Reviewer: Marja & Henk
Financial Interests: click here
Sources: PS Audio PWT; Dr. Feickert Blackbird MKII/DFA 1o5/Zu DL-103; Phasure XX-PC; NVO SPA-one Special Edition [in for review]
DAC: Phasure NOS1 DAC; PS Audio Direct Stream DAC [loaner]; PS Audio NuWave DAC [loaner]
Streaming sources: XXHighEnd; iTunes; Devialet AIR; La Rosita Beta; Qobuz Desktop, Tidal Desktop
Preamp/integrated/power: Audio Note Meishu with WE 300B (or AVVT, JJ, KR Audio 300B); dual Devialet D-Premier; PTP Audio Blok 20; Hypex nCore 1200 monos; Trafomatic Audio Kaivalya monos; Trafomatic Audio Reference One preamp; Trafomatic Audio Reference Phono One; Music First Passive Magnetic; NVO ISA-2 [in for review]
Speakers: Avantgarde Acoustic Duo Omega; Arcadian Audio Pnoe; Podium Sound One; WLM Sub 12; Sounddeco Alpha F3; dual Zu Submission MKI; Soltanus Virtuoso ESL
Cables: Complete loom of ASI LiveLine cables; full loom of Crystal Cable cables; full loom of Nanotec Golden Strada; Audiomica Pearl Consequence interconnect; Audiomica Pebble Consequence
Power line conditioning: PS Audio Powerplant Premier; PS Audio Humbuster III; IsoTek Evo 3 Syncro; AudioMica Allbit Consequence
Equipment racks: Solid Tech and ASI amplifier and TT shelf
Indispensable accessories: Furutech DeMag; ClearAudio Double Matrix; Franc Audio Ceramic Disc Classic; Shakti Stones; Akiko Audio sticks; Kemp polarity checker
Online Music purveyors: qobuz.com, tidal.com, bandcamp.com, amazon.co.uk 
Room treatment: Acoustic System International resonators, sugar cubes, diffusers
Room size: ca. 14.50 x 7.50m with a ceiling height of 3.50m, brick walls, wooden flooring upstairs, ca 7 x 5m with a ceiling height of 3.50m, brick walls and concrete floor downstairs.
Price of review item:  €3'750 (ex tax)

After we wrapped our review of the NVO Audio ISA-2 integrated KT120 amplifier, international distributor Panikos Kontemeniotis contacted us; not to arrange pickup but a review of NVO's latest phone stage. For the duration of that review, we could keep the ISA-2. All Panikos wanted to know was were we interested; and if so, what kind of cartridge would we use. With the positive impressions of the build and sound quality of the ISA-2 still fresh in mind, of course we said yes. Panikos then promised to send a fully run-in phono preamp.


A few weeks later, a solid wood crate arrived. Packed in plenty of shock-absorbing material, the preamp with its separate power supply should withstand the roughest of handling. Once unpacked, we had a 45cm x 31.5cm x 13cm WxDxH phono stage and a 23.5cm x 23.7cm x 13cm power supply. For transport all 13 tubes were either in their original boxes or neatly packed in bubble wrap. Assembly was easy. All boxes and wraps were numbered. The accompanying document showed which tube should be inserted into which ceramic socket. 


So we did insert two 6C45П triodes for the input stage followed by three 12AX7 dual triodes of which one is shared between both channels in the second stage while each channel gets its own 12AX7 in the third stage. The sixth tube we inserted was a 12AU7 cathode follower shared by both channels. There also were two voltage regulators per side. One is made up of one 6C19П, one 6922 and one and a half 12AT7. The other half of the latter becomes a 12AT7. Then one of the same and two 6922 dual triodes combine for the second regulator. If all adds up correctly, there should be 13 tubes in total. There's no additional tube action in the power supply. That gets one large toroidal power transformer, two DC regulated supplies for the tube heaters and a separate supply for the plates' B+ supplies.