New TT in da house (Clearaudio Ovation and Universal tonearm)*

After a lot of frustration with the unipivot design of the VPI 3D tonearm, I decided to trade it (with the turntable it was on) plus cash for a Clearaudio Ovation and Universal tonearm. The new rig is much easier to set up and adjust for VTA, VTF and Azimuth, particularly with tricky cartridges like my Lyra Delos. Tracks like a champ. I'm not upgrading the Lyra yet, that's a potential project for next year. The combination is dead quiet and very natural on acoustic music although it does reveal bad mastering / engineering in the source material. But listening to Gillian Welch's The Harrow & The Harvest was a revelation. I play acoustic guitar and sing (not well) and am used to the sounds of acoustic music live on a daily basis - this turntable combo delivers. I need to dig deeper into my collection to determine how well it stands up to more complex (classical) or electronic music. But I have little doubt that it will be superb.

 

Glad your happy with the new table. I hear VPI are wonderful tables but the setup I am told can be quite frustrating for those not familiar with the process.

 

congrats! I have the VPI Prime Scout - was looking at the ClearAudio Concept as well. I love the VPI but yes, that uni-pivot is just weird to work with. It tracks perfectly and sounds great but to me, it's still wonky...

 

Those are some really nice tables, I have an older Avantgarde, kind of the opposite of the Performance/Ovation series in some ways with the AC motor and outside platter belt drive and acrylic/aluminum plinth, but it does share some of the same design goals, low resonance sandwich plinth, ceramic magnetic bearing, etc. I'd love to hear your setup, I bet it sounds amazing, and will only get better as you tune it in. Congrats!

And by the way, it's customary to supply pictures, lots of pictures, we love pictures. I'll get it started ...

 

yowza! that table is stunning. I like the white belt as well...

 

Here it is - unfortunately I couldn’t squeeze my Harbeth 30.1s into the picture.

 

Congrats on the new turntable. Glad you're happy now.

Curious as to what the issues you had with the VPI was. I own a Prime with a unipivot design and thought it was super easy to setup so I'm curious...

 

When it was perfectly set up, the VPI table (a Classic 3) and Arm (3D 10”) sounded great. But I was always uncomfortable with the “wobble” and when I tried to put the Lyra Delos Cartridge on it was a very fiddly process to do so (it took hours) and I was never comfortable that I had the VTA/SRA, azimuth or overhang just right. I also found the antiskate mechanism to be a bit Rube Goldberg. I used both the VPI protractor and a Dr Feickert protractor and the Soundsmith counterweight thingy. Others have had the same issues. At the end of the day it just pissed me off. Now maybe it’s just because I’m old and uncoordinated but this is supposed to be enjoyable and life is too short. The Universal tonearm on the other hand is really easy to set up accurately, is infinitely adjustable and can handle just about any cartridge, doesn’t wobble, is superbly engineered and sounds great. And the Ovation has speed control and the magnetic platter (which I’m a fan of) and other parts from the Innovation. It is stable, is dead quiet with a black background, and doesn’t give me a hernia when I want to move it around. You also had to buy a separate gizmo for the VPI for speed control (which I hadn’t). So it all comes down to personal preference - YMMV.

 

No idea if you're aware but VPI came out with a small device to eliminate the wobble since it seems to bother some traditionalists. It's a moot point due to your new turntable but thought you might like to know anyway.

I agree that life is short and that this is supposed to be fun. Sounds like you made the right move and can start enjoying listening to music more.

 

I've been a lifelong tinkerer and modifier and designer, but it is quite a bit of fun to leave a lot of that behind and just enjoy the music. That's kind of where I'm at now too, older and a bit wiser, though I still do like to dabble in electronics a bit on the side. But nowadays it's a priority to have a stable system that pretty much always sounds great, and doesn't take much in the way of tinkering to stay that way. I've found it with Conrad Johnson electronics and the Clearaudio table, but there's many ways to get there, and I bet your system does really sound nice with those Harbeth 30.1 speakers

 

I was aware of the new dual pivot and also their new gimbal arm. It is possible that I was being ornery but I’m happier now.

 

Davey - Many years ago I had a Conrad Johnson PV5 Preamp - I loved that thing and wish I still had it.

 

I love the clean lines of Clear Audio TTs. If I were to replace my Nottingham (or add another table), Clear Audio would be on my short list. Congrats!

 

great album...a few friends have done remixes from it

 

Killer setup ChrisAZ. In a few years, I aim for the Ovation to be my next TT upgrade. I have a Concept Wood currently and am very happy, but damn, I want that Ovation!

 

Beautiful table!

 

Mine is the foundational piece of my system.

M`

 

I just pulled the trigger on a Clear Audio Innovation Compact with 9" Universal, from a VPI Classic #3. I have the same issues even with the dual pivot. Any tips on arm setup, do you have or need the vta lifter, ring weight?

 

I think the Ckearaudios are beautiful tables. It’s akways so subjective but I’d buy one over a VPI in a heart beat. Shallow aesthetics I guess.

 

@ChrisAZ Can you please measure and tell me how far the Universal arm goes past the back of the Ovation plinth? I have an Ovation with a Magnify arm but am thinking about upgrading to the Universal (due to issues with the magnetic damping), but am worried my turntable cover might not clear it.

 

I just added the dual pivot to my Prime last week. There are a lot of ludicrous rip-offs in high end audio, but this takes the cake. It’s a little piece of metal with two screws and a crescent shape with some double stick tape. For $150. It works ok I guess, but it’s a $20 solution to the quirk of unipivot design that should be included in the box that instead costs $150. Honestly I don’t think the Prime arm feels that quality to begin with for a 4K deck, and this gadget makes it look and feel cheaper. It’s no panacea.