Esoteric E-03 phono stage

[turntable]

Has anyone heard this phono stage?

Jeff?

[Still-One]

Not for any extended period, but one local dealer was carrying the line for awhile and all of their product sounded very good. The turnable at the time was the SME 20-2 but I forget the cartridge.

Jim

[cmalak]

Originally Posted by turntable

Has anyone heard this phono stage?

Jeff?

Shane...I have not heard it but in case you have not seen the reviews, here are a few links:

6moons audio reviews: Esoteric C03 Phono Stage
SoundStage! Equipment Review - Esoteric E-03 Phono Stage (2/2010)
Esoteric E-03 Phono Stage (Hi-Fi+ 78) | AVguide

It was featured in Michael Fremer's Analaog Corner section in the Dec 2010 issue but it has not been posted online by Stereophile yet (Now On Newsstands: <i>Stereophile</i>, Vol.33 No.12 | Stereophile.com)

Hope this helps

[turntable]

Thanks for the reviews Cyril. I can never understand Jason Kennedy reviews.

I am hopefully getting one to listen to in about 10 days.

[turntable]

I have had this phono at home for a few days now. The two gents who had it before me in August got lots of noise/hum like in the reviews. The importer rang me a couple of weeks back and indicated they had resolved the hum/grounding issue with help from Esoteric.

This phono is a work of beauty and just looks kool and sophisticated. The " stillpoint " type isolation feet are a bit of a worry as they rattle. Once you put it down, the hardened steel pint point feet do not move. The front knobs are really solid and click with each position change in a very stable manner. Looking at the back panel, I could see why there might be hum issues. It is full left/right mono construction, so with two tables plugged in and the output ic, it is impossible to adequately dress the ic's. They must cross each other , so sheiled cables are an absolute must.


Switched the E-03 on and silence!!!

It seemed to take a couple of days before the sound settled - or was that me settling? The sound is very refined, transparent and the upper mids and treble seemed to float in air. You could easily idendify the sonic and musical differences between the Lyra Kleos, Dyna XV-1 and Ortofon A90, as well as the Exclusive P3 and TW Acustik AC-3.


You can even use the loading as a slight tone control depending on the recording - however on some music going up in loading also made the bass a bit flabby. the best thing is you can do this on the fly when music is playing, just seems to mute as it switces for a millisecond, then its back playing music - no thuds, no nothing - awesome.

One thing that was consistent was the feeling of dynamic brakes being applied to the music and it was all a bit too refined and smooth. Fast forward to Sunday late arvo and I am due to return the phono tomorrow. The phono came with a Shunyata Diamondback venon PC, the importer put that in as the box and said it was quie good. I decided to pull that out and put in one of my TG SLVR PC's.


WTF!! Now the E-03 came alive. Bass was more impactful, taut and faster. the mids and upper frequencies liertally had a layer of smooth film wiped clear. Vocals a lot clearer.
Now we are cooking with gas - sounded a whole lot better. Man, the Shunyata PC in my system was not good. smoothing everything over. Then again my Hydra makes a good boat anchor. It will probably be good for a SS or slightly lean system, but certainly not mine.


I am now going to call the importer and ask to keep it for a few more days. The E-03 is a great phono stage, however it will for better or worse idendify the weakest link as it is so transparent and pure sounding.

to be continued.

[Rafale]

Shane.....thanks for sharing... in the last HI-FI News issue, KKessler speaks in very laudatory term of Esoteric E-03
' We're awash with sublime, if expensive phonostages-spooilt for choice. The Esoteric makes choosing easier, for it bridges the gap between the warmth of the all-tubes designs and the antiseptic nature of the purely solid-state. It's flexibility is a boon, but the clincher may be more mundane : the E-03 is so gorgeous, such a joy to use that you'll love it as much for the wrong reasons as for the right ones '
Sound quality : 85 %

[turntable]

Originally Posted by Rafale

Shane.....thanks for sharing... in the last HI-FI News issue, KKessler speaks in very laudatory term of Esoteric E-03
' We're awash with sublime, if expensive phonostages-spooilt for choice. The Esoteric makes choosing easier, for it bridges the gap between the warmth of the all-tubes designs and the antiseptic nature of the purely solid-state. It's flexibility is a boon, but the clincher may be more mundane : the E-03 is so gorgeous, such a joy to use that you'll love it as much for the wrong reasons as for the right ones '
Sound quality : 85 %

Hi Philippe

You don't have a copy you can scan and share?

[Rafale]

Hi Shane
There is also a very recent article on HI-FI +, regrettably I do not have to scan at home but I go to see what I can make for you....

[turntable]

Originally Posted by Rafale

Hi Shane
There is also a very recent article on HI-FI +, regrettably I do not have to scan at home but I go to see what I can make for you....

thanks Philippe, that would be great.

I have read the hifi+ review.

[Gene]

Considering E-03 or the EAR 324 as an upgrade to my Sutherland PhD. Using Grado Statement 1.