SME iV.Vi or SME V for SME 20 turntable?

The 'tonearm height adjuster' of the V - which is the VTA/SRA adjuster - is, imo, worth the cost difference. The adjuster screw has a fine thread which allows much more accurate and smaller incremental changes than raising the post by hand.

Fwiw, the IV.Vi (not the IV) as spec'd by Sumiko is described by them as having ".50 guage Magnan type Vi" internal wiring. Maybe their site info is dated. I speculate the arm cable to phono input will have as much an impact on sonics as the internal wire.

Tim

Thanks, Neil, for the update on the newer copper ribbon in the IV.Vi. I agree the internal wiring makes a difference.

The Sumiko site says the V's external cable is VdH 501 and describes the internal as 'van den Hul mono crystal silver', while SME says the IV's internal is LC-OFC copper.

In his coverage of CES in the April '07 'Stereophile', Fremer describes being shown an updated V that SME has (or is about to) release: "...upgraded low-tolerance bearings and new internal wiring of silver." Presumably the bearings are beyond ABEC-7 - wonder if they might be ceramic.

My ancient FMS Blue II copper tonearm cable sounds better than the stock SME and it is a wee bit limited on the frequency extremes. Its next on my list for upgrade.

I am using the non-spring-loaded Cardas leads with my SME V and Transfig Orpheus. I passed on the fancier ones for fear the collets would be too wide for proper fitment. The wire is flexible, much more so than the stock SME silver leads. The Cardas clips (gold on mine) are side slit and expand and attach very easily, which also means they don't grip super tight. You may want to snug them up before or after attaching. I've thought about using some of the Walker silver conductivity enhancer on the pins/clips but haven't tried that yet.

Tim