Little Loco

• Size: 17” wide 13” deep 2” high
  
• Gain Settings: Your little LOCO is factory–set to medium gain. That should work very well in most situa- tions. The usual concerns about cartridge output voltage do not apply here. Cartridges of varied output voltage specs tend to supply about the same level of drive current to a short. I.e. higher output voltages usually have higher resistance while lower output voltages usually have lower resistance. Into a virtual short, most deliver about the same current signal.If your particular situation would benefit from a gain adjustment, you can change it. Inside, on the red circuit boards, you will see a place for gain setting resistors.The little LOCO ships with 3k resistors installed for medium gain. You can boost the output voltage 6dB by removing those resistors. Or, you can reduce the output voltage 6dB by replacing the 3k resistors with 1k counterparts.
  

I have been waiting to hear a current based phono stage for a long while now. That is why I asked for the review sample even though I knew I would be pressed to find the time to finish the review due to an impending move. If I didn’t do it, one of my fellow reviewers would, and then where would I be? Yes, I’m a bad person. But, I would do it again. The balanced connection issue was looming out there as a monstrous obstacle to the wide adoption of this technology and I congratulate Ron Sutherland for stepping up to the plate and solving the problem. The next problem to solve is on you and your audio dealer, make sure your cartridge is moving-coil and otherwise suitable for use with the little LOCO. Then, your problem will be how to afford and where to store all the records you’ll want to buy because the little LOCO is addictive