Description
Redefine Your Record Collection
“The midrange on this phono preamp is as open, uncongested, transparent, and revealing as that of any phono preamp I’ve heard at any price.” Michael Fremer.
Stereophile magazine’s Analog Product of the Year!
Based on a unique all discrete FET topology, Stellar Phono stands out in a crowded field of conventional IC designs. Its sound is rich, warm and enticing as only vinyl through hand-tuned class-A circuitry can be.
Stellar Phono is a triumph of performance and value that you’ll instantly recognize from that first needle drop, as music emerges from a velvet blackness, filling the room as if there were no speakers.
When PS engineer Darren Myers set his sights on building the best phono stage our company has ever produced, he had his work cut out for him. With the advantage of modern upgraded FET semiconductors and a fresh approach to the art of phono preamplification at his side, Darren wiped the tradition slate clean by hand-fashioning a new approach to the challenge of amplifying and preserving all the magic trapped in the grooves of our records. The results are breathtaking. Music that might once have been locked into the confines of our loudspeakers is suddenly free. What you hear fills the room with a rich tonality that has always been vinyl’s promise, but rarely fulfilled to the degree Stellar has achieved.
Stellar phono features dual inputs that can support either a moving coil or moving magnet cartridge, or a two-tonearm set up to enjoy the best of each at the user’s discretion. Cartridge loading and gain options are easily adjusted from your listening position via the supplied remote control.
Phono preamplifiers at anywhere near this price range are almost always integrated circuit based, but not Stellar. Input to output, Stellar is a fully discrete FET design with extraordinarily low noise and high overload capabilities so even the wildest dynamics from the punchiest cartridges sail through Stellar with no limitations or compromise whatsoever.
If you love vinyl you’ll love Stellar.
Moving Magnet and Moving Coil preamplifier
Fixed and variable cartridge loading adjustable from remote control
Up to 70dB of ultra low noise gain for MC cartridges as low as 0.15mv
Two inputs for two tonearms selectable from remote control
Single ended and balanced outputs
All discrete FET design
Class A analog circuitry throughout
No ICs in signal path
Up to 20V rms output for unparaleled headroom and dynamics
Passive RIAA curve for seamless performance
Hand selected premium discrete components
DC coupled from input to output for unfettered bass
Ultra low noise discrete pre and post voltage regulation stages
Low internal feedback for increased transparency and openness
No complimentary FET transistors for lifelike performance
High current oversized power transformer
Remote control
Front panel standby button
Reviews
Stereophile
Michael Fremer
The midrange on this phono preamp is as open, uncongested, transparent, and revealing as that of any phono preamp I’ve heard at any price.
I recommend a listen to the Stellar to anyone in the market for a new phono preamp, regardless of price. I don’t think I’ve ever written that before.
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Positive Feedback
John Hoffman
The Stellar Phono preamplifier projects an expansive sound stage, with the ability to extend wall to wall and create the illusion of the venue imagined by the artist.
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Tone Audio
Lawrence Devoe
Stellar offers the best performance for price, often outshining some far more expensive competitors. This preamp should be welcomed by experienced vinyl fans as well as newcomers to this marvelous medium. You would have to spend a lot more to seriously challenge what this affordable and great-looking component delivers; its ability to change critical settings from your easy chair is a real bonus. Highly recommended.
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Part Time Audiophile
Marc Phillips
The PS Audio Stellar phono preamplifier, once again, offers an incredible amount of features for the money–just like the PS Audio phono preamplifiers of yore. It’s also incredibly neutral, which makes it the perfect phono stage for evaluating cartridges. I found myself continually swapping out the ZYX Bloom 3, the Hana ML and the Sumiko Starling I reviewed for The Occasional No. 6 because the Stellar was so adept at revealing the differences between them.
How did they pull this off?
Dnance
I wrote James and told him PS Audio should be PROUD!!!
I am impressed and that is simply not easy to do at this stage of my audiophile path.
Bravo gentlemen for making one of the top 3 SS phono stages I’ve heard, the others being the SPL Phonos and the iFi iPhono 2 although the SPP is better than the iPhono but at 5 times the price I would hope so:) The SPL Phonos just does things dynamically with the London that I’ve not heard another stage do.
This is a golden age for phono stages when a company can build something that sounds as good as the Stellar at that kind of price. Build wise, sound wise, I actually don’t know how they pulled it off.
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