Douk Audio Tube Phono Preamp: HiFi MM/MC Turntable Preamplifier | Headphone Amp with AUX Input | VU Meter for Record Players, Vinyl Systems Audiophiles (T4 Plus)

We recently decided to pull our fancy LP turntable out of storage after 30 years sitting idle. We got caught up with the recent interest of LP albums and it sparked a strong interest within ourselves. I had previously given away all my receivers, amplifiers, and speakers away. I decided to keep the turntable and realized in 2023. I needed a quick refresher course on what I needed to play LPs with what I currently have. I was against purchasing a receiver or powered speakers. I have a Bose IV Soundtouch System and a Sony Soundbar.Lesson 1 - Get a Preamp! I did an exhaustive review of entry and mid-level preamps. I set my limit at $100 and this Douk Audio T4 Plus Vacuum Tube Phono preamplifier was the Chosen One! It looks amazing with the needle movements and soft casting amber lights. The red volume control knob is a nice contrast and feels amazing as you dial it with your fingers. The two vacuum tubes included were a bonus and happy it still fell into my budget.Hooking this between my Denon DP-71l turntable and the Bose Soundsystem was very straightforward. Just need to plug in the RCAs and ground to the Phono In - Douk T4. And then Line Out RCAs to a 3.5mm plug inside the Bose. Once I had the settings set on the Bose, put the needle onto the track and enjoy!What I immediately noticed is the volume is low. I cranked up the volume knob on the preamp to the max and then raised the volume on the Bose. I am not sure if that is how it should be but it works in the meantime. I did notice the music sounding better after 30 minutes or so since the tubes needed that timeframe to assimilate all the signals for deeper and warmer tones.I am also ecstatic the preamp has its own power on/off setting. This Doul Audio T4 looks stylish and classy right alongside the rose wood of my turntable.Definitely happy we jumped back to listening to our LPs with a little help of this preamp.5 Stars!One issue - I also received the preamp in an unsealed box. So weird. At least nothing fell out and all seems to be in order. Have a great one to you all!

As at least one other reviewer has noted, the box came UNSEALED. No tape, no gray bag, nothing. I verified I received all the arts that I was supposed to (preamp, DC supply, audio cable, 2 tubes, manual). However, the DC supply had a European plug (round pegs), not at all what we use in North America. I happen to have a stash of wall warts that matched the requirements of the preamp, so I was lucky.As for the sound, well I'm using it to digitize old 78 RPM records direct from a phono cartridge. So for me, it sounded fine. Plenty of headroom, no audio distortion. VU meter worked fine, although one meter for a stereo preamp is a little weird, but the purpose seems to be little more than eye candy.I am using the tubes that came with the preamp, but I may try other types of tubes to see if it really makes any difference.Physical construction is very good, feels solid. One small plus is the cartridge ground screw is the kind with a very small hole that accepts a 22 AWG stranded wire typical of the ground wires that come with most turntables. So it's not just a screw that is hard to get the wire to stay on.Overall I think this is a good value for the money. Just wish the vendor would seal the box before shipping, and provide the correct type wall wart (DC supply). Thanks for reading.

Douk Audio T4 PLUS Phono PreAmp with VU meter, Very good phono preamp for the money, all metal case with some heft/weight, cool VU meter (adjustable meter swing), fairly small, easy to fit on desk top, originally bought it to use on a portable turntable with headphones, but listening to it straight out of turntable sounds very good, it's driving Sennheiser HD 598SE headphones with no trouble, will play loud, low volume detail is pretty good, a must have with this purchase would be the Tube Upgrade from RiverStone Audio (available on Amazon), the Riverstone 5654W Platinum grade Tubes are NOS matched pairs for $29, these Riverestone tubes are much better than the stock ones, this change was significantly better, lastly, also purchased an IFI IPowerX ,12V-2A, used this replaced the standard wall wart that comes with the Douk, upgrade was available on Amazon and made a very nice improvement

Bought this unit with high hopes that it would sound great. It is very good, not great. On the positives it has a very solid metal build with a great and useful volume control to adjust gain. The supplied tubes are legit GE JAN ruggedized tubes. In MM mode, there is no audible hum or hiss. And it has a usable MC mode, with some slight hiss and usable adjustable resistive loadings. The sound has some tube warmth with a nice amount of punch and dynamics. The only issue is that the high frequencies on this unit are a bit elevated and not as neutral with some higher end phono preamps. The highs have a slight bit of graininess. I would say that the Mani 2 is a more refined unit more suitable for high end systems. If you have bookshelf speakers or an amplifier that is on the mellower side this may be for you. It is actually a really good value for the price, but costlier preamps will give a more refined sound.

Quality sound from turntable and ipod - noticeably louder and warmer tone.

I love this preamp. I have had it about a year. Paired with a vintage Denon DP47F turntable and an Onkyo TX-NR5007 receiver. Comes with GE tubes. Sounds as good if not better than my NAD preamp, and looks a whole lot cooler. Great value. Highly recommended.

Never , and i nean NEVER buy any of tgese units. Complete waste of money. The company promised if I went through them they would make it correct. They never responded to emails and now I have a $100 piece.First off , the meter can NOT be adjusted. Secondly you get an electrical shock, yes an actual shock from the case while trying to adjust it. And dismal audio quality to begin withYou get a shock from the case while trying to adjust it shock on loss of high frequencies.