Plinius M14 MM/MC phono stage

If audiophiles agree on anything … it's time to do the opposite!

No, wait, what am I saying?! This is the exception... the elusive Plinius M14 phono, one of the world's best phono stages according to just about everybody. Handles any cartridge, allows lots of loading options, sits and stares at you inscrutably with that beautiful blue eye while you down another Balvenie and try to coax it into being just a little bit more scrutable. Impossible.

The great Scot Markwell of The Absolute Sound called this one of the three best phono stages ever manufactured. Paul Bolin, also of TAS, reviewed the M14 thus: "In a phrase, the M14 is a deal — and then some. It is flexible, anvil-solid, and yields only a tad of ultimate high-frequency finesse to the very best phono stages I know. It also costs less than its closest sonic competitors — the Rowland Cadence, Aesthetix Io, and Audio Research Reference. Anyone looking for a phono stage to live with for the long run would be foolish not to give the M14 an extended audition."Didja hear that? FOOLISH, I tell you!

I cannot find a negative review of this anywhere on the Interwebs, and that's saying something. For Lord's sake it weighs 21 pounds. A solid state phono stage! Pass the Kind of Blue!

I know my asking price is at the higher end, but this unit is hard to find and it's in SUPERB condition, with no significant deviation from new beyond its age. It's also black — y'know, more understated, a bit more class, more desirable (except in Ferguson or Staten Island — oops, too soon? Don't harass me — I'm pretty close to a socialist already. Really.) Anyway, where were we? Oh, right... I'm in no hurry to sell; I'm down-sizing my system but I'll keep this piece (along with my VPI table) unless a great offer comes along. Don't be tossin' no lowballs my way, fellas.

So line 'em up, dogies! This is a wild bargain at its original price of $3500, and you don't see 'em around much in these parts anymore. (I think I have the manual, but I'll include a hard copy of the online PDF if I don't find it. I definitely have the original box.)