I mentioned this before and got crapped on, but here goes ...
I like phono stages. They don't take up a lot of room, they can be very cheap to try out, and they are easy to sell if they aren't your cup of tea. I found that matrix quad and variomatrix synth separation was greatly improved by using a modest outboard phono preamp rather than ones that are built into quad receivers (mine is a Sansui QRX-7001). I expect that it has to do with preserving more fine nuance in the signal that the matrix decoder relies on ... and they just sound better anyway.
I used an inexpensive Cambridge Audio 640P for a while until I recently upgraded to a Graham Slee Gram Amp 2 Special Edition (the cartridge is a Denon DL-160 High Output Moving Coil ... I don't use this system for CD-4 playback), and switching back to the Sansui's phono input was a huge disappointment on so many levels. The used 640P cost me $150 (CDN), and the Graham Slee cost me $225 ... so next to nothing in terms of enjoyment, expecially in synth mode.
I like phono stages. They don't take up a lot of room, they can be very cheap to try out, and they are easy to sell if they aren't your cup of tea. I found that matrix quad and variomatrix synth separation was greatly improved by using a modest outboard phono preamp rather than ones that are built into quad receivers (mine is a Sansui QRX-7001). I expect that it has to do with preserving more fine nuance in the signal that the matrix decoder relies on ... and they just sound better anyway.
I used an inexpensive Cambridge Audio 640P for a while until I recently upgraded to a Graham Slee Gram Amp 2 Special Edition (the cartridge is a Denon DL-160 High Output Moving Coil ... I don't use this system for CD-4 playback), and switching back to the Sansui's phono input was a huge disappointment on so many levels. The used 640P cost me $150 (CDN), and the Graham Slee cost me $225 ... so next to nothing in terms of enjoyment, expecially in synth mode.