My final table , hopefully !

Dear Larry,

If you glance at Clearaudio’s home page they display 9 (yes 9) different T/T models.

http://clearaudio.de/en/products/turntables.php

I’m not sure if VPI did 9 models at any point but Clearaudio’s output remains impressive.

The only VPI T/T I’ve heard to date is the Prime but I’ve heard many Clearaudio T/Ts.

I’ve never liked the concept of Clearaudio’s ACB (Air-Ceramic Bearing) which effectively suspended the platter independently of the turntable i.e. if you pressed down on the platter it would “bounce” while the rest of the assembly remained stationary.

The sound of those Clearaudio T/Ts was still fairly neutral and honest.

Despite this, none of them really shouted “buy me!”

The Prime on the other hand I found intriguing. Subjectively it sounded more “fleshed out” than the Clearaudios and contrarily somewhat “darker” than those turntables.

It sounded good enough to me to actually buy (!) which is a fair compliment because I’m seldom satisfied with the sound of turntables in-store.

Unfortunately, I’m already happy with what I’ve got so the Prime isn’t an option but it remains for me the top buy in this category.

At risk of repeating myself not only does it sound like a million dollars but it looks like it too.

Traditionally turntables have always been an individual choice so auditioning is always recommended wherever possible.

IMO young Matt seems to have aced this one. He’s taken the market by the scruff of the neck… ;^)

It’s great to see designs like this emerging which, relatively speaking, don’t cost the Earth. :)

Moonglum,

Good to hear that your table is working so well for you.  As I said, I never had problems with my HW19 and it is still going strong in someone else's hands.  My mild concern with VPI is not with the number of models, but, rather, with how often they adopt and then discard various basic approaches to design--frequent changes in the composition/construction of platters, changes in bearing design (regular bearings and inverted bearings), short-term adoption of idler/rim drive combined with belt drive, standalone flywheel, direct drive motor, etc.  They may be good at adopting new innovations, but, one has to wonder if they have taken the full measure of such things before they adopt them and then when they discard them.  Still, it is the result that matters and the tables I heard sound pretty good.

As to the floating magnetic bearing of the Clearaudio tables, that approach has been used before by some VERY good table manufacturers, such as Verdier and Gabriel.  Other high end tables float the platter using air instead of magnetic levitation, but, it is for the same purpose--to reduce noise generation/transmission cause by the weight of the platter grinding away on the thrust-plate of the bearing.  I suppose there could be an issue of the platter moving up and down, however slight that might be, but that would be a tradeoff made to reduce bearing noise.  I know of a few tables that actually use partial magnetic levitation to reduce, but not eliminate, the contact pressure on the thrust-plate which appears to be a compromise approach.