Home / Creek OBH-8 MM Phono PreAmp Zoom Creek OBH-8 MM Phono PreAmp Be the first to review this product SKU: Creek OBH-8 Moving Magnet phono stage New old stock Creek OBH-8 Phono Preamplifier Sound A surprisingly neutral phono stage with great microdynamics and superb soundstaging; macrodynamics a bit compressed from forte on up; slight brightness and treble grain. Features Designed for higher-output cartridges; separate power supply can be upgraded; RCA inputs and outputs are not gold plated. Use Plug (in) and play; correct polarity of the power supply is essential for optimum performance; leave on at all times for most consistent sound. Value Despite its unimpressive looks, the OBH-8 delivers a lot of audiophile-approved performance; its price is inexpensive admission into the hallowed halls of high-end vinyl playback. Remember those days when a phono stage was mandatory on a preamp or integrated amplifier? When record stores actually sold records? Like Rip Van Winkle, I had a rude awakening when I bought my Jolida integrated amp a couple of years ago. Suddenly my turntable and cartridge were orphaned, unable to dock with the mother ship. After some creative financing, I was able to spring for a Creek OBH-8 phono stage to fill the void. So far, it has been money well spent. The Creek OBH-8 sure proves that good things come in small packages. The preamp is only 4"W x 2"H x 4"D. The power supply is a separate 24V DC "wall-wart" type, which uses a long cord to plug into the OBH-8. This power supply can be upgraded to improve performance. The front panel (if you can call a 2" by 4" piece of metal a panel) consists of a power switch and green LED. The back has RCA-type connectors for inputs and outputs, and connections for the ground wire and the power supply. My one quibble with these RCAs is they lack gold plating. Inside, all the components are neatly laid out on a little circuit board, with the power switch and the connectors soldered directly to it. The overall gain is 37dB. A version with more gain for low-output cartridges is available from Creek (the OBH-9). The cartridge load can’t be adjusted and is set at 47k ohms and 200pF. The circuitry used in the OBH-8 is the utmost in simplicity. One low-noise bipolar transistor is used for each channel in a single-ended class-A gain stage with zero feedback. Passive equalization is used to obtain a RIAA deviation of +/-0.25%. Availability: In stock $225.00 Qty: Add to Cart Email to a Friend Add to Wishlist Product Description Additional Information Product Description Details New old stock, new power supply just received from Creek Additional Information Additional Information Call For Price No CMS tab