We’ve been spending most of our time downstairs.

We set up the Audio Note TT3 Reference turntable next to the Walker Proscenium Gold Signature turntable.

It has been back-and-forth, Walker –> TT3 –> Walker –> TT3 ….. both through the Lamm LP2 phono stage into the Ongaku integrated amp and the Kharma Mini Exquisite loudspeakers.

How do they compare, you may ask? In raw terms, the Walker is an audiophile’s dream come true and the TT3 is a music lover’s dream come true. Since we are music loving audiophiles, we can’t really talk about one being the ‘winner’. The TT3 is more dynamic, more lively, more engaging… more youthful. The Walker has a lower noise floor, is more accurate top-to-bottom, a more mature sound.

In fact, the idea would be for us to make them sound a lot more alike [which we have to some extent already] - to get a more musical cartridge for the Walker [we are using the Blue Magic Diamond - not so bad obviously, but there are better, unfortunately more expensive ones out there that are generally considered better]. And conversely, to dress up the TT3 with a rack with more vibration control, to correspond to the Walker’s air suspensions [even though the RixRax with HRS platforms comes close, HRS’s MXR rack still laughs at this setup].

Upstairs we still have the EDGE amps on the Coltrane Supreme loudspeakers, with the Lamm ML2.1 amps waiting for us to get our act together and replace the EDGE.

We have our new HRS SXR 3-shelf rack next to our HRS MXR 4-shelf rack.

Look at all that black!

Neli cleaned everything up, but this is two days later and already some Rocky Mountain dust has found its home on our stuff again.

We’ve appropriated some platforms / shelves for our playtime downstairs.

The Brinkmann Balance turntable.

Right now, we only have one phono stage, which the TT3 and Walker share. Even after our Audio Note M9 Phono arrives, we will only have two phono stages. But we have THREE turntables [well, four, but the little TT2 uses the little Audio Note Oto integrated’s phono stage].

We also do not have rack space for digital on the RixRax equipment rack in listening room 2.

What this means is that our Walker is up for sale on Audiogon [Neli is still glaring at me, because this was really my decision]. If anyone is interested…. be sure to think it over… it is not like they appear on Audiogon everyday [in fact, almost never. And for a good reason].

Next : Audio Note SOGON interconnect versus Audio Note SOOTTO interconnect versus Audio Note PALLAS interconnect. And a CES 2008 retrospective.

A Very Special CES Invitation

Globe Audio Marketing and Brinkmann North America cordially invite you to a very special presentation during the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show 8-11 January 2007.

This invitation only demonstration will take place in a private estate with an audio listening room similar in scope and size to what might be found in a normal listening environment. Comprising a WLM active loudspeaker system, Audio Aero Capitole CD player and the Brinkmann Audio Balance and LaGrange turntables, the Brinkmann 10.5 and 12.0 tone arms, the Brinkmann/EMT Titanium phono cartridge, the Brinkmann Mono amplifiers and Marconi line stage and the world debut of the Brinkmann Edison vacuum tube driven phono stage, as well as the Breuer Dynamic tone arm and Nirvana Audio cables. Demonstrations will take place in the afternoon and evening hours during the CES Show and will include a light dinner and product discussion.

This demonstration is in addition to the exhibition at Consumer Electronics Show in the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino suite 29-320 where the WLM loudspeakers Diva, Audio Aero Capitole CD player, a Brinkmann LaGrange turntable, Brinkmann 12.0 tone arm, the Breuer Dynamic tone arm and the North American debut of the RCM Bonasus vacuum tube integrated amplifier will be shown.

Contact Information:

Jody Hickson, Globe Audio Marketing
Email: info@globeaudiomkt.com

Lawrence Blair, Brinkmann North America
Email: information@brinkmann-usa.com

One thing about the new categorization scheme here on the blog is that it lets me see where we have been berift of attention with respect to a line of products we carry.

We love all of our lines - which is to say that we love what they do for us, sonically speaking.

So, alhthough we mention them many times in passing, one can see that we only had two posts for the Brinkmann and one for the Walker. We are going to have to fix that.

We’ll start, since tables are SO photogenic and we like taking photographs, don’t we? by posting some pretty pictures:

The stepup transfomer on the right there is the Audio Note AN-S4.

The cartridge is the Lyra Titan.

The platform is the HRS M3 Isolation base that was specially designed for the Brinkmann Balance.

Well, now you all might have a better idea what Brinkmann’s Balance looks like….

And, for bigger, larger, more photos, see our Brinkmann Balance Gallery and Brinkmann Balance Setup Gallery.

[This was originally written early this year (with some minor editing in the last few minutes to make less incorrect my English) but was not posted at that time after seeing the Postive Feedback review of the Walker that appeared simultaneously with the writing of this post - making it seem too weird, if not plain redundant, to have yet another piece on this turntable. But since we are discussing these very same reviews and turntable below - maybe it is time to finally get this out of my drafts folder (I have been seeing it for the last 10 months or so, every single time I post anything on this blog… )].

There was a lot of chattering and hoopla’ing about the $90K Continuum turntable that was shown at CES 2006.

Then there was more skuttlebutt when Mike Fremer decided to buy one for himself.

Steve Hoffman’s Forum

Romy’s Forum

And now a rumor that Mike Lavigne wants to sell his $70K Sirius III and get one too?

Well, far be it from us to be against people spending lots of money on audio equipment… but this is all so strange as we were really underwhelmed by the sound of the Continuum at CES 2006, and I was also underwhelmed by it at HE 2005 (though Neli liked the system there well enough). [P.S. We also later gave the Peak Consult / Berning / Continuum room at HE 2006 best of show, and, though we were still underwhelmed by the table, they had setup a very nice system there]

After CES we both kept saying to each other “what is going on? The Continuum seemed no better than our $20K Brinkmann!”.

At first I thought that I just did not have the experience to pick out the sound of these turntables in a system - even though I can pick out the sound of a digital player fairly well. I mean - $90K - it has to be great, right? But then I remembered what the Walker sounds like in unfamiliar systems. I have always been able to hear what IT is doing.

Then we thought about an even more outlandish idea: that most of the turntables in the $20K+++ range sound a LOT alike.

Then I read on Romy’s site that he is thinknig along the same lines:

The Foolishness of Analog People

What does ‘a lot alike’ mean?

It means that the difference in sound between a component and another is less than or equal to the difference caused by adding or removing a tweak in the system.

But some components out there are different, they do not sound like others and stick out as being something special. For example: Let’s talk about CD Players.

[Let’s not. But you might imagine this could get us all into a lot of trouble - even though the three brands of players we have here all do something special - many out there do not]

It is like Romance novels or Science Fiction movies - one person has a good idea and then a 1000 people copy it.

One might argue that sounding generic is a good thing. And this argument might be interesting.

We chose to carry the Brinkmann turntable because of the exceptional build quality, ease of use, attactive and streamlined appearance, and excellent support network. And, of course, how it sounds.

And as far as value goes - its sonic quality, at $20K, is in the same class, based on all the systems we have heard so far, as the Continuum, $80K Blue Pearl, $75K Vyger, and also the Sirius III if MikeL really thinks the Continuum is better. In fact, I think a really tweaked out VPI TNT is in this sonic class. Sorry.

OK, I can here you thinking out there. Mike Fremer had the Brinkmann, and now has the Continuum, and he says that the 5 times more expensive turntable really sounds better. Well, I am one of the few people who thinks Mike does indeed have ears. But. But his room is broken and his system is broken. What sounds optimal in his environment may not, in general, be optimal outside his environment. Also, as a reviewer, he has other motivations. Nothing sinister or anything - but he is a professional and needs to think about his readers and his career.

If you really want to know the truth, the only turntable we have heard that generates an immediate response of ‘Now THAT is Analog’, no matter what system it is in, is the Walker Procenium Gold turntable.

Now, I hesitate to say that. Lord knows Lloyd Walker does not need more encouragement . And we shivver to think we are adding to the overwhelming wealth of disturbingly unbalanced copy on the Walker line on both the Positive Feedback and 6moons sites.

And, like everything else, the Walker does have its issues.

But we have to say it, if you really want something that actually sounds better than anything else out there, that can’t just be achieved by a new cartridge or vibration control device or a better interconnect….then get a Walker.

It is not that there is anything wrong with the megabuck tables that I can see. Someday we may even carry the Blue Pearl or Continuum. They are quite beautiful and impressive.

Let’s put it like this: There is a lot, Lot, LOT more difference between most $20K speakers and most $90K speakers than most $20K turntables and most $90K turntables.

Unless it is the Walker.

Yeah, that is what we wanted to say. Maybe I should just delete the rest?

The full pictorial of the HRS MXR equipment rack setup is at:

HRS MXR equipment rack setup

But it will be a little while until we add these latest pictures, we though some people might want to see this now.

The HRS MXR equipment rack without the top shelf

The special HRS MXR equipment rack turntable-platform-support rails.

Neli holding one of the special HRS MXR equipment rack turntable-platform-support rails. These ’steel girder-like constructions’ weigh about 30lbs each.

The HRS MXR with one turntable-support rail installed. The rails just sit right on the two cups, one on each side of the rack. They slide down on them with a snugness which bespeaks engineering tolerances almost unheard of in our industry.

The HRS MXR with both turntable-support rails installed

View of the entire HRS MXR rack. Looking a little empty with just the Audio Aero Perstige CD / SACD player which is also serving as pre-amp in this system configuration.

The HRS MXR equipment rack with Brinkmann’s Balance turntable on its special HRS Isolation Base on the support rails we just installed.

Close up of how the feet of the special HRS platform for the Brinkmann sit in the troth which was formed by the top of the steel rails