Getting more music from the groove: Sutherland Little Loco preamp
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- Опубліковано 10 лют 2025
- More on the Sutherland Little Loco, sutherlandengi...
My 2016 Parasound JC3+ review www.cnet.com/n...
In the days after I posted this review I returned to the JC3+ with the Eminent EX and felt that cartridge was a better match with the JC3+. Little Loco was superior to the JC3+ with the Cadenza Blue, which was the cartridge in play for nearly all of the review period. Cartridge matching is key to achieving maximum joy with Little Loco.
Ortofon Cadenza Blue www.ortofon.co...
My Sonic Lab Eminent EX www.musicdirec...
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I’ve been enjoying this channel for two years...especially grateful for it during these crazy times. Thank you for the great content & your “all are welcome” attitude. And yes, I am a female audiophile😊
You made my day, thanks!
I love this channel. Did the same when I was off for a month.have a blessed day.
Great review. Steve, please please please- more analog reviews like this, cartridges, tables, arms, tweaks please. Need break from speakers!!! Please...
First of all love the shirt.
Second, I wanted to take a second to shoutout something I really appreciate about your channel. A good portion of your reviews, this included, are for products that I never plan to be within my audio budget however; your passion makes them a joy to watch. I’m also always excited to find a new album to explore. I love your dynamic and rad music taste.
Keep up the videos, I always enjoy stopping by for a listen.
As always, the ‘hi-fi’ quality level reviews of a hi-if audio equipment by one and only Mr. Audiophiliac. Thnx Steve
Me and my dad love your videos! Thanks for the info 👌🏻
Sutherland phono preamps are quality and among the best preamps I've ever heard.
Not every Sutherland is a current amplifier; believe that the Sutherland 20/20 for example is a regular voltage amplifier.
Right, Sutherland make a bunk of phono preamps, but only the Loco models are current mode designs.
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac Ah that might explain why the balanced *inputs* are only on their Loco models.
@@QoraxAudio The Little Loco does not have XLR inputs/outputs.
@@rohandamle6989 Ah yes, you're right. I was thinking of the standard Phono Loco.
Famous in Lithuania and obsessed about on ASR....you've been doing something right. Enjoyed the review.
I listen to Steve with headphones on and I’m on a farm.. every time I look out the window to see who’s honking:) great review.
For those that can't afford the Little Loco get the TZ Vibe. It has components of the Little Little Loco and the KC Vibe.
Great review as usual!
Current 20/20 owner. Amazing piece of kit. Pairs very well with a slightly warm Cart. Hopefully I will one day upgrade to the little Loco.
I have the Sutherland PH3 for ten years now, fully battery loaded. Was $ 1000,- and still sounds great!
Love the detailed yet very straightforward explanations in your equipment reviews. I am using a PASS XP-15 in my system which seems to parallel many of the same positive characteristics that you attribute to the Sutherland unit and cost the same. Incredible amount of inner detail in the PASS plus many other positive attributes as well.
I'm going to have to find a copy of the Rolling Stones recording that you played because Sonny Rollins is still ma maannn.
I have a Sutherland Insight. I dont think I will need to upgrade as I dont feel anything is missing. It is a solid piece of gear.
Insight owner here share the same opinion:)
Fun stuff. Ciccone is Madonna’s actual last name, and she is on the cover!
The album has a cover of Madonna's Into The Groove
Love your shirts Steve, one video about your collection of t-shirts and shirts.
Amazing phono is worth every penny
Just excellent! Would love to see a turnable or cartridge review...
I’m buying a lottery ticket today. My only hope of ever owning something like this.
Rummy, a sage, wise ol' audiophile ... when asked about Phono Pres offered this;
"because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns-the ones we don't know we don't know"
Great review, I can hear the fun and joy in your voice. How about a review on DIY cables.
would love to hear a review of the Schiit Mani and the Sutherland KC Vibe
I set up the little loco Mk2 in my system. It's very detailed and has great separation but is a bit lean. Ron is launching a mono little loco very soon. You should review and compare to the LL, Steve.
Small correction, Steve: Tattoo You came out in 1981 (not mid-eighties), and consisted primarily of stuff recorded 6-7 yrs previously.
Can’t afford this preamp, but I’m going to look for these recordings as you’ve described them so infectiously.
PS MJQ is one of my absolute favorites, and also featured Sonny at one point 👍🏼
Check out the Sutherland TZ Vibe for $1400.
Out of my price range but thanks for the look. 👍
I use a VP530 Bellari tube pre. I think I paid $400 five years ago it has very good clean sound also Pickering high end cartridge. For truly amazing sound and control I run into Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 At max resolution then into My DAW Reaper and with a few vst's , eq's and such get incredible sound live. There are vsts that are made to rid of noise also but I use Diamond cuts to clean up bad vinyl also at high rez. DC has mode to alter Ria curve as they are different between labels and when made. Topped off through my I built Dynaco 120 sterio tube amp, Kt88 Gold Lion tubes into ADC speakers fro 70's and JBL studio monitors 4311's from late 70's I believe. Will knock socks off!
Ow!
Less is more here for sure.
$200 in parts for $4k?
(Sorry, couldn't help noticing;-)
Nice to see a turntable with suspension when you're going to dig that deep into your grooves ( & pockets)!!
Enjoying the channel. Thanks Steve
You're paying for the engineering. I don't think a $200 preamp will sound as good. A Honda Civic and a Bugati will probably have a "similar" build, it will have 4 tires and look like a car hypex ncore amp modules weigh like 4 ounces and probably destroy your 40 lb anchor.
I wrote to you about this amp being compatible with Rega. You said it was despite the Stereophile review stating that it was not. I read the owners manual for the Lil Loco which said that the cable shielding and ground must be separate. Therefore I emailed Ron Sutherland and he confirmed that they are not compatible with Rega turntables as they, Regas, come wired from the factory.
Can you review the TZ Vibe? Sutherlands MC only for low output. No need to worry about the load the TZ zeroes it out.
Love your reviews. This time, we need a shovel. ;-)
Wow! Great review. The JC-3+ met its match? Got to hear. Meanwhile, back to my JC-3Jr.
My AQVOX has a current mode if you use the balanced outs. It sounds great attached to the Hana SL. (low voltage MC)
Where do they get their prices? A high grade low esr cap is a few bucks. Same with any other component. The profit margins must be insane. Yes, the design is critical. But at the end of the day you are just herding electrons. Love your reviews. You make me salivate for high end gear.
They pull their pricing out of the air to join into the vinyl revival. Most of these items, no matter how awesome they are, are ridiculously overpriced unless you are sitting on a pile of gold.
Ahhhh, that explains everything....🤔
Fabulous 💕🌹❤️😍
Holy Crap! For 8 g's, the "GRAIL" should wine and dine you, do your laundry, clean your house and give you a back message. (Among other things I shouldn't say here).
For $3800, the Lil Loco is SUCH a better deal. LOL!
Steve, I'm sure that if you try, if you keep going up in price, you will find something to beat the Sutherland. And then beat the one that beat the Sutherland. This can be a never ending journey. How about reviews of phono preamps at about 4 or 5 different price ranges and tell us the best at that price. You can even go up to the thousands of dollars if you like. Long story short, if you have the money, you will pretty much always better the one before. If you have that kind of money, more power to you.
Terrific review. But I've never seen rivets on cymbals!
You spark a request. I have original Sonata cartridge from CES. Grado has just released Version 3. And there are two versions, a low and high output. Get a sample of each to use with the Little Loco, since they are induced magnet but different output levels to get the reaction to the current amplification for two different levels of the same design. You could probably just walk there and pick them up at the factory.
Wish someone would make a affordable "Killer Preamp".
george vera
I recently ordered a Tavish Classic tube based phono pre and it sounds absolutely phenomenal for $650, if that’s of any help. It works for both MM and MC carts and has a lot of loading options too.
Maybe I don't know what I am missing, but this little $175 Rega sounds good to my ears, and even has a USB output to the computer which is fun to mess with on Audacity to make digital recordings. Also I would have to believe that the "better" phono section in my arsenal (killer pun noted) would be the PV10B tube preamp with the expensive Mullard military grade (pun noted) AX7 tubes from Uncle Kevin.
The Shiit Mani is affordable and sounds great. It is not as good as the built in phono pre on my Yamaha A-S2100 integrated amp. But, diminishing returns hit hard on anything after the Shiit Mani. Truthfully speaking, a phono pre is a very basic lousy lil circuit. Any halfass engineer can draw it out for you when he's sitting on the shtter with a beer in hand. So, don't blow thousands of dollars on this lousy lil circuit.
W A
Yeah, the Mani is an amazing phono pre for the money. I have one in addition to my Tavish and have it hooked up to my 2nd turntable.
The Puffin by Parks Audio is an amazing preamp for $450. I bought one for my second system and was blown away by the sound. It almost beats my $1,000 CiAudio PEQ1 MKII for half of the price. The Schitt Mani is a great little preamp for the money as well. It sounds great, but has issues with RF interference if you live too close to a radio tower. I sold my Mani due to the RFI issues.
Mmm...wonder how the Loco would do in a faceoff with Boulder 2108 Phono at around $52,000? Possibly a draw?
Comparing a transconductance amp to a good (high bandwidth) step up transformer would also be interesting.
Just sold my last Electrocompaniet component against my wish.
Could i get a comforting pat on the back 😢
Of course!
There, there... 😟
Hare deLune 😊
"There, there! Here's a hot beverage".
Steve Fick 😊
Enjoying a couple of cold ones
I was wondering who in the heck across the state from me was making equipment of this level in Kansas City, MO...after looking around on the Sutherland website, I now see he's one of the co-founders of MartinLogan!
Would current phono amplifier work with Rega turntable/mc cart???
Yes, but you might need to modify the tonearm cable. Ask your nearest Sutherland dealer or Ron Sutherland about compatibility
Steve Guttenberg Audiophiliac Thanks Steve. I’ve heard some conflicted info regarding Rega comparability hence the question. 2-3K is my budget and market is pretty saturated in that price range, making it quite hard to find a phono that stands out.
Can you use the Denon DL103 cartridge?
Try the tube Rogue ARES phono I love love love mine! it is 1900 but you can get a magnum one for 2800 best phono not under 5k but also the best phono under 10k
I'm using a dj mixer with two phono preamps I literally found in a pile of trash I don't know why I watch these
(it's because steve is a nice guy)
why not BNC connected in, the better choice for a phono stage
bnc connectors?
much more stable connector and shielding at 50 ohms and RCA connector is a poor connectorand is 75 ohms
John sweda very interesting. 50 ohms is better than 75 ohms for analogue audio? i've only ever used bnc for sdi cables, but those are 75 ohms.
i do see bnc comes in either flavor. gosh, wouldnt it be nice if bnc were a more common connector for consumer/enthusiast gear. (including video)
Great review, your enthusiasm makes it. I’ve been into the original English release of the Stones “Between the Buttons” from my older brother and it sounds pretty alive compared to my American copy from the late 70’s. That’s a terrific 60’s album if you’ve got the right copy. Love “Rubber Soul” as well.
Mr. Sutherland has been at this game for a very long time and he knows what he is doing. The prices for any audio gear are rising by at least $100 thanks to Trump's war on China (and apparently now on Mr. and Mrs. US citizen of late as well). Anyway, while I am sure the Little Loco is a good phono preamp, in my opinion, for the money, the Parasound JC3 Jr and JC3+ knock the Loco off the pedestal.
The Loco is a one trick pony that does it's trick well. However, the Parasound units can handle both MC and MM carts of any flavor, both are balanced and extract every nuance out of the grooves. The JC3 Jr does it for less than half the price of the Loco.
Prices are always on the rise, regardless of trade wars. Keep politics out of these discussions. Plenty of other places you can vent.
Prices aren't always on the rise and politics ARE playing a part in this. I fully agree that the Parasound is much more versatile and a MUCH BETTER buy for the money.
I read in a review that the Little Loco requires a balanced output and, as such, Regas will not work. True? If true, could you expound?
Not true
Good to know.
www.stereophile.com/content/sutherland-engineering-little-loco-phono-preamplifier
True: Your tonearm wiring must be fully balanced between cartridge and phono preamp, with no connections between any of the tonearm leads and ground. That means that the Little Loco won't work, for example, with your Rega arm, unless it's rewired. Yet there are no adjustable parameters, options to choose from, or controls of any sort- not even a power switch (footnote 2). You connect the input and output cables, plug it in, and play music.
Really fair review for a nice product I will never own. Seems to me every week I bump into the "even more expensive" category when it comes to vinyl. For some of the money I see these products at I will gladly spend my money on a better DAC or better speakers. I AM a lover of vinyl but that only goes so far. Great channel here and I do enjoy all the information as well as the comments as I have discovered a lot of fantastic affordable products that I might have never heard of before.
These years the market is almost over flown by recently priced audio gear. U just need to pay attention and the need for demo, then i'm sure you will find what your looking for. :-)
Well actually I am not looking for anything and always have considered/bought demo or opened box items at a discount. Looking for a deal is not how I shop, I buy based on quality, however, there is a point of no return for any product when the pricing is plain ridiculous.
@@FelixtheMetalcat I also buy my gear, based on what i wan't and can afford. But if the same item is on the used market, in good condition, i will properly go for that one.
I actually thought Sutherland had produced a nice affordable phono preamp judging by the name. Wrong! Just another pricey phono preamp to the lineup...
I believe he makes phone up ramps for around $1000
The Sutherland KC Vibe runs around $900. I owned one for a while and it's a fantastic preamp for the money.
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac Where can I get one of those up-ramps?
I'm more of a lot loco guy myself.
At that price and STILL no teflon caps in any current production phono preamp. It ALL sucks compared to teflon cancer in the factory or not!
do you know how many 7/11 robberies it takes to pay for that?
Sounds like another guy trying to get rich overnight.
I'm not against making a good profit but that is crazy.
This is why so many people just don't care when a forgien country reverse engineers a product like this.
Arkman Ron Sutherland is not some new kid on the block trying to make a quick buck. Nearly 40 years ago he and Gayle Sanders started Martin-Logan.
"Another guy trying to get rich overnight"?
Of all pursuits wherby one can get rich overnight, a phono pre amp designer certainly isn't what I conjure up in my mind!
Grinding out a living associated with a tiny niche market offering, inside a small niche market, INSIDE of a niche market ...
It's far from the glamorous world of Apple paying $3 billion to Dre and Jimmy Iovine for Beats.
Bet it sounds good...But, "LIL LOCO"???!!! What a terrible name!
More like, "MUCHO Loco!"
Gran Loco!
Spoiler alert: this comment will not be popular amongst part of the community.
20 USD in parts = 3.8 k$ product... This industry is stupid
And yes engineering has its cost, but this is up there with 1000$ power cables and USB audiophile snake oil
Makes me sad, but apparently that's because I'm not filthy rich and still care about value in what I buy, silly me
Is that true? Is that only the case with Sutherland's gear? or all hifi?
If quality is the goal, throw vinyl out with the trash. The sound on vinyl comes from a master tape.
Vinyl has never, and will never, have the capability of coming close to the quality of that tape.
The problems with vinyl are why other methods of sound reproduction were developed. Period!
Upon further investigation -> Sutherland - Little Loco MC Phono Preamplifier Price $3,800.00 LMAO, LOL HA HA, HE HE, oh my ribs!!
Indeed I would love to listen to master tapes all the time. What’s a good source in your book? In a way vinyl sounds so much better than mp3 etc
Great speech, 100% agreed.😎
@@millmoormichael6630 mp3....oh dear, thats why we have FLAC files....which is pretty much as close to cd quality as you can ask for. I am a huge lover of my records but there is always a breaking point of how much you can let yourself be gouged for money.
Almost all master tapes were lost on June 8, 2008. Go to the New York Times and read "The Day the Music Burned".
@@amazoidal thanks for the tip, never ever heard of that tragedy. But not ALL masters were lost, simply too many, another blunder by the music industry overall.