Darlington Labs MM-6 USA Tour

Ok kiddos.

Tested side A of 10,000 Maniacs’ In My Tribe.
Main Amp: Rogue Audio Sphinx V3 w/stock tubes.

Thoughts: After 2 spins, 1 with my amp and 1 with the MM-6, not really a huge noticeable difference. There were times that I thought the instrumentation on each track was a smidge more forward than the Rogue. I then had my wife listen and we specifically concentrated on Like The Weather. Lots of layers in that song. I thought the organ/keys were a bit more noticeable, but it was a tiny bit. We both thought the vocals were a bit cleaner, but my wife said that the vocals were warmer from the Rogue and more “tinny” with the Darlington. She did note that the music sounded exactly the same.

I’m going to throw some different genres at it this week and see what happens.
 
LiamGallagher’sBucketHat said:
Ok kiddos.

Tested side A of 10,000 Maniacs’ In My Tribe.
Main Amp: Rogue Audio Sphinx V3 w/stock tubes.

Thoughts: After 2 spins, 1 with my amp and 1 with the MM-6, not really a huge noticeable difference. There were times that I thought the instrumentation on each track was a smidge more forward than the Rogue. I then had my wife listen and we specifically concentrated on Like The Weather. Lots of layers in that song. I thought the organ/keys were a bit more noticeable, but it was a tiny bit. We both thought the vocals were a bit cleaner, but my wife said that the vocals were warmer from the Rogue and more “tinny” with the Darlington. She did note that the music sounded exactly the same.

I’m going to throw some different genres at it this week and see what happens.
Click to expand...
I should note that the Sphinx stage is nothing to sneeze at. Even my v2 was very solid provided it was paired with an appropriate cart, and the v3 has a brand-new phono preamp.
 
kvetcha said:
I should note that the Sphinx stage is nothing to sneeze at. Even my v2 was very solid provided it was paired with an appropriate cart, and the v3 has a brand-new phono preamp.
Click to expand...
I wasn’t expecting the Darlington to be better but I was curious anyway. I could probably take that money and invest it in different tubes. I’m probably going to give it a test on our secondary setup which consists of the old Marantz receiver and Mani.
 
LiamGallagher’sBucketHat said:
I wasn’t expecting the Darlington to be better but I was curious anyway. I could probably take that money and invest it in different tubes. I’m probably going to give it a test on our secondary setup which consists of the old Marantz receiver and Mani.
Click to expand...
So the Sphinx's internal is comparable to the Darlington? Then you already have a darn good preamp, you are set!
 
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LiamGallagher’sBucketHat said:
Why is the ground connector on the other side?

Well I’m already annoyed that ground connector is on the opposite side of where the turntable cables go in. I am unable to connect to it so I have a nice hum. I’m also annoyed that the cables come out like butter. I’ll try again tomorrow.
Click to expand...
For models with the Mono switch, the GND post is normally on the right hand side near the AC power connector (viewed from the back). This is due to space constraints.

Normal models have the GND post on the left-hand side near the input jacks.

On a special-order basis, we could built a unit with the GND on the left-hand side, but the mono switch movement will be slightly impeded.

Re: jack tension, this demo unit (base model with Mono Switch) has the standard gold-plated jacks.
On first purchase, they are fairly tight. But if another reviewer has previously used RCA cables with bigger-than-normal inner connectors, the jacks lose a bit of tension. We still think they are well above the plastic and tin plated jacks so common on equipment that can break and shear off or become intermittent to the PCB.

If a user contemplates doing significant re-patching (especially with multiple brands of interconnect) then we recommend considering the step-up jacks for $50 extra (Clone 805s).

It sounds like you have a particularly synergistic match with the built-in tube phono preamp and your Class-D output amplifier. Thanks for testing our MM-6.
 
I was able to run the DL with my second setup and compare it to the Mani.
This setup consists of a Pioneer PL-530 turntable with a Nagaoka MP-110 and Marantz 2220b.

The noticeable differences were a punchier bass and cleaner sound. Also no interference noises at start or stop unlike the Mani. Although I think some of that could be the age of the table.
I would consider the Darlington if I do any upgrading to this setup.
 
krichard2496 said:
For models with the Mono switch, the GND post is normally on the right hand side near the AC power connector (viewed from the back). This is due to space constraints.

Normal models have the GND post on the left-hand side near the input jacks.

On a special-order basis, we could built a unit with the GND on the left-hand side, but the mono switch movement will be slightly impeded.

Re: jack tension, this demo unit (base model with Mono Switch) has the standard gold-plated jacks.
On first purchase, they are fairly tight. But if another reviewer has previously used RCA cables with bigger-than-normal inner connectors, the jacks lose a bit of tension. We still think they are well above the plastic and tin plated jacks so common on equipment that can break and shear off or become intermittent to the PCB.

If a user contemplates doing significant re-patching (especially with multiple brands of interconnect) then we recommend considering the step-up jacks for $50 extra (Clone 805s).

It sounds like you have a particularly synergistic match with the built-in tube phono preamp and your Class-D output amplifier. Thanks for testing our MM-6.
Click to expand...
I figured that it had to do with design.
And for the record, the black jack on the input side is rather loose so the cable that I was using slid in and out very easily.
Thanks for responding!
 
Got the unit today (thanks @LiamGallagher’sBucketHat !) and hooked it up. It’s a definite improvement over my Onkyo Integra onboard, which is more of a home theater hybrid (the onboard sounded better than a $100 ProJect that I tried, but I figured for sure this would be better).

I played Damien Rice - O, because I know the album well and has a lot of good test qualities - dynamic vocals, airy acoustic guitar, and actually pretty intense bass. Yeah guitar sounded a lot more clear, vocals were better, and bass was maybe more tight but roughly the same.

I have my brother coming by sometime this week with his Mofi StudioPhono to compare. These two are in my price range so I plan to buy whichever I end up liking better. Updates to come!
 
D Jilla said:
Got the unit today (thanks @LiamGallagher’sBucketHat !) and hooked it up. It’s a definite improvement over my Onkyo Integra onboard, which is more of a home theater hybrid (the onboard sounded better than a $100 ProJect that I tried, but I figured for sure this would be better).

I played Damien Rice - O, because I know the album well and has a lot of good test qualities - dynamic vocals, airy acoustic guitar, and actually pretty intense bass. Yeah guitar sounded a lot more clear, vocals were better, and bass was maybe more tight but roughly the same.

I have my brother coming by sometime this week with his Mofi StudioPhono to compare. These two are in my price range so I plan to buy whichever I end up liking better. Updates to come!
Click to expand...
Playing Bob Dylan - Oh Mercy Mofi - really loving the sound on this one. Hearing some details I haven’t heard (washboard I think?) and Bob’s voice sounds insane. This is a really good recording and pressing as is, but the Darlington seems to be getting the most out of it.
 
D Jilla said:
Playing Bob Dylan - Oh Mercy Mofi - really loving the sound on this one. Hearing some details I haven’t heard (washboard I think?) and Bob’s voice sounds insane. This is a really good recording and pressing as is, but the Darlington seems to be getting the most out of it.
Click to expand...
Been trying a few different things they past couple days: female vocals (the Dolly Coat of Many Colors VMP release), piano/strings/choral (Max Richter), and now jazz (Love Supreme AS version). Really liking the sound. Everything is very detailed and tight - vocals are a definite strong point and keys sound really good too. Haven’t noticed anything I don’t like yet! Probably will play around with the mono switch next.
 
Okay, finally got a (brief) chance to compare the MM-6 to the StudioPhono. I played parts of 5 records on both:
  • Dylan - Desire Mofi 2x45
  • Traci Chapman - S/T
  • Pink Floyd - WYWH Mastersound Half Speed
  • Low - Hey What
  • Bill Withers - ‘Justments VMP
Overall, I didn’t hear a ton of differences between the two. I think the MM-6 is a tad brighter and the Mofi is fuller on the low end. To be fair though, I only picked up on this on the Dylan and PF - the others sounded the same to me.

I may not be the best judge of sound differences, so just a note about design/features - they’re really similar in this regard, too. The Mofi has the ability to adjust gain to your cartridge and a button for Subsonic (no idea what this does and neither does my brother, so probably not a needed feature). The Darlington is bigger, heavier, and uses a universal power adapter (Mofi is either proprietary or a weird type I’ve never seen). Pics below if you want to see them side by side.

Overall, both units were a huge improvement to my system. I think whichever I go with will be based on cost and availability when I’m ready to buy. Would be happy with either for sure.

34C76C9B-8080-44F7-8DA2-C5D20BADAC3B.jpeg47BD7EFA-FFDE-4F2E-B4BD-9AAA862B040D.jpeg
 
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