Upgrade advice for 'orbed' Michell Gyro SE

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by richbdd01, Aug 26, 2014.

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  1. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Hi guys

    I want your advice on what you would upgrade considering i have the following on my turntable:

    Michell Gyro SE with orbe platter upgrade
    Rega RB301 with standard counterweight (using Goldring eroica MC)

    Now....the possible upgrades i am considering are either:

    HR power supply (cost £380)
    Michell tecnoarm (not sure if it would be a significant enough improvement?) (cost £600)

    Or a cheaper option...
    Incognito rewired Rega RB300 arm with Tungsten weight (cost £240)

    Your views on what you think would make the biggest difference especially for the money would be appreciated.

    Thanks
     
    Last edited: Aug 26, 2014
  2. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Anyone?
     
  3. Dubmart

    Dubmart Senior Member

    Location:
    Bristol, England
    I have a Gyro SE and an Orbe, I upgraded the power supply on the Gyro to a HR and found it a noticeable and worthwhile improvement, it was a few years ago, (I think mine is number 10), but from memory it has the biggest impact on the bass.

    I have a RB-600 on my Gyro and a Technoarm on the Orbe, for comparison I have tried both the RB-250 and RB-300, I have both to hand mounted on other decks along with a RB-301, I would say the Technoarm is in a different league to the standard low end Regas, again I think it would be a worthwhile and obvious upgrade.

    As to which is the biggest upgrade or best bang for your buck that's hard to answer, mainly because I did the HR upgrade so long ago and because I've only briefly tried the Technoarm on the Gyro and again it was years ago, my advice would be to go for the one you can most easily afford now, live with it, enjoy it and get to know how it sounds then save up and go for the other, I think they are both totally worthwhile and if I came across a cheap Technoarm I wouldn't hesitate to upgrade my Gyro with it.
     
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  4. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    I can get the HR for £389. The only thing that bugs me is how the HR power supply can have such an effect on the sound? I guess im most sceptical on this and would favour the technoarm maybe? Im really not sure..

    Also, wouldnt a rewired RB300 get anywhere near a tecnoarm as after all, the tecnoarm is a rewired RB250?
     
  5. Halloween_Jack

    Halloween_Jack Senior Member

    Location:
    Hampshire, UK
    Definitely go for the power supply upgrade first.
    And then the Michell Technoweight upgrade.

    Both will serve you extremely well as you save up for a better arm. The better arm will need that better power supply to really show off what it can do.

    I'd save for either a second-hand magnesium-arm version of the SME 309 (available for £500-£600 if you're patient,or put a wanted ad over at Pink Fish Media), or a brand new SME M2-9. Or even a Jelco SA-750D.

    Have fun! The Gyro SE is an exceptional deck (many secretly prefer it to the Orbe.....).

    John.
     
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  6. dvcarrick

    dvcarrick Forum Resident

    I have an Orbe with an SME V arm.
    I recently replaced my Lyra Delos with a Lyra Etna --- WOW the difference is unreal.
     
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  7. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Cheers for he advice. Yeah £389 is quite reasonable for the HR and i suppose i might get some spare change, albeit not much, from selling the standard unit.
     
  8. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Ok guys, my audio dealer has just offered me a brand new Rega RB808 for £479.

    Ive decided to ditch the PSU upgrade as im not convinced that the effects will be worthwhile. So i now have two options im considering:

    Rega RB808 (£479)
    Michell Tecnoarm (£600)

    My dealer seems to think that the Rega arm is better... What do you reckon?

    Cheers
     
  9. Halloween_Jack

    Halloween_Jack Senior Member

    Location:
    Hampshire, UK
    If your dealer is a good one then he'll let you listen to both arms on your deck, as well as the PSU (which I wouldn't discount the effects of). All these Rega varnats are just that, variations on the same theme. If you want a major improvement go for a different arm entirely.
    Asking on a forum you'll get a different answer from everyone - your ears need to be the final arbiter ;)
     
  10. Dubmart

    Dubmart Senior Member

    Location:
    Bristol, England
    Firstly I'd say that in my judgement the improvement the HR power supply makes is obvious and positive, power supplies definitely can make a difference, it's not a case of snake oil, perhaps try and find someone living locally who will let you borrow their supply, or a dealer with one in stock, only you can decide if you hear an improvement and if it's worthwhile.

    As for the Michell arm being based on the RB-250, indeed it is, but almost everything has been changed and upgraded to the extent that they neither look the alike or sound alike, the arm tubes are blasted, refinished, drilled, filled, rewired and a new end stub, Techno weight and VTA collar are added the Michell is in a different league.

    I haven't heard an 808, but it occupies the same place in the Rega range as my 600 did so unless Rega have made massive improvements at that price point the Michell should be the better arm and by a margin.
     
  11. Dubmart

    Dubmart Senior Member

    Location:
    Bristol, England
    One final point, it's amazing how dealers usually believe the item they have in stock is better than the item they would have to order in.
     
  12. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Yeah true i guess. With regards to the PSU, in what ways would it benefit the sound? Does it reduce rumble or what?
     
  13. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Actually im getting to the stage where im gonna say f&@k it and get an SME 309. Ive felt for a while that the RB301 whilst it isnt a bad arm, it is still a fairly budget arm and maybe its not making the most of my turntable?
     
  14. Dubmart

    Dubmart Senior Member

    Location:
    Bristol, England
    That would also be a worthwhile upgrade, the deck is more than capable of handling it.

    Once you've lived with the SME for a while please consider the HR, it really does improve the sound.
     
    Last edited: Aug 27, 2014
    Halloween_Jack and richbdd01 like this.
  15. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Ok its between the SME 309 and the Michell Tecnoarm i think.

    The only thing is the SME with the armplate will be about £500 more...decisions, decisions....i think it will be one of those two though!

    What i want is a noticeable difference...i dont want to sit down to listen and be trying to pick out positives. I guess though that i would obviously really prefer to go for the Tecnoarm, the SME is an awful lot of money isnt it? At the moment, 70% of me (the sensible part) is saying Tecnoarm but the remaining nagging 30% is saying SME!
     
    Last edited: Aug 27, 2014
  16. patrickd

    patrickd Forum Resident

    Location:
    Austin TX USA
    Well, I almost hate to feed your nagging side but once you’ve introduced the SME into the mix, how long do you think you’ll be happy with anything else? I’ve owned the 309 and V and I want the V12 but I can resist that as my table won’t handle one :) I would agree that anything that improves a table’s power supply can make a surprising difference but no PSU is as sexy as a lovely SME arm…..(and I say this as a confirmed leg man).
     
  17. Dubmart

    Dubmart Senior Member

    Location:
    Bristol, England
    I have to say that if I came across an affordable SME IV or V I'd swap out my Technoarm in an instant, not so sure about the 309 though.
     
  18. Halloween_Jack

    Halloween_Jack Senior Member

    Location:
    Hampshire, UK
    Ask your dealer to dem. both. Seriously it's the only way, or you'll always have that nagging feeling. Nobody here can tell you what arm to buy, we all have different systems, rooms, hearing etc. My own opinion is that no matter what is done to a Rega arm it's still a rega arm-tube at the end of the day. And that's superb. But the SME is on a different quality level, as you'd expect for the price.

    I've just bought a mint 309 for £600, so they can be had far cheaper than retail...
     
  19. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Wheres the best place to find used SME's particularly the 309? Theyre selling on ebay for £1000 so id like it to be cheaper ideally :)
     
  20. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Ok upgrade done and dusted. I know some people will think i made a bit of a sidestep but this is what i did...

    I bought a used like new condition Rega RB700 with the heavier tungsten weight (which i didnt have)
    £250

    I will sell my Rega RB301 for around £150 so thats a cost of about £100 for that upgrade which wont be huge but its a better arm plus its in silver which i want

    Michell HR power supply £380 NEW

    Im hoping the combination of the two will hopefully give me a little boost in performance. I think im done with my front end for the moment.

    Thanks guys for all the advice and guidance :righton:
     
  21. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Just noticed you have a v similar set up on your Gyro SE? Hopefully i get some benefits...

    Just womdering...why did you decide to have two Turntables...how do the two compare?
     
  22. Dubmart

    Dubmart Senior Member

    Location:
    Bristol, England
    Simple answer, I play a lot of less than great condition or well pressed Jamaican 7"s and the OM10 is over £1,000 less to replace than my MC2, two decks gives me a great deal of versatility, actually I have a few more decks not all in the system, currently I also have JVC and Technics direct drives set up, although I'm about to swap arms on the SL-1210, currently it has a Roksan on it. I also got my Orbe for a very good price ex-demo, as I was in the Hi Fi shop at least twice a week I knew just how few hours it had been used for, it was barely broken in and a fantastic bargain I couldn't refuse.

    Again it's some time ago, but I did try the same arm and cart on both and from memory there was no contest, sorry to say that as I know a lot of people think they can add an Orbe platter and get close to Orbe performance, it just isn't so, the Gyro SE is a fantastic deck in it's own right, I love mine, but the Orbe is genuinely in a higher league. The platter may be part of that improved performance, but it's only a part of the story and personally I love the way the Gyro platter looks although one day I will add an Orbe spindle so I can use the superior clamp. If I do ever upgrade the arm on my Orbe the Technoarm will be straight on the Gyro, that's one of the nice things about Michells not only can they be easily upgraded, but you can hear improvements, there's so much potential in the decks.
     
  23. Halloween_Jack

    Halloween_Jack Senior Member

    Location:
    Hampshire, UK
    Enjoy - I don't think the arm is an obvious 'day & night' upgrade in terms of sound quality, but that plus the PSU combined I'm sure will give you the upgrade you're hoping to hear. Have fun, and report back with your findings.

    Cheers :)


    (P.S. I get second-hand gear from the classifieds over here: http://www.pinkfishmedia.net/ )
     
  24. vinyl anachronist

    vinyl anachronist Senior Member

    Location:
    Lakeside, Oregon
    I'd go with the tonearm. The Michell version is one of the best modded Regas out there. The Funk Firm version might take it up another notch, though.
     
  25. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    London
    Yeah i think the arm is better quality and for the £100 plus the weight, i thought it would be worth going for aswell as the PSU upgrade. Its just another little step up in quality for not a lot of money. I dont think i am going to upgrade further at this time, and i might just squeeze a little more out of my deck.

    Cheers for the help!
     
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