PS Audio Stellar Phono

PHONO PREAMPLIFIER

- Michael Fremer

We usually save the question of value for the end of a review, but this time it’s worth mentioning upfront, if only because PS Audio has been in the news lately. Late last August, the company announced they were switching from a traditional dealer network to a factory-direct sales model. So, to some readers, it might seem fair to judge the brand-new, full-featured Stellar Phono Preamplifier ($2500) against ones selling in stores for $5000.

Then again, to speak with the Stellar Phono’s talented designer, 30-something engineer and vinyl enthusiast Darren Myers, 1 is to know that this is a product that will stand or fall on its own merits, regardless of price.

The Stellar Phono, designed and assembled in Boulder, Colorado, using globally sourced parts, is an attractive and unique-looking piece, available in both black and matte silver finishes with a curved/split front surface and a switch free fascia. Any way you look at it, from any angle, the understated and entirely bling-free Stellar is a damn handsome, even fashionable piece of hi-fi. At 21.6lb, it’s also relatively heavy—and from the looks of its sleek outer skin, the weight of the approximately 17" × 13" × 3" Stellar is mostly in its componentry, not its casework.

Apart from its rear-mounted master power switch, a pair of rear-mounted potentiometers for dialing in custom resistive loads, and its front panel logo—I’ll come back to that last one in a moment—the Stellar Phono is operated entirely from its remote handset; a series of LEDs on the front panel alerts you to the selected operating status. The handset is encased in plastic and nonilluminated, but ergonomics are good, and it’s easy to use.