SOTA vs VPI (or stick with my Rega?)

I just upgraded my old SOTA Star III to a Nova V and love it to death. GREAT sound. But then my buddy has a VPI Scoutmaster that he loves; great value too. And a Planar 3 is a pretty decent deck itself!

One thing I can't live without anymore is a hold-down system for edge warps. You'd have to save up a bit longer and move up to a vacuum clamping Nova with the SOTA, or just go for a refurbished Star (which SOTA sells). The VPI you could add a peripheral ring clamp as budget allows.

The SOTA look is a bit more personal and potentially striking, as you can choose the wood. Some of the exotic choices are stunning (highly recommended). The VPI looks cool but won't be as eye-catching as a nice SOTA.

@effischer
Yes that’s definitely an important consideration you've pointed out. I’ve had tables on very suboptimal stands/floors before, and the 4-point SOTA suspension works wonders to prevent all kinds of problems you’d otherwise suffer. In my home, the ClearAudio decks basically require a high-end rack under them.

The SOTA suspension is not like those lightweight, way too unstable/springy suspensions you see in other tables - it’s much better.

You’ll be a bit more limited in what arms you can mount on suspended tables, but the SOTAs can handle a bit over 2 lbs, which covers the vast majority of arms. My Fidelity Research FR64fx (pretty heavy) makes the cut, but the 3 lbs FR64S monstrosity doesn’t.

SOTA was purchased by employees several years ago, and is doing fine right now (Kirk passed, but Donna is still owner). They're even working on new product development, including a series increment to the current table lineup, and a high-end rack. Still USA-made. Far from "long gone".

They did a bang-up job on my Star/Nova rebuild this summer. Check out their Facebook page. 

@gritter2
It’s always very hard to separate a table’s sound from the arm, cartridge and phono stage combination. But I’ve used the SOTA over 10 years, with several various cartridges and stages. The FR64fx arm has been a constant, though. The Origin arm has rigid bearings too, which I feel is important.

With my Star/Nova deck, it’s never been hard to achieve a gorgeous analog sound that makes you feel like throwing away all your digital gear & music. If I had to assign a sonic influence to this deck, I’d say that it would be a little on the side of rich, voluptuous, romantic. You will get very robust bass and dynamics out of this. It will lean more towards "organic" and "PRaT" oriented, rather than techno-analytical. Yet it certainly doesn’t have a strong coloration, since I’ve had various Benzes, Koetsus, and Ortofons on this deck, each with their own distinct character shining through.

The only minor sonic issue I ever ran into was with an Ortofon Winfeld MC, that had a bit of searing treble - which was probably due to interaction with the heavy tonearm and my speakers at the time, more than anything else. The Ortofon Cadenza Bronze, Kontrapunkt "c" and Koetsu stones have all sounded outright "magical" on this deck, with proper supporting gear. The various Benzes (Glider L2, Wood M2, Ref 3 Wood) have also sounded quite excellent.

I also love my ClearAudio Master Innovation (I previously also had the regular Innovation Wood), but you have to work so much harder to isolate those decks. And so much more $. Sonically, they’re also more on the technical side of analog reproduction. And it’s extremely impressive & enjoyable too, once you get it all right - but the SOTA has a more traditional analog sound.

Congrats!! That is a great table. The Regas look really nice too, but the SOTA is a more complete solution with built-in isolation and exchangeable arm boards. What wood finish did you get?