VTL TP-2.5i Phonostage

VTL products, in one form or another, have been a steady companion during my audiophile journey. Years ago, I employed both the VTL MB-750 and MB-1250 amplifiers. I’ve also reviewed the VTL Siegfried amplifier as well as the 7.5 Series III preamplifier for TAS. This gear represented VTL’s top-drawer products and was quite pricey. The $5000 TP-2.5i phono preamplifier, whose design is based around 12AU7 and 12AX7 tubes, represents something different—an attempt to create, in a fairly small package, excellent performance at a moderate price. How has VTL done? Quite nicely, indeed. Tubes and vinyl are, in a sense, ideological …