The MC100 - A High-Quality Moving Coil RIAA Preamplifier

In this project article for audioXpress, George Ntanavaras describes the design and construction of a high-quality RIAA preamplifier for moving coil cartridges based on high-quality Analog Device AD797 op-amps designed for low-noise audio applications and driven from very low source impedance. This article was originally published in audioxpress, March 2014.

Music streaming is officially going high resolution. The industry’s official logo mark for Hi-Res MUSIC – previously applicable primarily to high-quality digital download services – will soon be available for adoption by music streaming services as well, according to an announcement from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and its member companies Universal, Sony, and Warner, in cooperation with the Recording Academy Producers & Engineers Wing, the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM), and DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) published its annual Year-End Sales & Shipments report for 2015 and the results show that digital music subscription services reached new all-time highs, generating more than $1 billion in revenues for the first time, and averaging nearly 11 million paid subscriptions for the year. Revenues from vinyl albums also increased and represented a record $416 million.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), in cooperation with The Digital Entertainment Group (DEG) and The Recording Academy Producers & Engineers Wing announced they would be adopting a new logo to promote the adoption of high-resolution music. This is different from the original High-Resolution Audio logo… Is there any logic in this?

Now available, Linear Audio Volume 10 is the 11th issue of Jan Didden’s series of printed bookzines dedicated to technical audio and perception. It features a great team of contributing authors and a strong collection of enjoyable articles, with a diversified and refreshingly divergent collection of personal takes on great audio topics.

This design by Joseph Norwood Still is a control unit that the author described as offering “lifelike concert-hall performance for a modest cost”. A great tube-based amplifier for phono and line sources, featuring a very subtle bass enhancement control using negative feedback to enhance only selected frequencies, below 400Hz. As the author described, a great project for discriminating audiophiles.