Introduction
I have long been an analog equipment owner. While I had a fairly large collection of records, I did not enjoy them to their fullest until I was introduced to a Simon Yorke Designs S4-Zarathustra turntable, which I bought. Simon was kind enough to make a tonearm for me and I coupled it with a VDH Frog and a Shelter 501 cartridges, to begin with. I went on to purchase from Simon the first produced S-10 turntable with both the S-7 and Aero tonearms. It was with Simon’s outstanding set up instructions that I was able to optimally set up the turntables. Soon thereafter, I purchased an FM Acoustics phono which allowed me to get the most out of my cartridges and set properly the cartridge resistance and capacitance for all cartridges I had and subsequently owned. As the years went by, I purchased better cartridges (Ortofon A90, Transfiguration Orpheus, Lyra Skala, Ikeda 9xx, Shelter Harmony and EMT JSD VM).
Now at Locrian Audio, we have selected a few analog products we like both in terms of design and their ability to properly reproduce the musical material. Specifically, we have Reed turntables; Ypsilon and Accuphase phono preamplifiers; Reed and Ikeda tonearms and Shelter, Accuphase and Ikeda cartridges. We also provide SUTs from Ypsilon, Shelter and Ikeda.
Simon Yorke S4
Turntables
The Reed Muse 3A was designed using the principles of the Bauhaus style. It comes in three colors: Red, White and Black.
The main bearing system of the 3A is the same as in the top Reed model Muse 3C. It is a reverse sliding thrust ball bearing for a main axis. The bearing ball is made from stainless steel and the lateral stability is achieved by using a very durable and low-noise sliding bearing.
Muse 3A has a user changeable traction system, belt or friction drive. It has a digital control system indicator, which specifies the rotating speed of the platter, along other operating system information. In addition, it incorporates an inclinometer for accurate horizontal leveling. Muse 3A allows to mount one or two tonearms with an effective length from 9.5″ to 12″ inclusive.
MSRP: starting at $19,975
After extensive prototyping and long-term experiments Reed designed a solution of using a reverse sliding thrust ball bearing for a main axis. Bearing ball is made either from steel or ceramics and the lateral stability is achieved by using very durable and low-noise polymer sliding bearing. Symmetrical drive system is designed to avoid radial bearing load, hence minimizing possible mechanical noise and ensuring longevity of a master bearing.
Muse 3C is powered by two direct current motors and by design is friction-driven, however its major innovation is possibility to convert it to a belt-driven system in minutes by replacing traction rollers and putting on a belt. To prevent possible mechanical vibration, we use traction rollers (be it friction or belt) of different diameters, spinning at different velocities and having mathematically non-multiple diameters to driving disc diameter. Disc velocity is stabilized by quartz-based phase locked loop (PLL) system, so average speed deviation depends solely on the parameters of quartz crystal. Turntable drive is equipped with both mechanical and electronic protection systems.
The turntable also features electronic inclinometer (electronic level dedicated to measure turntable slope/tilt angle), which allows forperfect horizontal alignment. It can be equipped with one or two tonearms with effective length ranging from 9.5” to 12”.
MSRP: starting at $27,975
Phono Preamplifiers
Accuphase C-47 Stereo Phono Amplifier
The C-47 is the first phono amplifier from Accuphase which realizes a fully balanced configuration from input to output. Therefore, it is impervious to external noise, it also features a dedicated head amplifier optimized for the characteristics of MC and MM phono cartridges, and a high-accuracy equalizer amplifier, thereby ensuring precise equalization with a minimum of noise. A set of newly added dedicated balanced MC phono inputs enables balanced connection to the analog record player. By bringing out the full performance potential of each phono cartridge, the C-47 delivers a rich and deeply satisfying musical experience.
One dedicated balanced MC phono input and three sets of regular phono inputs, with separate memory settings for each input. It features balanced and line level output connectors; Separate toroidal power transformers for left and right channel; High-accuracy phono equalizer with RIAA deviation of only ±0.3 dB; Load impedance settings for six MC and three MM phono cartridge types and 7-segment LED indicator shows load impedance; Gain selector for low-output phono cartridges; Gold-plated printed circuit boards; Elegant side panels with natural wood grain finish.
MSRP: $12,900
Ypsilon Electronics VPS-100 Phono
The VPS 100 is a moving magnet tube phono stage, using passive RIAA equalization encompassing inductors, capacitors and resistors (LCR). It has two stages of gain. The RIAA network is driven by a custom transformer which is wound in-house. This is a split RIAA design using two gain stages based on the SIEMENS C3g tube. The C3g is considered reliable with useful life up to 10,000 hours.
Passive RIAA equalization is preferred to active because in active RIAA equalization there is a feedback loop and the RIAA network is part of this feedback loop. Usually RIAA equalizer circuits are implemented with capacitors and resistors (CR networks). Capacitors present the so called “dielectric absorption” –energy is stored in the dielectric material and is added to the signal with a small delay producing a ringing character in fundamental notes. This ringing behavior can be noticed in piano notes. An alternative way of implementing a RIAA equalizer is the LCR (Inductance-capacitance-resistance) circuit, which has been implemented for the VPS-100. The best way of driving the LCR network is by using a transformer. Ypsilon designed and built in-house the transformers using a special amorphous c-core material. A properly implemented LCR RIAA sounds much more natural, musical and open than CR networks with better defined macro and micro dynamics. The construction uses no printed circuit boards and is point to point silver wired using their own extruded and annealed to spec silver wire.
MSRP: starting at $28,000
Cartridges
The Model 501 III is latest development of 501 series. Through continued refinement the 501 III is equally responsive with the most recent recordings or any of your most cherished albums. The 501 III has the combination of aluminum clad boron cantilever and elliptical diamond stylus tip. The expressiveness, power and energy fare superbly balanced to highest level.
Output voltage: 0.5mV
Stylus tip: 0.3 x 0.7mil elliptical
Impedance: 14 ohm
Weight: 8.1 gram
Tracking force: 1.4 to 2 gram
MSRP: $1,295
The 901III uses hard aluminum cantilever with line-contact diamond stylus chip same structure with Harmony. Unlike models 7000 and 9000, which pursue more information or detail of sound, 901III provides comfort of analog playback sound from the moment when the stylus chip falls into the groove.
Output voltage: 0.5mV
Stylus tip: 1.6 x 0.3mil line-contact
Impedance: 15 ohm
Weight: 9.1 gram
Tracking force: 1.4 to 2.2 gram
MSRP: $2,500
Shelter’s flagship model, the Harmony, employs dry carbon fiber (CFRP) for the body shell. CFRP delivers a superb acoustic characteristic and is an ideal match with the newly designed motor assembly. This combination is capable of delivering a great musical reproduction even on records with less than optimal recordings. An additional benefit is that the resonant frequency of CFRP is outside of any audible frequency. It provides a high degree of internal damping along with superb isolation characteristics that protects the body from extraneous vibration and noise. Each of these design features ensure that the Harmony produces no coloration, and is whisper quiet and is extraordinarily sensitive to even the most demanding and subtle musical passages.
The motor assembly is an all-new design using hard aluminum cantilever and OFC wiring. Hard aluminum allows to firmly affix the diamond stylus tip to a rigid, yet responsive bass. This allows the stylus to receive and reproduce every bit of information within the grooves of your favorite recordings. The length of the cantilever is slightly shorter than typical to increase the strength to output voltage ratio. Normal aluminum cantilevers often develop a tendency to make the playback sound slightly bigger, but the stylus chip is designed to line-contact with its curvature radius to 1.6 x 0.3mil (0.04 x 0.007mm) to achieve the best balance and increased tracking capability at the same time.
Output voltage: 0.5mV
Stylus tip: 1.6 x 0.3mil line-contactImpedance: 15 ohm
Weight: 8.5 gram
Tracking force: 1.4 to 2.2 gram
MSRP: $4,900
Accuphase MC Phono Cartridge AC-6
The AC-6 is a new addition to the highly acclaimed Accuphase lineup of phono cartridges. This MC cartridge features latest technology in terms of materials and construction. The semi line contact stylus extracts minute vibrations that are transmitted instantaneously to the magnetic circuit by the boron
cantilever with high propagation speed. The magnetic circuit is mounted on a strong titanium base, ensuring accurate conversion into a music signal. Every single aspect of the cartridge has been finely honed to deliver optimum performance, ushering the listener into the wonderful world of analog records.
Output voltage: 0.4mV
Stylus: Semi line contact type (3 μm × 30 μm)
Weight: 13.5 gram
Tracking force: 1.9 to 2.2 g (centered on 2.0 g)
MSRP: $6,950