XPS-1 Question

[wilohmsford1]

Hello. I am looking to upgrade from a basic turntable. I will most likely be buying the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon DC with the Ortofon 2M Red. I am really interested in pairing it up with the XPS-1 (phone preamp), but I was a potential issue. The Ortofon site recommends a load of 150-300pf for the 2M. I believe the XPS-1 has a capacitance of 220pf, which with all of the components added up will put me above the 300pf maximum recommendation. I tried searching this topic, but I could not find any useful information. I did see that some people are using the combination of 2M Red with the XPS-1, but I do not know if they are getting the best sound they can doing this.

Am I reading too much into this or is it not a good idea to do this combination? I have read very good things about the XPS-1 and would like to get it while it is on sale. However, I cannot buy a new turntable yet as I am waiting for one more Amazon gift card to arrive (it will be soon).

I am by no means an audiophile, I just like my music. I have built up my vinyl collection recently and want to use a better turntable, but I also need to stay on a budget, which includes having $275 in Amazon gift cards to use. 

Please let me know if the 2M Red paired with the XPS-1 will provide me with the good quality music I am looking for.

Thanks.

[klinemj]

wilohmsford1

What do you "with all the components added up"?

You really only need to worry about the cartridge and set the XPS-1 accordingly for the cart.

The XPS-1 is a quote fine phono preamp...give it a try! If you don't like it, return it.

Mark

[wilohmsford1]

Thank you for the reply. Everything that I have read has stated that you have to add the cartridge plus the capacitance transmitted in the connections and tone arm hence the ability to buy low capacitance cables for a premium price. The Ortofon 2M Red is a MM cart, so there would be no adjustments to be made on the XPS-1 that is why I have the concern. There is some scientific data out there that explains some of the losses if you are not within the recommended capacitance load for a cart, so I may have to dive into them.

As you say, I can buy it and return it.

Thanks.

[novisnick]

I really believe you are overthinking this thing. Untill you spend alot more money on a table I dont think it should be of much concern. Just my opinion.
The XPS-1 is what im using and it does a great job.

Try it,,,,,

                                                              

Oh! One more thing,,,,,,,,
                                                      


                                                  
                          Have a tall one on me!! So glad you found us, lots of good friends to be made here.

[klinemj]

Oct 30, 2015 9:50:26 GMT -5 wilohmsford1 said:

Everything that I have read has stated that you have to add the cartridge plus the capacitance transmitted in the connections and tone arm hence the ability to buy low capacitance cables for a premium price. The Ortofon 2M Red is a MM cart, so there would be no adjustments to be made on the XPS-1 that is why I have the concern. There is some scientific data out there that explains some of the losses if you are not within the recommended capacitance load for a cart

Got it...Given you state you are on a budget, I would try the XSP-1...at its current sale price of $119, you seriously will not likely find anything better. I've had several carts and several phone stages, and the XSP-1 is truly a great one. Of course, I am using a low output MC right now.

But, as far as the input capacitance, as you likely know - Emotiva does not specify it and your Ortofon is recommended for 150-300 pF. If you search the web, you will see that there is various info saying that the XPS-1 is anywhere from 100 to 220 pF. If you take the wiring from your cart to the XPS-1 and assume 30 pF for the tonearm and 220 for the XPS-1, you are at 250 pF (within the Ortofon reco). From there, it's up to getting the signal from the XPS-1 through your pre-amp to your amp. As Emotiva says in its manual:

The capacitance of the interconnects between the cartridge and the XPS-1 will affect the way your turntable sounds. Many cartridge makers (especially MM cartridges) recommend cables with low capacitance, while some specifically recommend the opposite. We suggest that you choose low capacitance cables unless the maker of your cartridge says otherwise. Choosing an interconnect to go between your XPS-1 and your preamp, pre / pro, or receiver is less critical, and any high quality interconnect should provide excellent sound

Frankly, once your signal is up to the level required for a typical pre-amp, I would worry a lot less about the signal. And, Emotiva pretty much says this above...the RCA's from the XPS-s and the pre-amp are "less critical". I think this is Emotiva's way of saying what I am saying...don't worry about it...

Net, with the XPS-1, you will stay within the capacitance recommendations from the cart through the phono pre-amp, and I would not worry any more about it from there on.

Enjoy! But of course, if you get the XPS-1, make sure you have the switches set for MM.

Mark

[wilohmsford1]

Thank you for the comments and the welcome. I did think that I was going a little overboard since it did not seem like a big concern out here in the wide wide web. Thanks to novisnick and klinemj for the comments and information.

As it turns out, since asking this question, I was going to go with the Pro-ject RPM 1, which definitely started taking me out of the budget since it does not come with a dust cover. Then, of course, came one final curve ball. Fry's was selling the Denon DP-300F for $198 brand new. I found that I could not resist this after looking on the internet and finding that it review well for an auto. At that price I will be doing some upgrades, so the XPS-1 is definitely in play.

Thanks again for the assistance.