This review page is supported in part by the sponsors whose ad banners are displayed below

Getting Excited:
It must be noted that every part of this turntable system arrived carefully packaged both internally and externally so as to avoid hassles and surprises for the owner. On first blush it looked as though it would take a while to get the parts assembled. However, with a modicum of organization coupled to a calm head, it was possible to complete the task in an afternoon. Incidentally, Mr. Conti has created a DVD, which shows some of the details for proper tone arm setup. It is more than a kind gesture to see how the man behind the product makes things happen.


One important element still needed attention, however - the phono cartridge. I had been using a customized denuded Denon 103 moving coil cartridge from Italy in my Linn LP12/Naim Aro system and that was given a chance to sit in the Vector 4 arm. Once all of the appropriate adjustments were achieved along with a bit of warm-up time, the music commenced to sound out. It was clear that this cartridge was now doing some things that heretofore were unknown. Deeper bass, cleaner tracing, airier high frequencies and better dynamics were obvious. Granted, the Denon was not just seeing a new arm; the complete Basis context was making its presence felt and in a very good way.


Fortunately, Mr. Conti was able to provide me with a short-term loan of a Transfiguration Orpheus cartridge and this piece was certainly more in line with the quality present in the Basis Audio gear. The changes from the Denon sound were not subtle. A new degree of smoothness and expansiveness of the soundstage made the music feel more natural and engaging. I had yet to hear this level of performance in my home and it certainly primed my pump for getting excited about intensive vinyl listening. After the cartridge had approximately 50 hours of playtime -- it was new upon arrival -- I discerned that the sense of perspective was very different from my prior listening pattern with the Denon 103. Essentially, the Orpheus developed a mid-hall placement for the instruments, which was encompassing and enjoyable but certainly less upfront than I had been accustomed to. I should explore a tangent about this now.

I've been doing live concert recording for about eight years, utilizing quite good professional microphones, cables, recorders etc. Since my Sound Devices 744T hard drive recorder operates on battery power, I always elect to place my Schoeps mics for optimal sound pickup and then sit near the mic stand so as to keep the mic cables as short as possible. (Yes, I have experimented with microphone cables and find that they also vary, as do interconnects and speaker wires in home applications.) Because my mic stand is typically 10-15 feet away from the performers, I now sit nearer to live musicians at these concerts and have learned to appreciate this closer perspective. Years ago, after multiple opportunities to try different seats in Carnegie Hall and at Lincoln Center, I had assumed a preference for a center section, mid-hall location. Now with a few years of this more close-in listening to live music, which happens often for me fortunately, I have developed a preference for closer sonic perspectives. Please understand that I am not close-miking the artists and absolutely abhor the sound so often heard in commercial recordings where the mics are placed directly into the piano case for example. I am fortunate to be able to record, for the most part, in good to very good acoustic environments and work hard to capture that feel in my recordings, whether they are orchestral, choral, small ensemble, pipe organ or jazz performances. Perhaps this small digression will help in understanding my comments about how perspective calculates into my sonic preferences and how all this impacts on listening back at home.


So, while the Orpheus clearly was a top notch performer, my personal bias drove me to seek out something else. Particularly important was maintaining the beauty and smoothness of the Orpheus but with a bit more intimacy from a staging perspective. I am sure that many listeners would find everything the Orpheus has to offer exactly appropriate and I understand that fully. Those who especially enjoy being at a distance from the musicians during concerts know how I mean that.

Recalling the fine experience I had in NYC at the Stereophile show last year in the Nagra/Verity room, I phoned John Quick who ran that room, to ask about his choice of the EMT cartridge at the show. John is a real gentleman and was helpful in fleshing out some of the details of his cartridge quest. The outcome of that chat led me to speak with Jonathan Halpern, the importer of this fine line of German cartridges -- and many other distinguished audio products via Tone Imports -- and a Jubilee JSD6 purchase ensued. Once mounted in the Vector 4 arm, it was yet again necessary to let things burn in. I allowed only casual listening to occur during the first 50 hours. From the outset the sound was yet again different, enjoyable and very interesting. I should note that the Vector 4 arm is such a pleasure to work with and it readily allows performance differences to stand out when shifting from cartridge to cartridge. The freedom from tracking distortion alone qualified this arm as a winner. At no time did the arm seem unable to operate as a neutral element. It truly can be the 'vector' for cartridges ranging from bargain to stratospheric caliber and pricing.


The burned-in EMT Jubilee sang wonderfully in the system. It presented a bolder, robust, upfront quality without ever sounding harsh, edgy or challenged. This offered the perspective I had been looking for from the Orpheus while at the same time sounding more energized and lively. For rock and jazz LPs, this was exciting to witness and Stevie Ray Vaughan never felt more in the room as he belted out "Tin Pan Alley" from his Couldn't Stand the Weather album. The bass performance from the EMT was solid, punchy and incisive while the mids sailed into my room with a palpability that caused more than one of my listening guests to whoop, holler or shout expletives that I will spare you. No problems for the high frequencies either, btw. Because a significant amount of my LP collection includes classical music, it eventually became apparent that this cartridge created a soundstage somewhat less captivating than the Orpheus. I wanted more depth and height to the image, along with some additional refinement on massed strings and such. What to do, what to do?


The answer came after a few conversations with A.J. Conti and others whose ears I trust. The well-known Dynavector DRT-XV1S cartridge had to be auditioned. Thankfully after a bit of a wait for fresh samples to arrive in the US from Japan, I had one in my grubby little hands. Mike Pranka of Toffco, the importer of Dynavector products, was helpful with advice and directions both before and after the purchase; thanks Mike. Again, about 50 hours of burn-in time was allotted prior to doing serious listening. Everything that I had been searching for came through in gangbuster fashion. Effortless, smooth, rich, full-range sonics blossomed in my room with this MC nestled into the 2800/Vector system. It became difficult to bring listening sessions to an end with this kind of glorious music. Now I had a perspective presentation that satisfied every genre of music played on the turntable. Highs seemed to be unlimited and the bass was deep, solid and powerful. Subtle midrange qualities were abundant and in balance. In fact, the best way to characterize everything that was happening could be summed up in three words - balanced, correct and captivating. Can you tell I was seeing things in new ways? The Dynavector XV1S coupled to the Basis Audio gear made listening to music engaging, seductive and joyful. In all of my audio experience, I have never had so much fun and satisfaction. I know that sounds as though I am ending this story here but it just needs to be said now and I will come back to that theme a tad later.

Without doubt, the Basis Audio 2800 Signature table, Vector 4 arm, Revolution Microthin belt, vacuum hold-down and Synchro-Wave power supply collectively demonstrate the intelligent amalgamation of art, science and technology in a truly revelatory and dramatic fashion. The moving coil quest enabled me to see how well the Basis stuff handles variety in cartridge designs and properties. I never felt anything at the tip of the tonearm was being limited by the gear behind it. Credit is also due to the excellent performance delivered through my Art Audio Vinyl Reference phono stage, but that has already been discussed in my previous review.