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Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier – News from the Teac 505 Reference Series

The Teac 505 Reference Series already offers many fine high-end hi-fi solutions, from amplifiers to D/A converters, headphone amplifiers to streaming systems. But what has been missing until now is a phono preamplifier. Now, with the new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier, this is about to be launched on the market.


The Japanese company Teac Corporation offers a range of product lines that prove to be extremely fine systems, as they basically offer the finest, modern technology, but at the same time a unique design that pays homage to the heyday of hi-fi. These product lines include the Teac 505 Reference Series.

Up to now, Teac Corporation’s product line Teac 505 Reference Series has offered solutions with a focus on “digital”, be it in the form of D/A converters, D/A converters with integrated streaming client, D/A converters with integrated headphone amplifier, or even a designated Master Clock Generator (Teac UD-505 USB DAC/Headphone Amplifier, Teac NT-505 USB DAC/Network Player, Teac CG-10M Master Clock Generator). This is crowned by a Stereo Integrated Amplifier (Teac AX-505 Integrated Stereo Amplifier) and a Stereo Power Amplifier (Teac AP-505 Stereo Power Amplifier).

What has clearly been missing from the Teac 505 Reference Series up to now is an offer aimed at vinyl lovers, specifically, a phono preamplifier that was developed with the same high standards as the “digital” systems in the product line. Teac Corporation now wants to close this gap with the new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier.

How could it be otherwise? Of course, the latest solution of the Teac 505 Reference Series also presents itself entirely in the design language of the other components of the product line. This means that the new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier once again conveys the charm of a vintage hi-fi solution, using a solidly constructed aluminium cabinet with a brushed front and two distinctive frames on the front. The entire cabinet rests on solid metal feet. The rotary encoders are also made of metal, as are buttons, and high-quality toggle switches are also a must. A discreetly illuminated VU-meter sits centrally.

Of course, the new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier is designed for both MM and MC pick-up systems and, as the name suggests, the developers have opted for a fully symmetrical circuit design, which is a dual mono construction with full differential inputs/outputs circuits.

The rear of the new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier features not only RCA connectors as inputs, but also XLR connectors for balanced signal routing in MC pickup systems. This is also the case on the output side, with a pair of RCA sockets and a pair of XLR connectors.

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The new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier stands out in particular because all parameters are directly accessible at the front. The impedance can be selected just as easily for MM cartridges as for MC cartridges, simply by means of a rotary encoder framed by an LED ring that displays the current value. The available values are 10, 22, 47, 100, 220, 470 Ohm and 1 kOhm, and 0, 100, 220 and 330 pF can be selected. The gain can be selected between High and Low by means of a toggle switch. In addition, the new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono supports a wide range of equalization techniques, including RIAA equalization, which is particularly accurate, as well as DECCA and Columbia equalization, so that even older vinyl treasures from the 1950s and 1960s can be reproduced perfectly.

If desired, the new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier can also operate in mono, with specially optimised EQ curves and a subsonic filter. Other special features include an MC Load-Impedance Measurement Function and a so-called DEMAG function for demagnetizing the pickup system.

The new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier was presented for the first time at CES 2020. At that time, it was stated that the new phono preamplifier would require a few months of patience, as it is not expected to be launched until autumn 2020. Now it’s clear, 1. December 2020 it will be in stores for a price of € 1.599,-. As with all solutions of this product series, the customer can choose between a silver or black version.

Getting to the point

Highest signal fidelity is promised by Teac Corporation for the new Teac PE-505 Fully-balanced Phono Amplifier and thus – apart from the amplifier systems – the first solution of the Teac 505 Reference Series not focusing on “digital”.

Manufacturer:Teac Corporation
Distribution:Aqipa GmbH
Price:€ 1.599,-
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Michael Holzinger

Michael Holzinger, founder and editor-in-chief of HiFi BLOG and sempre-audio.at, has been working for years as a journalist in the fields of IT, photography, telecommunications and consumer electronics.

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