Boulder Amplifiers 2108
Built for elite analog systems, the Boulder 2108 delivers lightning-fast transients, commanding bass, and a spacious, finely separated soundstage. SoundStage Solo reports a lower noise floor that uncovers subtle textures and low-level detail, while three balanced inputs, adjustable loading, and four EQ curves make this a remarkably adaptable reference phono stage.
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Deliciously Crispy
Sound Quality
92/100
Cartridge Compatibility
96/100
Build Quality
91/100
Value for Money
85/100
Pros
Delivers fast, tightly controlled dynamics with strong bass power and slam.
Reveals low-level detail and tonal textures through its lower noise floor and improved grip.
Offers a spacious soundstage with strong separation.
Supports multiple turntables or arm/cartridge combinations with three XLR inputs, individualized loading cards, selectable gain, and historical EQ curves.
Cons
Its AU$81,800 price places it firmly in cost-no-object territory.
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What Reviewers Are Saying
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 92/100
The 2108 is described as a more open, immediate and revealing successor to the 2008, with stronger separation, faster transients and more clearly resolved tonal textures. Its presentation appears to combine substantial bass authority with greater speed, low-level detail and spatial freedom.
Transparency Noise Floor
92/100
The review directly attributes greater retrieval of low-level detail to the 2108's lower noise floor. It is also described as revealing textures that the earlier 2008 slightly blurred, suggesting a notably clean and transparent presentation.
Tonal Balance Musicality
90/100
Compared with the 2108, the preceding 2008 is characterized as somewhat dark and slow, implying a clearer and more lively tonal balance from the newer model. The improved grip is also said to expose texture within instrumental tones rather than smoothing it over.
Dynamics
94/100
Dynamics are a clear strength: the 2108 is said to have tighter grip, faster transient response and substantially quicker large-scale transients. It retains the 2008's established bass power and slam while adding speed and control.
Soundstage Imaging
92/100
The review reports greater separation and a spacious soundstage. That combination points to a strong ability to preserve the scale and organization of a well-recorded vinyl presentation.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Cartridge Compatibility
96/100
Three balanced inputs can accommodate multiple tonearm/cartridge combinations or several turntables, while individual Personality Cards tailor resistive and capacitive loading for each input. MM and MC gain options, up to 1,000-ohm MC loading, and selectable RIAA, FFRR, EMI and Columbia equalization make it unusually adaptable to varied cartridges and record collections.
Build Quality
91/100
This is a fully balanced, dual-mono, two-chassis design with a separate substantial power supply. Boulder highlights revised circuit layout, grounding and surface-mount implementation, while the review presents it as the reference-level model in the company's 2100 series.
Value for Money
85/100
At roughly AU$81,800 in the cited coverage and about US$62,000–$63,000 in the supplied pricing, the 2108 is firmly a cost-no-object component. The available review does not directly compare its value with similarly priced phono stages or offer a clear verdict on whether that premium is justified.
Reviews & Sources
Professional reviews and sources for this product's Watt'n Potatoes analysis.
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Specifications
- Inputs
- Three pairs balanced, converts to unbalanced
- Outputs
- Two pairs balanced, converts to unbalanced
- Input impedance (maximum)
- MC: 1000 ohms MM: 47k ohms Resistive and capacitive loading adjustable on individual Personality Cards
- Output impedance
- 100 ohms balanced
- Phono equalization
- RIAA, FFRR (London/Decca), EMI, Columbia
- Maximum output level
- 28 Vrms
- Distortion, THD
- 0.005%
- 1 kHz gain, RIAA
- MC: 70 or 60 dB MM: 50 or 40 dB
- Noise (EIN), MC
- 65 mV A-weighted, 105mV flat, 20 Hz to 20 kHz
- Frequency Response, 20 Hz to 20 kHz
- RIAA: ±0.10 dB
- Crosstalk, L to R or R to L
- -100 dB or better, 20 Hz to 20 kHz
- Phono preamplifier weight
- 37 lbs. (16.8 kg) Shipping: 51 lbs. (23.2 kg)
- Power supply weight
- 48 lbs. (21.8 kg) Shipping: 69.5 lbs. (31.6 kg)
- Power requirements
- 90-120V / 200-240V, 50-60 Hz
- Power consumption
- 75W maximum
Manufacturer's Description — Boulder Amplifiers
In 2002 Boulder released the 2008 Phono Preamplifier. At the end of that year, it was placed in the A+ category of Stereophile magazine’s recommended components, a category created for electronics that are so far ahead of their peers that they justify an entirely new classification.
And now we present the 2108, the next generation phono preamplifier built upon the fundamentals of the past while making meaningful strides forward in technology and design. Countless changes have been made to insure that the 2108 significantly improves upon the 2008 in every way.
Why? Because the best phono stage in the world is the one that makes you focus on the music instead of the electronics. The very things that make analog playback so special are the things that the 2108 passes along without alteration. Dynamics are quick and powerful. Bass is taut and solid. Images are distinct. Silence is just that. Nothing should be added, nothing should be subtracted. Music shouldn’t just play, it should transport you to another place. It should thrill.
And with the 2108, it does.
Three pairs of balanced inputs allow connection to three different turntable, tonearm, or cartridge combinations at the push of a button, without any reconfiguration
Fully-balanced circuitry rejects noise and keeps the delicate signal from a phono cartridge in balanced mode, maintaining balanced operation throughout and eliminating noise that would otherwise obscure critical musical information
Entirely separate power supply chassis houses four independent power supplies: left audio, right audio, control, and standby, for total isolation of all supplies from the sensitive analog audio circuitry
Standard RIAA equalization as well as EMI, FFRR (London/Decca), and Columbia EQ selections enable proper playback of collectible records made prior to 1955
Modular and discrete Boulder 995S phono gain stage is exclusive to the 2108, hand-manufactured and calibrated to spec in a potted and precision-machined housing
Non-resonant and expertly machined casework protect the delicate analog signal from microphonic and resonant distortions
Customizable Personality Cards for each input to match the exact individual needs of various phono cartridges: MM, MC, resistive and capacitive loading, high or low gain, and demagnetizing
Switchable outboard demagnetizer pass-through connections for use with specific MC phono cartridges
Front panel selectable, three-setting low-cut filter removes turntable rumble or low frequency noise from warped records
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Authorized dealers for Boulder Amplifiers 2108
- 3mA Audio — online and in-store — Houston, Texas, United States (website)
- Absolute Hi End — in-store — Ormond, Victoria, Australia (website)
- American Sound — in-store — Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada (website)
- Ana Mighty Sound — online and in-store — Paris, Île-de-France, France (website)
- Audio Advisors — in-store — West Palm Beach, Florida, United States (website)
- Audio Element — in-store — Pasadena, California, United States (website)
- Audio Gallery — online and in-store — Las Rozas de Madrid, Comunidad de Madrid, Spain (website)
- Audio Y Cine — online and in-store — Sevilla, Andalucía, Spain (website)
- Class A Audio — in-store — Notting Hill, Victoria, Australia (website)
- David Lewis Audio — in-store — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States (website)
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