Pretty Turntable

A Roksan Xerxes X in rosewood looks gorgeous. It sounds great too.

Andrew

Andrew Randle
Tip 1: Change your mains plug fuses at least once a year

But does the Spacedeck have a lid?

Had a look on the Rega site. P9 looks very high on the WAF scale, and looks like I might get away with pretending it cost the same as a P2 cos she wouldn't know the difference. Current front runner, but I've not heard one.

Nah, you want one of these:


Andrew

Andrew Randle
Tip 1: Change your mains plug fuses at least once a year

Yes, very pretty,(didn't know they were still making them) but don't they develop a sagging belly?

ok Andrew, she likes the Xerxes. Do you know if it takes the RB300, 'cos I have a nice Origin-Lived one spare?

I'm not sure whether it takes an RB300 (but do aspire for an Artemiz). Regarding the sagging armboard, Roksan made significant improvements to the design and materials when changing from the Xerxes to the Xerxes X, although still ask about this before you buy.

Andrew

Andrew Randle
Tip 1: Change your mains plug fuses at least once a year

The RB300 is a good match, especially if it's an OL modded one. The original Xerxes was designed (I believe) to work with Rega arms in general so you're on safe ground.

Sagging belly problems cured (allegedly!) on the Xerxes 10 by redesigning the plinth.

Regards,
Ed.

Hmmm.
and my friendly local dealer sells Rega. They don't have a P9 dem. model though.
Any more thoughts on the P9, 'cos its more modernist looks would suit the old WAF.

quote:

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Sagging belly problems cured (allegedly!) on the Xerxes 10 by redesigning the plinth.

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The arm on the Xerxes X is, like the arm on the original Xerxes, mounted at the end of a long plank of MDF that is only supported at the opposite end from the arm. On the original Xerxes this plank was a sort of peninsula formed by a slot routed through the turntable's top deck. On the X the arm mount is a separate piece of MDF from the rest of the top deck. The sagging problem was caused by the weight of the arm hanging on the end of the cantilevered MDF board. Think of a diver standing on the tip of a diving board and you'll understand the issue. I haven't seen any reports of the Xerxes X having the sagging problem but I'd feel more confident about the X if Roksan had made the arm boards of something sturdier than MDF such as carbon fiber or aluminum honeycomb or even plywood.

I too have a P9 with the RB1000 and I have found it to be very musical and easy to maintain. Setup was easy and the sound is crisp and precise. I prefer it to my old LP12/Vahalla/IttokVII/Kharma. The PSU allows 45 rpm play and no "Lingo effect".
smiglass

Excellent advice, thanks for all your help.

Apparently Mad Max is bringing out an £11k beastie, with remote VTA, Nakamichi style self centring platter, adjus etc , etc. It sounds scary and if it's anything like the old Rock Reference probably is.

After a week examining the options I have made the, perhaps unusual, decision to go for the Origin Live Ultra kit with solid cherry plinth and transparent cover.
The reasons for the choice were;
1)I already have a fully tricked out Origin Live RB300 arm (arm+structural mods+internal rewire+external rewire)
2)I already have built their 'advanced' DC motor power supply, currently on my Townsend.

Thus the kit cost of 550 GBP seemed a fair VFM option, as with the above I should be close to their 2200GBP completed turntable.

I realise that I could have got another used LP12 for 550 GBP, but I like building kits.

I will report back on the results if there is any interest.

Good move! It sounds like fun and the Origin Live kit look top notch. What will it be running through? I suggest a stageline and NAIT 5 will be ideal.

Andrew

Andrew Randle
"Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid." Frank Zappa

If WAF is of utmost important, i suggest you check out the Michell Turntables.

probably destined for the non-Naim system in our larger room (all shiny Sugden Masterclass, with Masterclass phono stage at a cool 1250GBP, so the phono stage alone will have cost double the TT - I never claimed sanity). I will keep the LP12 for the Naim system in my little darkened listening room upstairs.

[This message was edited by Rockingdoc on WEDNESDAY 25 September 2002 at 18:15.]

The Origin Live kit was a disaster. The discrete cherry-wood plinth in the advet turned out to be a slab of, what looks like, very pale oak. The dust cover was a single sheet of plastic folded along each edge with large gaps at the corners. WAF score in the minus numbers I'm afraid.
So it is back to looking. What about the Well Tempered?

The Well Tempered Reference is a resolution beast. Amazing in many respects, such as speed, authority and resolution, but it doesn't actually engage in my view. Of course, if you like that presentation then it's the best thing on the planet! Looks are not particularly up there with the best, being bluff in the same way as a business suit is smart, and of course there's setup of the deck to consider, particularly the arm which sits in silicone fluid. Definitely an art, the arm is also magnificently adjustable. I believe there's a lid, but it's not recommended for playing.

The Well Tempered Turntable has a bit more of the LP12 rhythm to it for much of the time. I have heard it sound brilliantly engaging and I've heard it sound plain naff. Generally it's more engaging than not. Looks-wise it's slimmer than the Reference, not as smart a suit I guess. Not sure about lid, and the arm is based on the same principle as the Reference.

I'm A Michell fan. I use a DC motor'd Gyrodec. The Gyrodec can come with or without plinth and cover. You can order it without an arm, just an RB armboard and put your OL modified arm in it. If so I suggest you order the OL or Michell VTA adjuster nut to get the perfect VTA on your Gyro. It doesn't do rhythm like the LP12 but it scores heavily for dynamics and scale. Looks are definitely love or loathe.

The new Rega P9 is (in my view) a very good development of the old model. It has more scale and presence than the old one had. That said, it remains smaller scale than the LP12 and Gyrodec. The looks are also in question, some feeling that the oversized plinth looks odd.

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.