A message from GROVER about his new LINE STAGE

[grover]

Gentlemen and ladies, I can't thank you enough for your wonderful reviews of my cables! What a pleasure it is to realize that you hear what I do. It took a lot of work to develop these Grover Interconnects and I did so mostly for my own use in order to hear the true sonics of my electronics, therefore my need to have clear neutral transfers.

At Steve's urging I have decided to assemble a very limited number of my all-tube special line stages (like I built for Steve to use in his mastering room) as many people have urged me to do so. I am in the process of ordering circuit boards and gathering up rare new old stock tubes as I write this so if any of you are interested in having me build you a custom GROVER LINE STAGE, send an email to Steve's webmaster by scrolling down and clicking below.

My line stage can be custom tailored to fit your individual needs and can handle up to 6 stereo inputs and it can have (if you need it) a tape loop, or an EQ loop and a stereo / mono switch (just like Steve's!) Or, any way YOU want it. Prices start at $1,500 for the basic model (which has five stereo inputs, a volume control (dual ganged for balance) and a selector switch, with 6 special NOS military sub-miniature tubes inside. Guaranteed to be the best sounding line stage in the World. MONEY BACK GUARANTEE!!!!

Please let me know as soon as possible if you are interested. I build each line stage ENTIRELY BY HAND! You will not be disappointed.

[aashton]

Can you cater for 230v UK ? and would you be able to incorporate a unity gain bypass function ? and do you have next weeks winning lottery numbers while you are at it :D :laugh:

All the best - Andrew

[Vinyl-Addict]

Hi Grover, I've been trying to get in touch with you to order interconnects.
Can you contact me so I can order. Many thanks. :)

[Cliff]

Thanks for the excellent sounding (or NOT sounding) cables, Grover. I'll be ordering 3 more pairs shortly!

[Steve Hoffman]

Hi, Grover!

Nice to see you here.

Friends, I use the Grover line stage in my mastering room and it's a neat sounding unit. It uses these little new old stock sub-miniature tubes that used to be made for guiding missiles during the Korean war or something. Pretty cool. Grover's line stage looks pretty plain on the outside, but it's what's on the inside that counts. It is extremely fast, in fact, it's the fastest line stage I own. It sounds pure and dynamic and is really a joy to use. Tom Port also uses one and so does most of our local audio group.

I'll try to post a picture of it tomorrow. It is 2 inches high, 17 inches across and 8 inches from front to back; perfect for sliding into small areas or sitting unobtrusively on a shelf. I had Grover make mine with the standard 5 inputs but he added a mono stereo switch (crucial) and an EQ in/out toggle as well. That's it! Basic line stage, but a piece of gear that sounds (and looks) almost invisible, just like it should!

For those of you who want to step up to a really fine line stage, this is the one.

For those of you rich guys and gals already using $10,000.00 fancy line stages, check out the Grover; starting at $1,500.00 it might kill yours! Hello eBay or Audiogone!




:)

[teaser5]

What the hell is a line stage and do I need one?
Sheepishly,
Norm:o

[MMM]

Norm, a "line stage" is a preamplifier that does not have a built in phono preamp.

[Steve Hoffman]

Originally posted by teaser5
What the hell is a line stage and do I need one?
Sheepishly,
Norm:o

What is a line stage? Fair question.

Hmmmm, let's see. Also known as a "preamp" or "preamplifier". A crucial piece in a "separates" stereo system.

The signal comes in at a very low level and needs to be boosted up to "line" level before it can go to the amplifiers. In an "integrated" amplifier, the line stage and amps are together in the same box and it is called a "receiver" , especially if it has an FM radio in there.

When you step up to separate components, the line stage is where you control your volume and balance and what input you want to use (CD player, tape recorder, cassette, etc.

See?

The signal is most delicate as it's being converted to line level. It is crucial to have a good sounding line stage or you are screwed no matter how good your amps are.

[Tom]

Steve

What does the Eq in/out switch do, exactly?

Thanks
Tom

[teaser5]

Originally posted by MMM
Norm, a "line stage" is a preamplifier that does not have a built in phono preamp.

So you would run an amp, a line stage and a phono stage?
Thanks
N

[Steve Hoffman]

Originally posted by Tom
Steve

What does the Eq in/out switch do, exactly?

Thanks
Tom

I use a Parametric EQ unit when I fiddle with music. The unit is plugged into the Grover line stage and I can switch it IN to the system or completely OUT of the system at the flick of a toggle to compare the EQ'd sound to the "flat" sound. The Grover has no tone controls nor do we want them in the circuit!

[Steve Hoffman]

Originally posted by teaser5


So you would run an amp, a line stage and a phono stage?
Thanks
N

Yes, the phono stage plugs into the line stage directly. The phono stage has no knobs for volume control.

[teaser5]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman


Yes, the phono stage plugs into the line stage directly. The phono stage has no knobs for volume control.

Got it!
Thanks!
Norm

[Drew]

Is this preamp tube or solid state rectified? Are the tubes this preamp uses easy to find on ebay or at Upscale Audio or one of the other online vendors if one might fail?

I realize Grover probably wants to protect his intellectual property, but a few more details about what kind of careful feeding and maintenance this device might require over time might be nice.

Thanks.

[Steve Hoffman]

Originally posted by Drew
Is this preamp tube or solid state rectified? Are the tubes this preamp uses easy to find on ebay or at Upscale Audio or one of the other online vendors if one might fail?

I realize Grover probably wants to protect his intellectual property, but a few more details about what kind of careful feeding and maintenance this device might require over time might be nice.

Thanks.

Solid state rectified. Grover is getting (from the U.S. military) about 2,000 of those groovy little missile tubes. My Grover line stage has been on every day for about a year now and it is working fine, tubes are still strong and it sounds wonderful. So, careful feeding and maintenance it doesn't need, just power from the wall socket.

[Joseph Kaufman]

Any possibility of an integrated phono input, or is that too "un-high end?" My PS Audio pre-amp has such a felicity.

[Dan C]

Steve:
Would it be possible to talk Grover into designing a phono stage to go along with his preamp? :thumbsup: :)

Dan C

[Steve Hoffman]

He has a tube phono stage as well!

Drop him a line via my Webmaster!

[Jamie Tate]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman
He has a tube phono stage as well!

This guy's bag of tricks grows!

Does he have a web site or is there a list of his toys? I'm very curious what else he has.

[Steve Hoffman]

Originally posted by yesman


This guy's bag of tricks grows!

Does he have a web site or is there a list of his toys? I'm very curious what else he has.

No web site. He doesn't sell to the public, just us fans.

He has his tube amps, line stage, phono section and interconnects. That's it for now!

[Metralla]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman
The signal comes in at a very low level and needs to be boosted up to "line" level before it can go to the amplifiers.
My modified XA-777ES cranks out 3v through a custom fully-balanced output stage. It doesn't need boosting - it has to be attenuated!

The signal is most delicate as it's being converted to line level. It is crucial to have a good sounding line stage or you are screwed no matter how good your amps are.
That would be true for the signal coming from (say) a moving magnet cartridge through a no-gain phono stage. But from most CD/SACD players, the signal is already strong enough to drive the power amplifier. We see folks using passive devices to control the level.

You know all this, of course.

Regards,
Geoff

[Steve Hoffman]

Duh, but I've never heard a passive that I would ever use in a system, and I've tried the best. Good systems need line stages to add "musicality" to the music. Line level machines can't do it on their own. Oh, in my opinion of course.

You folks don't believe me? Try hooking your CD player up to your amps straight, without a line stage. Use the volume control on your remote or whatever. Now, listen. Urggh, what happened to the music? THAT'S why we need a line stage for line level devices.

[audio]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman


No web site. He doesn't sell to the public, just us fans.

He has his tube amps, line stage, phono section and interconnects. That's it for now!

Any word on the speaker cables yet?

[jkerr]

I sent a note inquiring about this yesterday. A custom pre would be very nice. I'm currently using a passive and while it seems ok for my Sony 777, for my AES PH-1 phono stage its lacking. Looking forward to seeing some pics.

One question I have is: would a headphone output be possible?

[Cafe Jeff]

Hi,
I see that Steve writes that you need an active line stage. My own experience makes me liable to agree. My question is, why is one needed to return musicality to the system? Jeff