Nope. Not even with the XL. The fiddly part is in the initial set up if you aren’t used to it simply because there are so many different parts. Now that I’m familiar with it, I can break it down and reassemble it. It took me almost no time to install the Koetsu yesterday, move the arm tower and then rebalance the whole thing on the Minus K.
The Reference involves none of this - built in suspension, no need to get spendy on a separate isolation table. I am waiting for the 4Point 9 to arrive so I can’t comment on that yet, but my experience with the linear tracker, which is a far more complex piece of engineering and machinery is that once you’ve got it set up, it doesn’t really require any further adjustments. (You do have to keep the bearing rail clean, but this is part of the mystique and insanity of running a linear tracker). The 4 Point won’t require any of that.
With any of these tables, the difference between good and great is all in the initial set up. |
I’m a big fan of Kuzma and have had several of his tables. I had the original Reference, which is a very nice table especially for its combination of mass and built-in suspension. I gather that table has been updated. I’ve also owned and still use the XL, which is way more table than necessary and requires a lot of work to isolate given its weight, making the Reference seem even more sensible and not only for price. His 4 Point arms are very well regarded. I’ve had his Airline lateral tracker for years--and will soon have the newest 4Point here- the small, 9 inch version without the VTA/offset pillar. It will be interesting to compare its performance with the linear tracker. I would think a Reference plus that smaller 4 Point arm would be a sensible, well made, long term table. I can say that his products are exceptionally well made, robust and they are well supported-- Franc is very hands-on and with Scot Markwell as distributor here in the States (if you are here), you’ve got superb people behind the product. (Not that any of it ever had any issues- the only issue I ever had was with the air compressor for the Airline and that’s a whole other thing!).
Lot’s of good tables out there and arms too. This truly is the golden age of analog for buyers.
PS: with the Reference you won’t have to spend on fancy isolation. For the XL, I use both an HRS platform and a big Minus K (to support 250 lbs). The Reference is pretty much plug and play compared to the set up for the XL.
I just installed a Koetsu yesterday and am pretty blow away by it, after many years of Airtights and before that, Lyras.
You should have fun with this! You’ve got a more than adequate budget to get top tier sound out of LPs..... |
Rome wasn’t built in a day. I did find that the Steelhead, despite its enormous flexibility and some serious tube rolling, was holding my system back. But by that time, i had the good-better turntable(s) in place.
You’ll get there. @mulveling ’s comments re arm for Koetsu are well taken. I’ve just entered Koetsu land and am delighted!
I also kept talking about adding a second arm but deferred it, since i thought- well, I’ll spend the money on the best cartridge I can find for my taste and system and why have more money tied up in a second arm, cartridge, etc. (I don’t really do much with mono, certainly not enough to justify a separate arm and with the XL, a separate tower, which itself isn’t so cheap). But, I finally bit the bullet -again, nothing ’instant’ about any of this- and will have the flexibility to experiment with different cartridges (and possibly arms- a vintage arm would be nice too).
Look at it this way- take your time, don’t buy into the hype, see if you can get some ’face time’ with some of these turntables- it really is impossible to assess different turntables, arms and cartridges in a dealer or show context-- a subject that was addressed in another thread--and then jump.
I guess my only point of emphasis is that a turntable that has good isolation as part of the package, not just some rubber feet or whatever, may allow you to avoid the not inconsiderable cost of things like HRS, Minus K or some other flavor of fancy isolation. (I like Stillpoints and use em, but those add up too, all money that could be spent on the best table, arm and cartridge combination you can put together, and not necessarily the most expensive or bling-y-est).
Remember, this is supposed to be FUN!
:) |
Jade Platinum. What's surprising is that after several records, it sounded very good, even though it has no hours on it, and I really haven't fiddled much with VTA. What's also surprising (to me at least) is that i expected that midrange, but the bass? Tuneful, taut, punchy. Whoa!
I want to get some hours on it. Right now, it's installed in the Airline. When the 4Point9" gets here, I may try it in that as well.
It is also quite beautiful- not that I am about the bling of this stuff but it is a piece of art in the way that I think the Japanese excel at-- the miniature perfection of beauty. And sonically, on a scale writ large, the cartridge performs as it looks. I've joined the cult, such as it is---though most people who love these cartridges don't seem to proselytize --and I'm down with that too. Let's call it a not very well kept secret that, for some reason, I just didn't savvy to; now I'm glad I did. |
I would look into the Herron? that gets raves here from a bunch of folks who own it. I haven’t heard it so can’t comment on it. I would not put the money into a Steelhead unless you are after a lot of flexibility and are prepared to roll tubes- and I found that using straight in was a little too lean for my taste. I added a Lamm L2 line stage and that fleshed it out. But even with that, my overall sound definitely improved with the Allnic 3000 but I think part of this is system dependent. (Some people find the Allnic a little burnished- not 'clear' enough).
I don’t know that my system is jumpy and hectic, @Inna- it isn’t dynamic speakers and big power, but it often has the vibe of a well worn baseball glove. :)
To me, the quest for a phono stage is separate from your quest for a good table that you can live with for a long time, though Inna correctly points out that the end result of your vinyl playback will be dependent on the quality of the phono stage.
One table that always fascinated me though I never owned it was the Verdier Platine. It’s sort of the opposite of what I was recommending in terms of built in isolation, like the Kuzma Reference. But, at a certain level, there are many extremely good tables, so I don’t want to sound like have an agenda to tell you what I think is "best." There ain’t no such animal.
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What's funny is one dealer's description, which reads like "the world's most interesting man'- Koetsu owners buy real Picassos, not prints, smoke Cohibas from Cuba, not some cheap **** smoke from the drug store, and ...".
It's a "lifestyle."
Yeah, I'm loving it. But not because I drink Dos Equis. :)
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@edgewear-Right on! There are some vintage tables that I would take in a heartbeat, including some of the Micro-Seiki.
@sleepwalker65- the DD (a good one) will be a revelation. I bought an SP-10 new back in the day, back burned it for years, and only recently had Bill Thalmann restore it, do the Krebs mods, etc. Awaiting an arm. I’m looking forward to hearing it again. (Sadly not a Mkii or iii, I was an early adopter, but even so, a great table). Love the later ones, those big Denon, etc.
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