T4 PRO Vacuum Tube Phono Preamp for Turntable and Headphones

I have a pair of Audio Technica monitors. Smooth as butter. My computer was not strong enough to maximize the decibel range of the set, nor the quality + depth. I've heard that tube amps provide that warmth that audio enthusiasts have applauded for decades. I pulled the trigger, bought this, and couldn't be happier. An amazingly affordable option, and exactly what I hoped for, this amp is tiny and powerful. You can even get some higher quality tube replacements. I've read that new tubes need to be broken in, while other people seem to say that's not necessary. Just a thought. Tubes do take 10-30 min to warm up for optimal use, however. When it comes to general use, there's always "background noise" like a low rushing of wind, which I assume is standard? It's very quiet. When nothing is playing i can hear the signal switch out and that background noise gets louder. Nifty. Calming. Not sure, nor does it really matter, but that means either the computer or the amp is responding to the output signal generation. When using the direct input from computer to preamp, i set the amp knob indicator to the beginning of the volume gradient, which is about 50% of the available knob range. On the computer, I set to only 2/100 usually, sometimes up to 4. Exceeding this level on the computer seems to warp the information in the signal, making it a garbled mess. Even on the lowest volume on the preamp, the warping effects will be present. This is the balance/dance between devices/sources with which the world of audio engineering eternally struggles. It was a great learning experience. Thank you, Douk Audio, for a great product!

It works very well, low noise floor and very compact. Just a couple of issues I have largely with a lot of these offshore products one being the manuals suck big time and really for as good as they are, could be left out completely. There is no reference to what impedance they are suited for. I have Grado's which are 38 ohms impedance but if I were to get Sennheiser's how well would they match? There is no mention of the RIAA equalization (if there is any) in the unit. Since this goes directly between the turntable and the headphones it would be nice to know. So, in reality, a well written complete listing of specifications would be a major plus in my opinion. Lastly, the interconnects are not very long. Still with all this I have the ability to listen late at night without waking up the entire house! Now for the monetary value, very good entry level component which you would be pleased with.

Plug and play, very good respsonse, no issues,

build quality is very good, but the sound its not that great.

Size is great, love the looks of the tubes and man that little box puts out some great power and clear sound ! Instillation was a breeze. I would highly recommend this.

I ditched my table's internal phono preamp for the Douk T4 Pro and happy that I did. Lots of folks say not to buy these types of preamps and that the tubes are just eye candy. Not entirely so. My unit is supplying a nice strong signal to my amp with no hums or other annoyance. I didn't need to place a ground wire either since my TT was grounded internally, so says Denon. Another thing I like is the variable pot for gain instead of flip switches, I can dial in the signal and avoid distortion. The tubes have been upgraded in this most recent model also. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of some of the other brands but it sure works well for my system with AT-VM95ML & SH carts. I'm using some nice SKW RCA outs to my amp which couldn't hurt. Hopefully it will continue to provide the quality it's passing now and I maybe doing some tube rolling but honestly it's not necessary. I probably won't need to use the headphone or aux connections but it's nice to have those options also. Edit: Three and a half weeks later I found it necessary to increase the gain on the pot to get the same volume levels on my amp and also having to do the same on the amp. It just kept getting quieter by the day and nothing else in my setup had changed. If it was a problem with the tubes or the solid state I don't know but I decided to return the item and go with the Zen. I loved this the first week out of the box but it was degrading weekly for whatever reason. The Zen has brought the system back to life.

This sleek package offered a great listening experience. Digital and analog sources were expanded to a new stereo soundscape without making the bass muddy or the treble tinny. A great quality step up from just a decent set of headphones.

If you plan on using for record player, it has heavy distortion and interruption of sound.