Transparent Audio OPUS Phono Interconnect (RCA)

The Opus Phono Interconnect (RCA) brings Transparent’s TRANSCENDENT collection to the tonearm-to-phono-stage signal path — the tier the outrigger network module and PMMA-and-IFER platform were originally engineered for, applied to the delicate low-voltage output of a phono cartridge. Opus Phono is the direct descendant of Magnum Opus Phono, sharing the same iconic outrigger architecture: carbon-fiber shells encase the network with IFER (Integrated Flexible Epoxy Resin) filling every void, all built into the platform system that separates the TRANSCENDENT tier from XL-tier construction.

The outrigger network sits on the same Gen 6 platform the rest of the Opus line uses — PMMA (acrylic) layers sandwiching a 3/16-inch carbon-fiber plate embedded in an IFER-filled cavity, joined to the epoxy-loaded carbon-fiber carapace by a thin thermoplastic sound-damping layer, with fasteners bored deeply into the IFER mass. Network components are chosen and matched more closely than XL Phono to the electrical characteristics of the cable and its exact length, and the network is calibrated more precisely to the electrical output characteristics of your specific cartridge and to the load characteristics of your phono stage. Standard RCA-to-RCA with a mini-spade ground wire; optional custom DIN termination is available at the tonearm end (OPHDIN, $1,100 upcharge), fabricated to precise tonearm, turntable suspension, and phono preamp requirements; optional differential-balanced termination (OPHDIFBAL, $3,000 upcharge) is available for true balanced phono preamps and is sold as Opus Phono Balanced.

Opus Phono is designed for reference-class vinyl chains where the turntable, tonearm, cartridge, and phono stage are all resolving enough that XL Phono has become the limiting element on what the chain can reveal. Because the network is calibrated to a specific chain — tonearm, cartridge, and phono stage — Transparent needs all three specified before manufacture, and the more painstaking manufacturing process adds considerable time per pair. Level-matched TRANSCENDENT companions include Opus RCA, Opus Balanced, Opus Speaker Cable, Opus Power Cord, and Opus Power Cord Source. Fully upgradeable to Magnum Opus Phono through Transparent’s Upgrade Program, with original investment retained. Warranty registration extends to lifetime and entitles owners to free network recalibration when a cartridge change requires network adjustment.

Phono cables at the Opus tier reveal their difference over XL Phono in the actual chain, with the actual cartridge, tonearm, and phono stage — the interaction between cartridge output, cable calibration, and phono-stage input is specific enough that no generic demo can fairly represent it. Walk in during business hours or book ahead if the audition needs the actual turntable, cartridge, and phono stage in place.