Noise canceling phono stages

Noise canceling

— the presence of a noise reduction system in the phono stage. The general purpose of such systems is clear from the name; in this case, noise reduction can work both with the amplifier's own noise (thus increasing the signal-to-noise ratio), and with extraneous noise from external sources (for example, the rustle of a needle on a record).

This function can be found in phono stages of various levels, from the most budgetary to the top ones. Accordingly, the quality of its work may also vary. Anyway, however, two points should be noted. On the one hand, noise reduction can really improve the sound, making it clearer. On the other hand, additional processing of the audio signal inevitably introduces its own distortions into it, and during the operation of the noise suppressor, the reliability and detail of the sound may suffer, and quiet fragments may “fall under the distribution” along with extraneous noise. Therefore, this function is often turned off.