ECP 1 Riaa/Phono

The Electrocompaniet ECP 1 RIAA/ Phono Preamplifier brings out the best from your vinyl record collection. This self-contained phono stage can easily be switched between moving coil and moving magnet operation. The ECP1 is a big performer at an affordable price. You and your favourite LP’s deserve the Electrocompaniet ECP1.

"Hi-Fi Choice best buy 1999"
It's amazing what a nicely polished piece of acrylic can do to smarten up a drab metal box. That apart, there's little externally remarkable about the unit. Gain is switch-able from MM or MC cartridges and power is from a dedicated wall wart. Internally the works are based on discrete transistors, quite lot of'em, with the MC input stage apparently using the principle of a current input. This is a difficult discipline to master, but has some theoretical advantages. It can lead to surprises in the perceived output level of cartridges, but that's no cause for concern. This turned out to be the star of its test group, in a pretty good field too. From the start, when its low noise sank below the level of run-in grooves on even the quietest pressings, it came across as having an exceptionally detailed sound, which didn't sacrifice smoothness nor long-term listenability. Bass digs deep and remains tuneful, while treble has that combination of sweetness and extension that characterises the best LP replay equipment. On the difficult bypass test, this unit came closest of all to matching the sound of the reference, with only very subtle bass lift giving the game away. Detail imaging and ambience were all first-rate. The only test result that might be significant is the very high (in context) current it passes through a cartridge's windings, up to 0,2mA. It certainly won't do any damage, but with some cartridges might affect the sound. That apart, this is an extremely fine piece of kit and is strongly Recommended.