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Rega Fono MM Mk5 £220
Rega’s Fono MM has been our go-to recommendation for an affordable phono stage for more years than we care to remember. It is pretty minimalist, being a moving-magnet-only design with just the basic input and output connections.
Rega clearly doesn’t want to spoil a winning recipe, so the revisions for this new Mk5 are minimal. The internals have remained unchanged from the last generation, with the main changes being to the casework cosmetics – but since the Fono MM was already a clear class leader, maybe that is not such a bad thing.
Connectivity is as simple as before, and that works a treat with the likes of Bruce Springsteen’s Born To Run, the Rega conveying the hard-charging energy of the music well. Things are rock solid rhythmically and there is enough in the way of low-end power to satisfy; those lows are taut without being overbearing.
Detail resolution is good too. This isn’t the most pristine of productions but the Fono MM can uncover a good amount of detail and organise it into a cohesive and musical whole. Thisauthority of Beethoven’s and is full of enthusiasm when it comes to thumping out the music’s dramatic dynamic shifts.
