Ry, Denmark | 2018 – While an ever-increasing number of audio manufacturers are struggling to go “back to black” with the introduction of components for LP playback, Gryphon Audio Designs of Denmark have never adandoned the LP format, maintaining a consistent commitment to vinyl reproduction from the creation of the company in 1985, right up to the launch of the Gryphon Sonett Phonostage.
In the words of founder Flemming E. Rasmussen, “The LP holds a very special place in our hearts here at Gryphon, having been the inspiration for our very first product, the now legendary Gryphon Head Amp. For many people, the LP remains the finest high fidelity medium ever offered for home use with a catalogue of titles that will never be rivaled by the compact disc, let alone download music.
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In a concerted effort to bring the performance of the reference level Gryphon Legato Legacy phonostage to more affordable price points, Gryphon designed the Phonostage Module for straightforward installation in the Gryphon Diablo 300 and Diablo 120 integrated amplifiers. Haute Fidelité (France) praised the module for “some of the most well defined vinyl playback that we have ever experienced in our listening room.” This proven phono module is significantly improved with its own cabinet and dedicated dual mono power supply.
Vinyl connoisseurs with other system configurations generated immediate demand for a stand-alone version of the phonostage that would make the fruits of Gryphon’s explorations into the latest circuit topologies, low-noise component breakthroughs and power supply innovations more widely accessible.
The Sonett Phonostage is the perfect companion for the Gryphon Diablo 300 or Diablo 120 integrated amplifier, when the amp already has the Gryphon DAC module installed and will provide a significant upgrade for any system assembled to extract the very best from black vinyl grooves to enlighten the lives of dedicated music lovers for years to come.
Like every Gryphon product, Gryphon Sonett is designed by Gryphon founder and CEO Flemming E. Rasmussen and manufactured in Denmark.
Product features
- Zero negative feedback
- True Dual Mono Class A topology
- Moving Coil and Moving Magnet cartridge compatible
- MC load impedance can be set externally with left/right rear panel switches
- Internal switching between MC and MM
- Polypropylene capacitors used in RIAA correction stages
- Discreet components in analogue stages
- DC-coupled topology from input to output
- Low noise +/- 21VDC regulated voltage supplies for excellent analogue THD and noise suppression
- Ultra-short signal path with minimal internal wiring
- Two-layer printed circuit board with 70 µm copper traces on both sides
- PCB-mounted sockets eliminate wiring and shorten signal path
- Gold-plated phono input and output sockets with Teflon insulation
- Designed and built in Denmark
Technical Specifications
Gain
MC: 64 dB
MM: 42 dB
Impedance
MC: 10, 20, 80.6, 100, 200, 402 Ω or parallel combinations
MM: 47 kΩ/200pF
Signal/Noise Ratio
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MC (Input 2.5 mV, 1 kHz): >72 dB
MM (Input 250 mV, 1 kHz): >84 dB
Specifications are subject to change without notice.
About Gryphon
Gryphon Audio Designs is the brainchild of Flemming E. Rasmussen and the fulfilment of a lifelong dream to allow the purest essence of the live music experience to be recreated in the home environment.
Rasmussen holds a degree in painting and graphic arts from the Aarhus Art Academy, Denmark. During his studies, Rasmussen developed close relationships with the local music community and designed LP covers and concert posters for many leading local acts.
After graduation, he taught photography and painting for ten years before becoming chief designer of textiles and imprints for Scandinavia’s largest sportswear manufacturer, advancing to the position of president of the company’s printing plant before resigning to found 2R Marketing, which quickly became Denmark’s leading High End audio import company.
Gryphon Audio Designs was founded in 1985 as an offshoot of 2R Marketing, The first product, the now legendary Gryphon Head Amp, grew from a one-off spare time project developed only for the designers’ own home systems. At the 1986 Chicago Consumer Electronics Show, a respected Japanese distributor expressed interest in the product. Soon after, the Head Amp was voted “Best Buy” by the Japanese audio press. Although the Gryphon project was initially strictly a hobby, not an actively pursued commercial venture, demand generated by reviews and word-of-mouth acclaim led to the formal establishment of Gryphon Audio Designs as a separate corporate entity.
Following the immediate success of the Gryphon brand, all import business was phased out in 1993, so that Rasmussen could dedicate his efforts entirely to Gryphon.
“… Rasmussen’s background in fine arts and industrial design gives every Gryphon product a distinctive, luxuriant finish…”
Gryphon Audio Designs achieved immediate and on-going global acclaim for state of the art performance, intuitive ergonomics and the stunning beauty of the cost-no-object Gryphon preamplifiers and power amplifiers. Rasmussen’s background in fine arts and industrial design gives every Gryphon product a distinctive, luxuriant finish which arises organically out of the audio circuit design and the user interface for a truly unique integration of form and function.
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