The RP-102. A short history of excellence XLR analogue RCA analogue How do you improve on the near-perfect? That was the challenge we faced in reconfiguring our indomitable RP-100 that, over the years had repeatedly proved itself.

When in 2004 it was first reviewed in HiFi+ by Roy Gregory, he was little short of ecstatic about the RP-100’s performance, for which it subsequently won an award from the magazine. Here’s a telling excerpt: “Across all the music that I’ve played, the Vitus has never disappointed and never failed to reveal the beauty and emotion in a performance. Do I really need to say more? Take the trouble to seek out [Vitus Audio] and I’ll be surprised if you are any less impressed than I was. Unlike so many of their price peers, they deliver full value in both engineering and musical terms.”

Clearly, in redeveloping this beloved phono stage, we had a great deal to live up to – and indeed, to exceed. At Vitus Audio we recognise the vinyl medium as a gateway to decades of unique and iconic recordings. Every collection is treasured and every record deserves the best and most sincere reproduction. To achieve this in the RP-102 we undertook a total redesign of the main board, power supply and logic control. This model introduces support for mono cartridges, for the express benefit of original monaural pressings. Access to the rear plate, or opening the unit to make hardware changes is no longer required. Switching between load settings and gain settings can now be effected by controls on the front of the unit or the optional remote control.

Furthermore the Active Moving Coil step-up gain stage (to max 75dB) will support most very low output MC cartridges. While the design significantly reduces noise, enhancing resolution and micro dynamics, all equipment connected to the mains is a potential source of interference and may radiate electrostatic and electromagnetic radiation. Many kinds of extraneous electrical activity, from air-conditioning units to lighting dimmers, can affect the purity of the musical signal unless the earthing system is completely clean. It may even be necessary to add a separate, ‘technical earth’ to overcome an extreme case of such pollution*.

We are confident that the RP-102 will quickly establish itself as an immensely valuable addition to our repertoire, as respected and admired as its famous predecessors.