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Lyra Delos or Helicon versus Soundsmith Zephyr

My vinyl front end starts with the Soundsmith Zephyr, VPI Classic TT, ARC PH-8 phono pre (58db)and ARC Ref 5 SE linestage (12db). I was thinking about changing out the Zephyr just to mix it up a bit. Anyone have a chance to compare the either of the Lyra carties with the Zephyr? Would appreciate any comments or advice. Thanks
bifwynne

Showing 2 responses by maxh

maxh
52 posts
 
My opinion of the Soundsmith vs Lyra differs from Bifwayne.
I love the musicality of the Zephyr.
I have a Kleos that I will be trading for a higher end Soundsmith.
The Kleos is very clean but not right for my system. It is all about detail and not enough fun.
maxh
52 posts
 
I moved from the Zephyr to a Kleos about a month ago.
I was happy very happy with the Zephyr. My perception of modern hi-fi is that it too often sacrifices the pleasure of listing to music for the clarity of analyzing the quality of recordings. The Zephyr was a pleasure. It soothed the system's high-end edginess that I had never been able to tame.
But I'm an addict. If a $1K cartridge is good then a $3K cartridge must be better.
The Kleos is better at the "hi-fi" stuff: better definition, better clarity, etc. But the edginess has returned and the musical magic is gone.
I'm going to let the Kleos break-in for longer before deciding what to do.
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