Separate Paths for MM and MC, One Remarkably Quiet Box.
The Rega Aria MK2 is a high-performance, fully analogue MM/MC phono preamplifier from Rega, the celebrated British hi-fi company founded in Essex in 1973 and famous for its turntables, tonearms and cartridges. Designed to bring out the best in your vinyl setup, the Aria delivers a detailed, quiet and expressive sound with excellent resolution and dynamics. Reviewers have praised it for class-leading performance and for build quality usually found in far more expensive phono stages.
Unlike most phono stages, which simply add extra gain to an MM circuit to handle moving coil cartridges, the Aria uses completely separate, dedicated circuits for MM and MC. That makes it an outstanding match for everything from an entry-level moving magnet to a high-end low-output moving coil cartridge, and an ideal upgrade for any Rega Planar or other quality turntable.
Design & Engineering
The MC stage uses parallel-connected low-noise FETs, while the MM stage uses low-noise bipolar transistors, both tuned for clear, musical performance. The MC side is fully adjustable through rear-panel DIP switches, with resistive loading from 70 to 400 ohms, capacitive loading from 1000 to 4200pF, and two gain settings (63.5dB and 69.3dB) for even the lowest-output cartridges. A self-adjusting servo keeps the MC circuit at its optimum regardless of temperature. Everything is housed in a robust, custom aluminium chassis for excellent shielding and minimal interference.
Technical Specifications
Type: Fully analogue MM/MC phono stage. MC gain: 63.5dB / 69.3dB (switchable). MC loading: 70–400 ohms, 1000–4200pF. Rated output: 200mV. Maximum output: 11V RMS. Output impedance: 100 ohms. Minimum load for full bass: 1k ohm (−3dB at 15Hz). Power consumption: 10W. Dimensions (W × H × D): 218 × 78 × 315mm. Weight: 3.1kg.