivers power from the supply. This cable is usefully long and flexible, allowing the power supply to be several feet away from the phono stage which can sometimes be advantageous if hum is an issue. The power supply has a hole in the top through which sticks the 5AR4 rectifier tube that you fit when setting up this preamp, unlike the PH 9.0 itself there’s no need to remove the cover. For the phono stage proper six bolts have to be removed to allow the cover to come off so that you can fit two 6C45 and two 6922 tubes to be fitted. Modwright supply a suitable hex driver to remove and replace the bolts, all you have to do is realise that the E88CCs in the box go where the 6922s are on the instructions.
Sound quality
I used the PH 9.0 with a Rega Nd9 moving magnet in the first instance and got a very entertaining result, I was pleased to find that all the controls including the power switch are on the front of the phono stage and not hidden round the back or on the power supply which is often the case with separate units. What is hidden on the back is a mono switch which is worth remembering if you have any mono vinyl because it can transform the sound of them.
What struck me first about the sound of this phono stage is how damn natural it is, it’s a tube characteristic of course and so not surprising but the PH 9.0 with the tube rectified power supply is better than many. You get a strong sense of live musicians playing in a specific acoustic space, especially acoustic instruments like the drums which have a lot of real energy. Piano likewise sounds very real and present, it’s solid and in the room, perfectly in sync with the rest of the band whether that be a jazz trio or a rock band.
Electronica such as Nils Frahm’s Tripping works very well too, you get the large scale of the live performance when the audience get excited as well as the dynamics of the music thanks to the low noise of the PH 9.0. The Nd9 worked really well through the Modwright and I could have carried on enjoying it had the need to try the MC input not been pressing. So I switched to Rega’s top moving coil the Aphelion 2 and moved the arm cables over to the MC input, setting the gain to its max position and the impedance to 100 ohms. Then I put ZZ Top’s Tres Hombres on the turntable and revelled in the fat bass line and chugging groove of Waiting For the Bus, noting that the second half of the line ‘I got my brown paper bag and my take home pay’ had rarely been so clear while soaking up the filthy guitar and the way that analogue compression gives it that perfect sound. I had to leave the album it playing and loved the way that the PH 9.0 reveals more of the meat on the bone that is Billy Gibbons’ tone. You have to wonder whether this music was recorded with tube electronics or it simply just sounds better played through them.
Sticking with the early ‘70s tip I found Stevie Wonder’s Talking Book and immersed myself in Superstition which has the fattest synth bass line ever via the PH 9.0, the sound has real muscle and definition but also a juiciness that solid-state electronics can’t match. This is one fluid piece of gear and it’s perfect for the sinuous funk of this album, the highlight for me is I Believe, the last track on the side, which can sound overblown in some systems but remains fulsome yet textured via the Modwright, the melody very much at the forefront.
I particularly like the way that the PH 9.0 keeps the musical message at the forefront regardless of what sounds are being to use to propel it. I put on a Burnt Friedman album to check out the depth plumbing capabilities and was pleasantly surprised to hear the tune first and the extreme bass behind it. Rather too often the opposite happens with this album, the bass impresses but tends to overwhelm the melody and it doesn’t stay on the turntable for long, here I let it run and began to appreciate what Jaki Leibzeit in particular brings to the party. Clue, it’s not the subterranean stuff.
At the opposite end of the tonal spectrum is Gary Burton’s New Quartet where the vibraphonist is joined by bass, drums and guitar. This can be a little on the bright/thin side with some phono stages but the PH 9.0 manages to emphasise just how great the various musicians are and tell you all about the timbre of each instrument. I particularly like Abraham Laboriel’s bass playing on this, it’s just so supple and articulate, but all the instruments sound great and the tendency is to turn the system up and enjoy the ride.
I tried the balanced outputs last and had to use a different interconnect in the form of Atlas Ailsa Duo rather than the more pricey Atlas Arran Ultra RCAs but the step up with this output was not subtle, it delivered a considerably more vivid sound that with the vibraphone made for a very strong sense of presence in the room. The XLRs providing a greater sense of immediacy and delivering more of the instrument’s natural shine. The XT upgrade moves the PH 9.0 into another league and fully warrants the asking price.
Conclusion
I had a great time with this phono stage, the Modwright PH 9.0 with all the trimmings is an extremely capable and revealing unit for exploring the music in your record collection. It may look fairly conservative but the build is solid and the engineering likewise, Modwright may not be a big name in the audio electronics field but Dan Wright has been doing this for over 25 years now and he knows what counts. Do you want to pay another few grand for a fancy brand or do you want to close your eyes and be transported by the music. If it’s the latter the PH 9.0XT is a strong contender.