˻ PREMIERE ˼

⌈ Cracow-based Circle Labs specializes in designing and manufacturing original hybrid amplifiers and preamplifiers. Its latest product is a phono preamplifier supporting MM and MC cartridges, and it’s one aiming at a high-end level with a little surprise inside. Here comes Circle Labs V1000. ⌋

THERE ARE SOME AUDIO BRANDS that, whether with or without their knowledge, “High Fidelity” and I personally have accompanied right from their very beginnings, and a large part of their products premiered right here. The point is that I started testing their products with their premiere offerings, and later had the opportunity to review also their following creations, thus following the development and progress over the years. In most such cases already this first test suggested strongly that the company in question had a really good idea (at least for the product itself, and in many cases also for everything else apart from the performance itself that’s necessary for a component to succeed) and a good chance to succeed in a tough market.

Every year, even just in our small home market, we see the emergence of several, sometimes dozens of new audio brands, but after a few years, only a handful of them remain. This handful is almost exclusively those who, from the beginning, had a plan and knew exactly what they wanted to achieve and were able to present it properly. In a word, those who in my opinion were worth accompanying, with or without their knowledge, from the beginning of their activity.

This is how market verification of willingness and ability works. After all, it's not enough to have a good idea, you still have to know how to implement it and sell it. In this respect, audio is no different from other industries, although there are certainly some in which it is easier to make a name for yourself. Also, I sometimes feel that the audio world is full of “homegrown specialists” who discount many new brands and products without even actually listening to them, and even run negative campaigns in the web as if they had no better things to do.

In the Circle Labs case, I started my adventure with their second product, the A200 integrated amplifier; the first was the A100, which has long been out of the range and only a handful of people were even privy to experiencing its performance. The A200 was (and still is!) a great performance, and it looked even better..., well, OK, I got a little worked up, because after all, in its case aesthetics and sound quality go hand in hand. It's beautiful, well-designed, and well-built, and on top of that it sounds great and, looking at it through the prism of market reality, it is also quite a reasonably priced device. No wonder, then, that the A200 has conquered many markets on several continents and won (and even still wins, although it has been on the market for several years) more than one award. “High Fidelity” awarded it with → RED FINGERPRINT and → 2020 BEST SOUND AWARD.

Building on the success of the A200, Mr. Krzysztof Wilczynski and Mr. Krzysztof Lichon created another “monster,” a set of separates consisting of a fully balanced, solid-state P300 line preamplifier and a hybrid (with a tube in the input stage) M200 power amplifier. I had the great pleasure of testing such a set and, based on that, decided that finally, the Polish market offered a two-box power amplifier satisfying me as both, music lover and a reviewer. Thus, thanks to Circle Labs, I have once again moved closer to the realization of my idée fixe, that is, a high-end system consisting exclusively of Polish components; more → HERE ˻ PL ˺.

Last but not least, I also had the opportunity to evaluate and describe for you Circle Labs' top-of-the-line set consisting of a P300 preamplifier and two bridged M200 power amplifiers. See → HERE. There is still only one M200 in my system even after this test but only because I do not own any balanced sources, and it is the fully symmetrical setup that is necessary to realize the full potential of two bridged M200s. Yes, two Circle Labs power amplifiers, when bridged offer significantly higher output and offer significantly better performance than one even in a system with fairly easy-to-drive speakers.

Needless to say, all of the mentioned devices were developed following to the same pattern - a refined design common to them all, repeated (in part, of course) proven solutions (including Circle Labs' own) and excellent workmanship and finish are in each case complemented by great sound.

A little over a year ago, at a presentation at the Nautilus showroom in Cracow, I met one of the two Krzysztofs, namely Lichon, and heard from him at the time that they worked on a “really good” phono preamplifier. As a vinyl (and brand’s) fan I was excited, and I have been waiting ever since impatiently, for the opportunity to listen to it. Especially since I had quite clearly defined, high expectations and requirements. The opportunity arose at last year's Audio Video Show, in a system with the world's top brands - Accuphase electronics, Estellon speakers, Siltech and Crystal Cable cabling, and a Transrotor turntable.

It was clear that prior to the show the Nautilus team had to audition the new phono preamplifier carefully and decide that it was a suitable partner for the other devices in the presented system. It was hard to assess its class at the Show, although the whole system sounded really good. Shortly thereafter, however, I received a test unit, but then, as it happens in life, due to unexpected circumstances, it had to wait a while before I had a chance to listen to it. The circumstances were both, personal and work-related, with the latter involving a one-to-one replacement of my reference turntable. I’ll get back to it in a moment.

▌ V1000

THE EXTERNAL DESIGN of the Circle Labs' new phono preamplifier is not surprising at all. It follows the established, actually from the beginning, refined and attractive (in my opinion) form factor with a metal chassis in black complemented by a glass front and golden elements. Looking at the size of the V1000, I assume that this is exactly the same chassis as the one used for the P300 line preamplifier. This, of course, would make sense, as it makes it possible (at least in theory) to reduce production costs by producing more units of the same kind.

The difference visible on the front of the unit is four knobs, two larger and two smaller, instead of the two (larger) used in the line preamplifier. All are accompanied by LED indicators to emphasize the selected position. The two larger knobs are the input selector, as the V1000 is equipped with two (both in RCA standard) of them, and the selector for the type of cartridge (MM or MC) with a third position between them muting the output. Let me add right away that I, to my own surprise, used this function regularly before each raising or lowering of the needle, thus eliminating the rather loud sounds usually accompanying these operations. Two additional, smaller knobs are used to select equalization parameters (curves). The basic choice is the RIAA standard, but the Polish manufacturer offers users the option of using other settings, the so-called time constants for treble and midrange.

As most vinyl aficionados know, theoretically, since the RIAA standard was agreed upon and introduced in 1954, all albums should have been pressed to that standard. Nevertheless, first of all, music lovers often also have records pressed even earlier in their collections, and back then there were dozens, or even over a hundred curves instead of one. Such albums played with the RIAA curve usually sound sub-optimal (to say the least). Since in recent years it has become fashionable to meet the expectations of the people who own pre-RIAA albums, some phono stage manufacturers offer their components with selectable equalization curves chosen among the most popular ones (that is, specific sets of variable parameters/time constants).

Circle Labs with V1000 offers only one, RIAA curve, but to suit the needs of those who own older vinyl records, it also gives them the option of selecting three additional time constant values, independently for treble and midrange. This solution allows users to search for the optimal setting of the parameters not only for albums produced using specific, other than RIAA, curves but also for those that do not specify the curve used for their production.

A separate issue is the claim, quite popular among some vinyl aficionados, that even after 1954 record labels did not necessarily always follow the industry standard. Either way, the ability to select time constants independently for treble and midrange enhances the user's ability to get optimal sound from records that do not conform to the RIAA standard. A second advantage is the ability to make listening more enjoyable even with some not-top-quality pressings regardless of the equalization standard used for them. If you don't want to fiddle with these settings, simply select the “RIAA” positions for both smaller knobs, and all albums will be played based on this standard. But at least with V1000, you will have some options. More in the table below.

FEATURES • The Circle Labs V1000 preamplifier offers two inputs using high-quality, gold-plated RCA jacks, two outputs, including one RCA and one XLR. As I mentioned, the Circle Labs line preamplifier is a fully balanced design, so it's no surprise that the phono preamplifier intended to work with it features this type of output. There is also a multi-pin AC power inlet on the rear panel, which connects to an external power supply.

In addition, on the rear panel, you'll find DIP switches that (independently for each input) allow you to select an impedance load in the range of 10 to 1000 Ω for MC cartridges. Importantly, each switch corresponds to a specific value, so you don't have to mess around with different combinations, and if they are all in the “off” position the impedance is correct for moving magnet (MM) cartridges, which is 47 kΩ.

Three switches, in turn, allow you to select capacitance for MM cartridges, ranging from 0 to 320 pF. Gain for both types is fixed (with a small caveat) at 65 and 45 dB, respectively. That small caveat is that the gain can be increased for MC cartridges with very low signal levels up to 70 dB. However, in the vast majority of cases, 65 dB should be sufficient. Nevertheless, although very rarely, for cartridges with ultra-low signal levels, an additional 5 dB may come in handy. Changing the gain, however, requires opening the unit's chassis and adjusting the appropriate jumper, actually two of them, one for each channel.

TECHNOLOGY • The tested preamplifier is a dual-mono design with independent and isolated circuits for the right and left channels. In the power supply, the manufacturer used Mundorf polypropylene capacitors and a cascaded, two-stage stabilizer without feedback.

To reduce interference, the power transformers are housed in a separate enclosure. It connects to the main unit via the included AC umbilical terminated at both ends with multi-pin screw-on plugs. The power supply is plugged in via a standard IEC socket, accompanied by an on/off switch (of the power supply itself - the preamplifier has its own). An interesting fact is that the external power supply provides AC power, and the rectifiers are located in the preamplifier’s chassis. This resulted in a very short path for the DC power supply.

One more issue remains, more specifically, the surprise already mentioned in the introduction. For over a year now, Krzysztof Lichon and I have sometimes exchanged information about the progress of the V1000 development. That's how I know that Messrs 'K' (Krzystof and Krzysztof) initially planned to follow in the footsteps of most MC phono preamplifiers manufacturers, i.e. to use a matching transformer, or a so-called step-up transformer (SUT) purchased from an external manufacturer.

In many cases, especially for high-end devices, the choice falls on Lundhal products, and sometimes on proposals from Japanese manufacturers. Only that the Messrs 'K' from the very beginning planned to create a device that would be unique and offer a very high sound quality. During the course of the work, it turned out that no transformers they tried fully met their expectations. Most manufacturers would have chosen the best available option or tried to make a deal with some manufacturer to develop a custom transformer. Most, but not Circle Labs. They decided to take the matter into their own hands and develop their own matching transformer from scratch.

This is the surprise inside the V1000 that I mentioned at the beginning. Not only is it Circle Labs' own design, but on top of that it is based on an original idea. To make yours truly fully aware of the originality of this design, the manufacturer even sent me a relevant overview picture. It shows that the Circle Labs transformer is built around a double nano-crystal core. The primary winding is made of a litz consisting of 25 wires - each of them is isolated from the other, and all of them are in a silk braid. The secondary winding is made of, as we read, “high quality copper.”

Now we come to the “detail” of the design that distinguishes this step-up among others. Namely, in this case, the primary and secondary windings are wound simultaneously, so that the primary winding is surrounded by the secondary windings. This kind of winding is only possible thanks to proprietary tooling made specifically for this purpose. As the manufacturer wrote to me, as of today Circle Labs is the only company in Poland, and perhaps in the world, that makes transformers this way!

This solution made it possible to achieve very low resistance (0.25 ohm/22 ohm), which translated into reduction of signal losses from the cartridge, and - you should know that they always happen. The signal from the transformer goes to the MM preamplifier, which is based on ECC88/6922 tubes (4 pcs.) with fixed polarity ensured by the use of batteries. This ensures, as the manufacturer assures, “a perfectly constant operating point for the tubes and the highest possible gain.” This proprietary solution of the Krakow-based company is not new, as we already know it from their hybrid amplifiers. Let's add that the whole circuit works without feedback.

The device looks as good as all previous ones by Circle Labs. The housing of the power supply (or rather, the power transformers) also looks better than it does in most similar cases, where an ugly box is added to the main unit, assuming that it will end up somewhere behind a rack anyway. The top surface of the power supply features the company's gold logo. In fact, this logo was cut into the black cover, and a gold metal plate was attached to the underside (at least I think so). There are no illuminated elements on this significantly smaller, yet surprisingly heavy case.

▌ SOUND

HOW WE LISTENED • As our readers know, there are three amplifiers in my reference system: a modified ArtAudio Symphony II, which is a 300B SET, a class-A solid-state integrated, the GrandiNote Shinai, and a set of separates consisting of a Circle Labs P300 line preamplifier and their M200 power amplifier. It won’t surprise you then, that it was the latter that I used for this test Ubiq Audio Model One Duelund Edition speakers through Soyaton Benchmark Mk 2 speaker cables.

The signal source for the tested V1000 phono preamplifier was, as always, the J.Sikora Standard Max turntable. Just in case someone spots it in some photo and realizes that something is different about it, let me explain. I have been using my Janusz Sikora turntable for years, that is, since I tested it in 2016 and purchased it immediately afterwards. De facto it was still the Basic model, albeit from the beginning in the Max version, which was later renamed Standard. At that time, too, only one type of finish was available - silver. Over the years, J.Sikora's team added some upgrades to my unit replacing, among other things, the main bearing, the controller circuit, lubricants in the main bearing, or adding an additional support for the second tonearm.

During one of these visits, Janusz Sikora, seeing that most of the audio components in my system were finished in black, asked if I would prefer my turntable with similar finish, as J.Sikora had already started to offer various finishes. Sure I did! It took a while, but finally in December (2024) Robert Sikora and Adam Niezbecki visited me, just before I started testing the V1000. Originally, the idea was to take my unit back to Lublin an update to the most current version and change its finish to black. There were some downsides to this solution though. First of all, Standard Max weighs roughly 85 kg which makes transporting it back and forth not that simple. Secondly, for the time they would have to provide me with other turntable, most likely much lighter, Initial, so that I could carry out my reviewer’s duties.

An so, instead, the gentlemen brought with them a new black Standard Max, and on top of that fitted with a commemorative plaque (to make it clear that it is mine! :-)), and they took my ‘historical’ unit back to Lublin to (I am not sure whether they were joking or not) to become the first exhibit in J.Sikora’s mini-museum. Importantly both for me, and all those who read my reviews, my new unit is a 100% up-to-date version, so if you order your black J.Sikora Standard Max turntable you will get an identical unit (no „Marek Dyba” plaque, though :-)).

Adam also lent me his professional skills and set up tonearms and cartridges for me. These were exactly the arms and cartridges as on my previous deck, namely the J.Sikora KV12 Max Zirconium with Air Tight PC-3, and the J.Sikora KV9 with the latest addition to my reference system, the LeSon LS10 Mk II. Thus, I was almost ready to test the Circle Labs preamplifier. Almost, because given the minor differences between the previous and current turntable, I first listened to music for a few days using my ESE Lab Nibiru MC, and only then, confident that I'd already figured out the minor changes in sound, did I set about listening to the V1000.

In the course of my assessment, I made one more change worth mentioning at some point. For most of the test the V1000 was connected to the P300 with an unbalanced Bastanis Imperial interconnect (that is, like most of the preamplifiers I test). For the final part of the test, I wanted to check the balanced connection (because the P300 is also a balanced design and is connected to the M200 with the excellent KBL Sound Himalaya II balanced interconnect), so I used a 2.5-meter long Next Level Tech Ether XLR. OK, let’s get to it.

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AS SOME OF YOU MAY REMEMBER, one of my preamplifiers, the ESE Lab Nibiru MC, is a relatively inexpensive device (when it was available it cost €2,300), nevertheless it really rarely loses in comparison to almost any competitor in the price range up to €10,000. That's how much, more or less, the tested V1000 costs, and it was clear to me from the first album that this is one of those extremely few (except for the best, regardless of price) cases where the Nibiru can not quite keep up.

Where should even I start? The ESE Lab clearly beats most phono preamplifiers in the stated price range in terms of transparency, clarity, and excellent internal organization of the presentation. Circle Labs does it even better. What they have in common is that none of them sound dry, bright or aggressive, nor are they focused on details, but rather on using a huge amount of information to create the fullest, truest, even organic musical fabric possible.

With the V1000, perhaps due to the tubes in its circuit, with all the precision, with the tightness, springiness, and speed of the presentation of each sound, at the same time they are saturated, juicy, full. The leading edge is brilliantly shown, which was perfectly audible for example on SPYRO GYRA's dynamic album Incognito, but when sustain is needed, followed by a long decay, neither of these phases lacks anything. This speed is revealed not only when rendering even the fastest impulses, but also when the sound fades out in an instant and there is a fraction of a second of pitch-black silence.

The phenomenal (and costing $20,000) Doshi Audio Evolution Phono Preamplifier, the excellent Thöress Phono Enhancer (priced similarly to the V1000), or the Kondo GE 10i (€75,000) do that just as well (maybe even a tad better, but it's almost the same level). Have you noticed that these are all tube devices? Well, that's right, in the case of phono preamplifiers, especially those representing the high end level, this is how most often tube designs sound like.

That is - with a slam, fantastic dynamics (not only on the micro, which is natural for them but also the on the macro scale) and brilliant resolution. They are tight, and fast, but also colorful, juicy, and beautifully open. Admittedly, in a different, denser, a bit warmer direction goes, also tube-based, the phenomenal Destination Audio WE 417a ($35k), but in its case, this is one of its great strengths, and on this price level such more “tube-like” sound is quite rare. Actually, only AudioTekne brand devices come to mind at the moment.

I've listed above a few of the best phono preamplifiers I've had the opportunity to test in my system. I did it deliberately because, after the first few albums, I was already convinced that the new Circle Labs fits perfectly into this company. The thing is not that it is equal in every respect to any of these, almost exclusively much more expensive competitors, but rather that the balance of its strongest and those a little (!) weaker sides does not deviate in any significant way from what these ‘giants’ bring to the table. And this is a huge achievement, because, at least officially, this is the first device of this type to come out from the designers of the Polish brand.

The features I've mentioned so far are usually associated with “solid-state” sound, at least in the case of amplifiers, although I've given examples of top tube-based preamplifiers that play similarly in this regard. The class of top devices of this type, not only tube-based (!), to recall the phenomenal DS Audio Master 3 set tested last month, or the hybrid Tenor Audio Phono 1, is based on their ability to combine everything I wrote about above, with saturation, with beautifully rendered, natural timbre and texture of instruments, with excellent three-dimensional imaging, with huge, air-filled space, or even with a bit of natural (!) softness and smoothness. They also never sound cold, technical, or clinical, or whatever you want to call it. Natural sound is never like that! And the makers of these devices, including the V1000, are people who love music and strive to make it sound at home, from recordings, also in that unique way that directly touches the soul of a sensitive person, so to speak.

Just how beautifully the V1000 can play recordings of acoustic instruments was demonstrated by High Fidelity Presents: Art Farmer in Wroclaw, released by Adam Czerwinski under AC Records; reviewed → HERE ˻ PL ˺. The master's trumpet has a delightful, somewhat dull texture on it, though it is also beautifully sonorous (seemingly a contradiction in terms, but an obvious one with Circle Labs). There is no brightening or sharpening, and exactly enough aggressiveness and that characteristic penetrating sound of the instrument to make it sound “lively”, or even “present”. The latter term will appeal to people who, like me, love to feel a close relationship with the performers. To put it another way, it sounded “real”. The tested preamplifier delivered all that in a convincing and (to me) delightful way.

The colorful, powerful, appropriately deep-sounding tenor saxophone in the hands of Piotr Baron, or Kuba Stankiewicz's large yet agile piano, sounded as convincingly. The weakness of many recordings, and the advantage of this particular one, is the way Harvie S's double bass (“S no dot,” as he himself points out) was recorded and replayed by V1000. As a result, it was appropriately tight and fast in pizzicato, and way deeper, wooden when a bow was in use. Whenever the moment called for it, it gave a clear indication of the instrument’s size, mass, and power of its sound, but it did sound also quite delicate when needed.

Using his drums, Adam Czerwinski set the pace and rhythm discreetly and gently, and only occasionally reminding more strongly of his presence, combining it all into a coherent, perfectly harmonic whole, strongly involving the listener. It was this kind of playing, with feeling, with beautifully rendered timbre, and texture of acoustic instruments, with great, large, three-dimensional space, with long decay, and with that elusive, but additionally binding everything together atmosphere, that showed this slightly more “tube” side of the Circle Labs phono preamplifier. I could hear it even better when I played the last side of this album with my new Le Son LS10 Mk II cartridge.

It's an extremely musical beast that, at its price (resulting from the direct sales model), is simply unbeatable! It plays in a slightly softer, rounder, and warmer way than the Air Tight, which doesn't at all mean objectively soft, rounder, or particularly warm. It all depends on what you compare it with. Listening to the same album with a distinctly different-sounding cartridge, in a way I wanted to check whether the tested preamplifier doesn't impose its character on played material. It doesn’t! The already known differences between the two cartridges, enhanced a little, tiny bit by a different, yet still phenomenal KV9 arm, were flawlessly demonstrated. It took me maybe a minute to concede this fact before I was taken by the music on a beautiful ride.

In fact, it is the most important feature of the Circle Labs V1000. Listening to any music with this preamplifier this is what is most important about it. The Polish device knows its role - it is supposed to convey as faithfully as possible the played recording, its character, and atmosphere while focusing the listener's attention on the music and the emotions associated with it. The whole is presented in a beautifully structured, transparent way with good drive, dynamics, and a high level of energy. As a result, the presentation has what I would call vitality, it is highly expressive, and it has that special something that grabs your attention almost from the first note and doesn't let go until the very last one. In addition, although as a fan of vinyl records, I usually pay almost no attention to pops & cracks anyway, with the V1000 if they do appear they are “pushed” back, behind the music, so that they completely do not interfere with the experience.

As I have been in a “rock phase” for some time now, that is, I listen to way more of such music than I had used to since..., well probably my college days, it was a set of albums from this genre that I ended up the assessment with. The PINK FLOYD’S Momentary Lapse Of Reason, still with the Ubiqs hooked up to a Circle Labs amplifier, first showed me how low the V1000 goes, and how tight and saturated the bass is, and that it can be delivered with a real, heavy 'punch' when needed. The large woofers of these speakers, given the right conditions, can pump a lot of air into the room making the lower bass not only present but even felt in the bones. Even if you don't associate powerful low bass with tube components, in my experience it is not the case with phono preamplifiers, and the tested unit once again confirmed it.

This album, followed by others including AEROSMITH, GENESIS, PETER GABRIEL, DŻEM, and eventually even AC/DC and METALLICA, showed me not only the powerful, and dynamic side of the V1000 but also how great vocals sound with it. The vocalists of each of these bands are among the best and most distinctive rock (blues-rock in the case of Rysiek Riedel) voices, which the tested preamplifier showed flawlessly. Well, not just flawlessly, there was even more to it because the charisma of each of them, their ability to connect with listeners, and the incredible energy of their performances with the Circle Lab’s phono stage were as inherent features as during live performances.

Although the quality of these recordings, first of all, in most cases is not the highest, and secondly differs from one album to another, the common feature each time was a close bond built not by zooming in or enlarging the foreground, but just by the charisma and energy of the performers. And since the V1000’s midrange is excellent, saturated, and colorful, so not only vocals but also electric guitars or keyboards sounding at times harsh, feisty, strong, actively co-created a unique rock atmosphere of each of those albums.

The sound was powerful but also well-controlled (as far as the quality of the performance/release allowed), and even the distortion or compression often present in them was shown by the Circle Labs preamplifier in a way that made them part of the performance rather than downside of the recording. And since even the fastest tempo or rhythm, or timing related to them (i.e. PRAT) are not a problem for the tested device, rock, hard rock, and blues sounded just as good with it (in the sense of atmosphere, fidelity to the character of a given musical genre, and not the quality of realization as such), as much better recorded jazz. Well, and they gave me a much-needed dose of energy and fun.

By the very end of my assessment, I reached for classical music, or rather orchestral music in many forms. For example, the soundtrack from The Last Jedi by JOHN WILLIAMS. The scale, momentum, pace, and power of the sound through, I could already tell at this stage, the V1000's characteristic orderliness and purity of presentation, engaged and encouraged me to turn the volume up to a level well beyond usual comfort. For, how can one resist the temptation here, when the strings sound so clean, sweet, yet powerful and resonant, when the wind instruments ring out in such an open, clear manner, and everything is supported by alternately delicate and powerful percussion instruments.

How could one not be captivated right from the start of the overtures to Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro (under Currentzis), or Bizet's Carmen under Karajan? How not to be seduced by the voice of the wonderful Leontyne Price, or the divine Luciano Pavarotti? How not to be charmed by Mussorgsky's Night on Bald Mountain under Leibowitz? I don’t know how. I couldn’t resist it. I am sure one could resist the appeal, but not when a phono preamplifier as good as the V1000 does the playing. On a large, and in the case of the Carmen even huge, exceptionally deep stage, there is so much going on, there are so many emotions, so many things that catch your attention, that the fact that all this is given in an almost perfectly clear, arranged, three-dimensional, highly resolving, but also quite selective way is simply passed over. That's how it's supposed to be, that's how these large-scale musical events are, so why shouldn't they be shown that way? That is if the system and its individual components are up to the task.

▌ Summary

THAT’S EXACTLY THE POINT. Most phono preamplifiers, not quite as good as the Circle Labs’s, will not be able to render such musical spectacles in such an exceptional way, especially (but not only) when it comes to this type of dense, complex music, involving dozens of instruments and, in the case of operas, also amazing voices. Combining all the elements into such a well-arranged, transparent, yet colorful, dynamic, but also saturated with energy, and at the same time shown with flair in an appropriate (though of course diminished) scale presentation is one of the greatest challenges for all audio components. The Circle Labs V1000 handled it with ease, as if effortlessly guaranteeing me many hours of an exceptional, and incredibly enjoyable experience.

I wouldn’t go as far as to say that the tested device is the best phono preamplifier I've ever had the opportunity to listen to in my system. It is, however, separated from those very best by so little that makes it a pure high-end component. It's hard for me to judge how much of the contribution to such an excellent performance comes from the Circle Labs' own step-up, but it's certainly an essential part of this achievement, one that the manufacturer should be particularly proud of! Who knows (this is my speculation, not a leak of any kind), maybe someday we will witness an introduction of a separate step-up? I bet many people would be interested in adding it to their phono stages.

However, the most important thing is the end result, and this one is simply remarkable! Bravo gentlemen, fantastic job! And I would like to inform our readers that the Circle Labs team has not disappointed and provided us with yet another excellent product. What's more, I'll venture a statement that is by no means meant to depreciate the brand's past achievements, but to emphasize how good the latest of them is: the V1000 is the best product in Circle Labs history!!!

▌ Technical specifications (acc. to the manufacturer)

Gain: MC – 65/70 dB, MM – 45 dB
Inputs: 2 x RCA
Impedance/capacitance load: 10-1000 Ω / 0-320 pF, independent for each input
Outputs: RCA, XLR (balanced)
Ranges of equalization curves: 230, 318 (RIAA), 400, 630 μs, 100, 75 (RIAA), 50, 25 μs
AC umbilical: 1,2 m
Tubes: 4 x E88CC/6922
Dimensions (H x W x D): 130 x 430 x 365 mm (power supply: 83 x 98 x 210 mm)
Weight: 9.5 kg (preamplifier), 2.8 kg (power supply)

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THIS TEST HAS BEEN DESIGNED ACCORDING TO THE GUIDELINES adopted by the Association of International Audiophile Publications, an international audio press association concerned with ethical and professional standards in our industry, of which HIGH FIDELITY is a founding member. More about the association and its constituent titles → HERE.

→ www.AIAP-online.org