Getting things to happen when and where they should, to happen as fast as they should, to be the right size and in the right place – it’s the phono-stage equivalent of that oldest truth about record players: all they have to do is turn at 331/3rd RPM and do it quietly. It’s easily said but as history tells us, in both cases it is far from easily done. But one thing’s for sure: extra, unwanted weight and energy has a deeply damaging impact on the process. The tiny signals involved are especially vulnerable to additive distortion, the problem that mars most expensive phono-stages. Padding out the bottom end (whether intentionally or not) might make a unit sound superficially warmer and more rounded, but it is musically destructive, impacting pace, timing, dynamic response and the recording’s inner structure. The Groove is assiduous in eliminating spurious weight or padding. As we’ve already seen, it does nothing to round edges or soften the blow – which might sound like a negative but is exactly what makes it so brilliantly direct and immediate.
Is this a new kind of neutrality: true to the communicative qualities of the recording rather than simply true to it tonal character? Looking again at the two Kleiber recordings, there can be no doubt as to the musical integrity of either performance, but there can be no doubt as to the relative merits of the two pressings either. In this case, the medium has been exposed as eroding the musical integrity of one whilst revealing hidden depths in the other – and The Groove has clearly revealed that truth. It is one of those rare components with the organisation and honesty to dig beyond the facts of the signal to the sense behind it – something that becomes increasingly apparent the more musically direct and coherent (and very often, simpler and less ambitious) systems become.
To that end, it has also served as a timely reminder that, for all the energy, hot air and pixels expended on the subject of amplification and speakers, the real arbiter of absolute system performance is the quality of the source. Serious, high-end source components don’t come cheap, but you neglect them (and their budgetry demands) at your peril. The Groove Plus SRX Mk. 2.5 (to restore its full, unwieldy moniker) is the most affordable, genuinely high-end phono-stage available. Quite a statement and one that could probably use a little qualification…
One aspect of its ‘high-end’ nature is that The Groove needs to be treated with all the care and consideration its performance (as opposed to its price) demands. Your turntable set up and cartridge loading needs to be spot on or you won’t hear the musical benefits the phono-stage can provide. But dial things in – and the sheer transparency of The Groove will let you hear the impact of every single change, be that tweaks to VTA or VTF so small that you wonder whether you adjusted them at all – and you’ll be astonished by what you hear from your familiar record player and familiar records.
Does The Groove have any serious competition. It does, but as is so often the case, context is everything. Konus Audio’s astonishing Vinyle 3000MC delivers recordings with remarkable and engaging musical integrity, but it cannot match the sheer resolution, transparency and dynamic range of The Groove, qualities demanded by the best, wide bandwidth amplifiers and speaker systems. Up to a point, the Konus keeps pace with The Groove, offering a contrasting and equally valid musical perspective. Up to that point it’s very much an either/or decision, depending on your musical priorities, system components and ambitions. But The Groove can take you further, can enjoy (and challenge) more exalted company and arguably fits a wider range of systems (and cartridges), where the clarity and dynamic jump it provides is almost universally welcome. If your system is overly warm or tubby, then the Konus 3000’s purposeful substance and rich colours can prove embarrassing. We are lucky to have two such musically capable and relatively affordable phono-stages. We are lucky that they are so different and that they fit different systems, preferences and listeners.
