Pro-Ject’s New Hi-Fi Component Is an Easy Upgrade for Your Turntable

Pro-Ject is best known for its wide range of turntables, but the Austrian audio company makes numerous other hi-fi components that can work with and elevate its turntables, too. Chief among them, phono preamplifiers.

A lot of today’s entry-level turntables have a built-in phono preamp (or phono stage) to make the setup process easier. In fact, Pro-Ject sells many of its turntables with and without a built-in phono preamp to cater to different consumers.

The problem is that built-in phono preamps are typically not great and more susceptible to distortion, so it’s recommended to use an external phono preamp instead. They do a better job of amplifying and equalizing the audio signal so your turntable sounds better

Pro-Ject offers quite a few different external phono preamplifiers, ranging from entry-level to high-end. However, its latest models are a bit different. They’re both tube-powered, thus promising to bring a warmer analog sound to your vinyl setup.

Pro-Ject’s New Phono Preamps

Pro-Ject

Specifically, Pro-Ject has introduced two tube-powered phono preamplifiers: the Tube Box E and the Tube Box S3 B.

Each has a wide range of gain settings and is compatible with both moving-magnet (MM) and moving-coil (MC) cartridges, allowing them to work with most turntables. Both have capacitance and impedance adjustments, too, allowing you to further fine-tune the sound.

Pro-Ject

The Tube Box E is the smaller, more affordable and less versatile of the two phono preamplifiers. It features a fully discrete circuit design without using any operational amplifiers.

According to the brand, the Tube Box E will deliver “a full and relaxed laid-back sound with lush mids, just like you would expect from a much bigger high-end tube phono preamplifier.”

Pro-Ject

The Tube Box S3 B is the larger and more high-end option. It features the same dual tube configuration, but increases the maximum gain (up to 65dB) and moves the capacitance and impedance adjustments to the front panel.

Most importantly, the Tube Box S3 B adds balanced connections — that’s what the “B” in its name stands for — and thus can work with a balanced turntable, which are typically more audiophile-grade.

Pro-Ject

That said, the Tube Box S3 B also supports unbalanced connections, allowing it to work with other turntables, as well. (In fact, thanks to its dual inputs — one balanced, one unbalanced — you can actually hook two turntables up to it at the same time.)

Pro-Ject claims that the Tube Box S3 B is “an audiophile phono preamplifier that brings true analog warmth to your vinyl playback.”

Price and availability

At the time of writing, Pro-Ject appears to have only released the Tube Box E and the Tube Box S3 B overseas. We’ll update this post when they become available in the US.

The Tube Box E costs £240 (~$325), while the Tube Box S3 B costs £529 (~$715). Both are available in either silver or black finishes.

Pro-Ject

Pro-Ject Tube Box E

• Shop Now

Pro-Ject

Pro-Ject Tube Box S3 B

• Shop Now

Related Topics