UPDATE 10/7/2017::: Since writing this review, I had the opportunity to purchase and audition the $300 Lounge Audio MKIII. Like the Vincent Pho 8, it is a $300 Phono Stage. This MKIII a game changer - it DOES offer compelling enough value for me over the $130 Schiit Mani --- so much so that the Mani has been relegated to woodshop duty (yes, I have a TT in my woodshop... yeah, first world problems.) The MKIII is now top shelf in the HT.

Oh, and it goes without saying that I feel the Lounge MKIII is better than the Vincent Pho 8... in fact I am going to make a bold statement and say it blows it away. But do your own research, the MKIII gets rave reviews everywhere, except for one eccentric individual in Singapore who used to have credibility in my eyes until he slipped up and misjudged the MKIII. But then again, maybe he got a "bad one" or was having a bad "ear" day..... or maybe his setup just didn't agree with the MKIII.... that does happen with phono stages, what works well on one setup croaks on another. I can't understand how he is the only one on the planet who didn't think the MKIII offered compelling value for $300.

In the end, if I had a choice to buy the the Vincent for $300, Mani for $150 or the Lounge MKIII for $300 the choice is simple - give me the MKIII all day long. In fact, so much so I bought a SECOND MKIII recently, and also bought the Lounge Copla for my MC cartridges. Don't believe me? Try it for yourself - once you see the build quality, listen to it you'll be sold too. To me the Lounge is the "sweet spot" for pirce to value in phono stages for those wanting to spend less than $750.
END UPDATE

ORIGINAL REVIEW OF Vincent PHO 8:
Whether the Vincent Pho 8 is a good choice or has a good price to value ratio with all of the choice that exists for phono stages - well, only you and your own ears (and wallet) can ultimately answer that.

But what I can say is that I currently own this phono stage, along with a Schiit Mani and a Radial J33. I will also say I recently returned a Cambridge Audio 651 because I did not feel that for $200 it offered any compelling improvement over the $130 Schiit Mani, or for that matter the $200 Radial J33. (Note I have a review of the Cambridge 651 also).

I could take a few paragraphs and attempt to share with you what I thought MY ears heard with the Vincent, and how it stacked up - but this time I am going to make a long story short. In summary, I don't think this $300 Vincent stage offers any better sound over the $130 Schiit Mani either. That is what my ears found after MANY hours of listening. At times I would play the same album twice on the two different stages to help with my impressions.

I know the Vincent has a great reputation, and rightfully so. It is still probably one of the top 10 in my opinion of stages under the $500 price point. Just because I think the Mani is a better price to value, and is in the same class audibly does not by any means make this a bad stage. Is the Mani better? That is up to you and your ears. I think they are in the same class musically, and don't think one is any better or worse than the other. However, price point is quite different. In some ways the Mani has created a real problem for a lot of phono stage manufacturers today in the under $500 crowd.

Thanks for reading.

Awesome product!!

I am planing on changing from a Ortofon OM40 MM cartridge to a Denon DL103R MC cartridge. My Mcintosh C41 preamp only has a phono preamp for MM, thus the reason for buying the Vincent. I installed the Vincent and decided to try it out with my old Ortofone OM40 and by pass the McIntosh phono preamp, and WOW what a surprize, dead quiet, and made the OM40 sound like a new cartridge! The soundstage became larger and deeper, This Vincent Phono stage is really a great product, it really surpassed the McIntosh phono preamp in detail and soundstage, a really outstanding product. I cannot wait to hear what a new Denon DL103R MC is going to sound like when it's attached to my MMF7.1 table and run through the Vincent PHO8, I bet I willl be happy with this new set up for years to come!

This dual chassis phono stage replaced a Pro-Ject Phono Box. It cost twice as much but makes my Pro-Ject RPM 1.3/Denon DL110MC set up sound much more dynamic and life-like. I took a peek inside that Phono Box before I gave it away and was shocked at the tiny band aid-sized circuit board. And that "wall wart" power supply just wasn't cutting it. The Phono Box was a clean, quiet, affordable phono stage but it somehow just sucked all the vitality out of my vinyl and stole the bass "slam" that I knew my turntable was capable of reproducing (via an old NAD 1300 preamp that I had lying around). Well, the Vincent PHO-8 gave me back that vitality and restored the punch and "slam" that I wanted. I immediately replaced the Vincent's stock power cord with a Pangea AC-14 and got even more realism and texture (especially in the bass) as well as "blacker" quieter backgrounds. The DL110 is a high output moving coil so I could use the MM setting on the PHO-8 but I prefer the MC setting by a small margin. It's more dynamic and vivid and makes the MM setting sound a bit too distant and sedate. Your mileage may vary. In short: the PHO-8 is probably the best phono stage on the planet under $500. At a special sale price of $299 from Audio Advisor, it was an irresistible opportunity to steal!