CANOR AUDIO

What they say ...

 

 

Stereo Magazine.de

Michael Lang | January 2021

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What the PH 2.10 brings to the Table

The total of four strictly selected 12AX7 tubes – tested at the tube measuring station, which is called ALADDIN – in the first and second amplifier stage should be at the top of the list. The same goes for the subsonic filter with a slope of 18 dB that the 12AX7s are connected to, as well as for the two 12AT7 in the 3rd and 4th amplification stages.

 

In order to follow the RIAA curve as precisely as possible for the passive equalization, very high-quality 3% capacitors made of polystyrene and polypropylene were chosen. Only thanks to these high-quality components, was it possible to develop a circuit without overall feedback.

 

Another aspect is the implementation of a first class power supply, since this is a basic prerequisite for good sound, and often guarantees it. To prevent bothersome and sound-distorting vibrations, the transformer core received a special vacuum impregnation. The entire transformer was cast with an in-house anti-vibration mixture to further aid that goal.

The effort taken also pays off remarkably in the measurement department : noise or hum are completely absent.

 

Silent as a Mouse

In order to amplify even very low ouput MC cartridges without any disturbing noise, Canor employs transformers which were custom-made by Lundahl. This makes the amplification at the MC input reach a full 70 dB.

To help with the sensitive signals that cartridges deliver, the company‘s own EMC laboratory also proves to be quite useful, since it can verify the immunity to interferences of all kinds. It also ensures that emissions that switching PSUs, for example, tend to radiate stay at a tolerable level, which is also compliant to Europe‘s CE regulations.

 

Features & Functions

A look at the back of the Canor reveals that it features separate connections for MM and MC cartridge systems. Connecting different pickups simultaneously is also possible, without any loss of sound quality. The two inputs, as well as the output jacks, are only available in RCA.

 

The front panel comes across as very tidy, with a display that is wonderfully easy to read even from several meters away. It shows the selected input as well as the capacitance or the terminating resistance, and its brightness can be adjusted in several steps. A large rotary control knob by means of which the terminating impedance for MC and the capacitance for MM can be calibrated is found next to the display.

All in all, a coherent and easy to follow operating concept, completed by small buttons for muting and a choice between MC/MM – as well as fine adjustments for pickups if pressed multiple times.

 

The warm-up phase the device needs lasts around half a minute. Shortly thereafter, the output is activated, and the Canor phono preamp begins to compete for the listener‘s favor with its captivating sound.

 

1965 to 2020

Debussy and Ravel kicked things off – once again – with "La Mer" and "Daphnis et Chloé", performed by Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic. Even though it was released as a normal record pressing at the beginning of 1965, it to this day has the ability to make modern productions blush with shame in comparison. Timbres, spatial layering, fine as well as coarse dynamics and the remarkable silence to be found in the record‘s groove turn the playback into a festival of sounds again and again.

 

The Canor squeezes more out of the record than most systems can keep up with – that is to say, this Slovakian phono preamplifier sounds open, multi-layered and transparent. With pleasure, it leaves the role of the bottleneck to other components of your setup.

 

Searching for individual weak points will soon have to be relegated to the category of "wasted time", even after a thorough examination. If it was to lack anything, one would probably have to borrow some terminology from the field of optics to illustrate it: Quite occasionally, you could then get the impression that the Canor‘s imaging might seem a hint more compact – like it was a 55-inch screen compared to a 60-incher.

You would, however, still need to conduct a direct comparison with suitable material to even notice this. Also, a smaller screen never appears inferior in terms of color, blackness or resolution.

 

Sonic Talent

Some might associate the keyword "tube" with over-the-top sweetness. Describing the Canor, however, you‘d certainly be rather wrong with that. The higher frequencies shine and shimmer ... voices appear full-bodied without being bloated by an inaccurate bass range – everything is displayed in the correct dimensions. Timing doesn‘t allow itself to be pushed into the background ... and thus develops and flows precisely, giving the feeling that the rhythm section is in perfect synchrony.

 

This characteristic not only inspires delight when listening to a large orchestra, but also immediately captivates us with music coming from a smaller ensemble. Tom Petty‘s "Cabin Down Below" track is all about "drive", is full of joy, and at the same time demands transparency and attention to detail at the highest level – the Canor delivers this with ease.

 

The Canor 2.10 is not "outright spectacular" as far as bass pressure and dynamic development are concerned ... but it is nevertheless powerful and assertive, always showing great potential to permanently capture the listener‘s favor.

 

On to modern production recordings : This time, we have chosen a 140-gram LP by the Israeli artist and superstar Alon Lotringer, produced in cooperation with Brinkmann Audio and as a purely analog one-step recording. This album was recorded in Berlin and pressed in Copenhagen, featuring a style fluctuating between singer/songwriter, folk and rock – between Prince and the late Bowie. Listening to it, you‘ll quickly realize how much is missing from the vast majority of modern releases. It is powerful, voluminous, with a believable, authentic vocal volume and a confident tonal mix.

 

So how did the Canor react to this recording masterpiece ? Well, the Canor, presented us with all the advantages of analog technology this recording  had to offer ... on a Silver Platter... and this royal treatment is the best way for me to conclude this review :

 

This phono preamplifier has mastered the ins and outs of the art of analog playback. It complements its neutral tonality with a lot of temperament and a pinch of charm, without giving in to the temptations of softening or blurring. A more than welcome addition to the playground for friends of analog technology !

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​LowBeats

Bernhard Rietschel | September 2021

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Round Two

We had already tested the large PH 1.10 from the relatively unknown manufacturer Canor : a phono stage that just showed the entire world elite "where the hammer is" ! Now the Slovaks have added a smaller version of this over-performing prodigy ... and we could not resist giving it a spin ... so, how did the 2.10 fare ? : it's not much worse ... of a "Hammer" !

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The thing that stands out about the PH 2.10 is the sound :

Remarkably Good

The Canor's high-frequency resolution is extremely fine and neutral in the best sense of the word. Only records that are really supposed to do that sound bright here. And that is a decisive difference to other well-intentioned phono preamps, which sometimes have four-digit price tags, but not the tonal sovereignty to resist senseless cymbals even in critical moments. In other words, there's a world of difference between a particular record sounding bright and a phono preamp doing that with every record.

 

With the Canor, all the energy and immediacy of such records is preserved, but also their spatial expansion over a wide, stable, and virtual stage. The Rike Audio Natalija, which is also equipped with tubes and transformers and which I listed for comparison, can also do this. It even seems a bit more energetic and open, but also mixes a bit more noise into the signal, which brightens it up very slightly. The Line Magnetic LP-33 had a different tonal influence, again based on transformers and tubes and, together with the Rike Audio, is my favorite in the class up to 3000 euros.

Here again with the Canor, the tone seemed a bit sweeter, more golden and softer, the overall scale a bit more compact than the other two.

One cannot help but attest to the superiority of the Canor in the end.

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Summing it up

The Canor is definitely worth the 3500 euros in terms of sound – even if that sounds crazy for a phono stage at first. And you can see that none of the three preamps we have in front of us can somehow magically shorten the way to the best possible phono sound : The large-scale manufacturer in southern China, the small-series craftsman from Germany and the specialist company on Europe's eastern border - all have costs for components, raw materials and wages. If it's supposed to be really good, it inevitably comes with a certain price, which ultimately isn't that far apart.

So, because the Canor is a bit more expensive than its two colleagues, it is also undoubtedly the most stately and best-equipped device.

 

Now to a one-to-one in-house comparison .... Without having the two right next to each other in the listening room, I can't answer one question 100% : How the big brother PH 1.10 justifies its significantly higher price.

After all, I heard both Canor phonos on the same speaker with the same comparison devices - the aforementioned Line Magnetic and the Rike.

 

These fixed reference points nonetheless allow one observation : The 1.10 was drier and a bit more brutal in the bass. And in terms of gross dynamics, it perhaps set itself a little further apart from its three competitors ... including its smaller Canor PH 2.10 stablemate.

 

On the other hand, the 1.10 also had a hint of graininess in the treble that seemed completely alien to the 2.10. The 2.10 plays in a slightly more reserved manner, but is also a bit more supple ... and the bottom line is that I like listening to it just as much as I do listening to the PH 1.10.

 

This can turn out differently if you use a very low impedance system, and can take full advantage of the better matching of the PH 1.10 ... Or if you have an amp with XLR inputs, which may also be a little further away from the phono rack. In this case, the symmetrical output of the PH 1.10 could demonstrate its advantages.

 

Nonetheless, analogue fans can simply be happy that Canor is clearly very accommodating and "friendly" in terms of Price, and this without compromising too much in terms of sound.

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Canor PH 2.10 LowBeats Rating

The rating always refers to the respective price range