As someone who works at a Hi-Fi showroom, I can't thank you enough for making this video. THIS is what people getting into the hobby need to see. There's a reason that turntable costs $1,600, and you nailed it here. I also wanted to add that Musical Surroundings is a wonderful company to work with, and Garth is a great dude. He really taught me a lot about turntables, materials, and craftsmanship when I started in the industry, and I'm sure if you're in the Midwestern US, he'll send you straight to my store.
What a beautiful table and what an amazing store. I went in there for a simple cartridge upgrade and Sean took the time to answer all my questions and make suggestions.
I've had my pair of Technics 1200MK2's for 27 years with no problems or service and they still look and play like new. I paid $750 for the pair in 1993.
I'm planning on getting a Rega 3 soon. I assumed it would take an hour tops to set up assuming the cartridge is preinstalled. This video has me second guessing myself.
@@unklecorky2181 Time and patience in setting up you table is an absolute requisite. Michael Fremer has the definitive set up video, but it's a DVD and it'll cost.
@14:58 I know Garth; met him at audio shows. He is very knowledgeable and personable. Big thumbs up on a very good video. There are countless people that swear by digital, based on lousy sound coming from their records. If those folks would see this video, and understand that proper alignment is imperative to getting the magic out of the grooves, they might realize that their poor record playing experience is due to using a department store turntable and not setting up any adjustments.
This place is the real deal. I bought my Rega there last year. Incredible service. They even called me about a week later, just to check up on my turntable and how I was liking it.
Really, "the real deal" no it isn't, you should ALWAYS set the speed with a record being played, because of weight and drag. Hopefully he's learnt that by now.
Don’t make the rabbit hole sound like a bad thing. My system brings me so much joy that I can’t imagine life without it. I’m firmly in the “highly efficient speakers driven by tubes” camp. Setup: VPI Prime w/ Dynavector 20x2H cart, Lounge Audio LCR MKIII and Counterpoint for phono stages, PrimaLuna preamp and monoblocks for amplification into a pair of modded/upgraded 1979 Klipsch Cornwall speakers. Dynamics that will scare the shit out of you and not at all showing any of the “shouty” and shrill characteristics people claim Klipsch display. You just GOTTA use tubes...EL34 preferred. I listen to too much heavy music to go the flea-watt SET route.
Eric Jenkins sounds like a very nice system! I’m a big fan of Klipsch speakers too, I’ve been thinking about building a set of La Scalla’s from scratch. My friends may think me crazy for spending so much on stereo, but that doesn’t stop them from coming by to listen to it every weekend!
Eric Jenkins I have a Primaluna Dialogue HP integrated amp and I’m taking delivery of some Harbeth super hl5 plus very soon. Looking at replacing my old Gyrodec with a VPI Prime next year. Can’t wait
Clearaudio makes great turntables. Great choise. My Clearaudio Performance is some 10 years old and still as solid as when I first bought it. The Performance also has a magnetic bearing for the platter. It 'floats' and takes forever to come to a full stop after giving it a push.
Damn... I knew I had forgotten something! I wanted a magnetic bearing, too... but then I made an impulse buy going by the looks only, as with all my audio stuff :P
@@theaudiophilebarista2424 I don't know! I still need to buy a tonearm and cart on impulse :) Also, it does not have a lid/cover, which doesn't go well with our cat... need to find a matching cover on impulse first ;)
Loved this video. Hey please don't listen to the naysayers. I've loved audio for 45 years now, if you're happy with your new gear, then I say wonderful! Make choice, spin up, arm down, sit back, tune out life and relax. Hundreds of people, musicians, recording engineers, producers, audio engineers, assemblers, even packing and shipping people, have devoted their life so you can enjoy 35-40 minutes of their soul. Peace my brother man, now stop reading this and get back to the tunes!
The same people who scoff at investing in quality equipment at a store like this are the same ones who would have bought a $99 BIC table back in the 70s saying $399 was crazy for a Techniques SL 1200. The BICs are in the dumpster and check the price of a vintage 1200. There’s a reason tables like this cost more and people are willing to pay the price. All of my equipment is worth (almost) as much now or worth more than when I purchased it. Had to wait many times to afford what I wanted. But, you’ll never regret buying quality gear.
Good choice on the Clearaudio. IMO, their arms are really hard to beat at their price point. I like their use of magnets and using them for anti-skate is far cleaner than a fishing weight that's used on some higher end designs.
Good job here, the most important part is establishing a relationship with a local dealer, there is simply nothing like it. Enjoy your new table and now you can attest to the fact that there is a difference in turntables.
Sick man! Homie hooked you up, he tweaked that turntable hella clean. Wish I had a store close to me with this type of service, especially when dropping this kind of cash on a record player.
Great choice for a turntable. I have had my Concept turntable for about 7 years now and I love it. No issues so far. The only maintenance so far was to lubricate the spindle with the supplied lubricant. The tone arm on yours looks slightly different than mine. There is no visible anti-skate adjustment on my tone arm (there is a way to adjust the anti-skate but is not easy). So far I haven't seen the need to play with the factory set skating adjustment. Also when I bought my turntable it came factory set for the included MM cartridge (basically plug and play). One of the features that attracted me to this turntable was the magnetic bearing in the tone arm. It gives great isolation between the arm and the table. What impressed me when I listened to it at the show-room was how quiet it was between passages on an LP (I heard it described as a "black background" by some reviewers which perfectly describes the lack of rumble and surface noise).
Very nice video! Brian and his crew at Audio Element are first class. They carry a very good selection at the lower end of the high end, up through the extreme high end.
The best part about buying decent equipment is when you’re in the mood for an upgrade there are people more than willing to pay good money for your used stuff. If you’re lucky like I have been you can sell it for what you paid 10-20 years down the road. Some stuff becomes a classic that guys have a hard time to find. Those are the units no one wants to part with. Good equipment will last a life time. I’ve had my table over 35 years like most of my other stuff. Best money spent by far. 😎
Going to purchcase my first turntable within the next weeks. I am a little bit worried for the amount of adjusments and hope that my dealer is as competent as yours in this video. Anyways, was a great pleasure to see the adjustment.
@@TooManyRecords Hey, I am considering either the Rega Planar 3, the MoFi StudioDeck Plus or the Cambridge Audio Alva TT (as an all-in-one alternative). In the next weeks I will go to a dealer for a test listening and make the decision on this basis. I hope you still have a lot of fun with your turntable and have fun with your records :)
I looked at the Conceot really hard. Ended up getting the technics 1200GR. I gotta have a dustcover and I got a ortofon 2m bronze cartridge. Germans have excellent engineering. I really like the looks of thd Clearaudio Concept black. I see down in the comment section the audio technica crowd is around. They love substandard Chinese made products. Low cost over quality is all they know.
This is Brian Kim Keenan. I've been an audiophile for 50 years. As a technician and audio broker I have owned and serviced practically every type of component available. In looking back at basic things I believe are essential to audio enjoyment, Number 1 is a turntable that has anti skate 2. It must have a dust cover. 3 If P- mount cartridges were more sensitive, I'd only have a Linear tracking unit. 4. Great non Bose and non reflecting speakers. 5. A Remote Control, at least to control volume and Mute. 6. An elliptical stylus, tracking at 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 grams. This sounds better and preserves records. I got tired of jumping out of my chair to control volume and the plastic sheet I had to put over my turntable after use to avoid dust looked awful. I also hated my records wearing down due to no anti skate and heavy tracking forces. What? No Dust Cover? For How Much? Phooey!
I thought mine $300 is pretty good and I know a lot about turntable, OH BOI THIS IS THICC! now I know why hifi/great digital music is so much easier than CD or vinyl, but it also makes me appreciate the true audiophile and good turntables/LP culture more. Great video!
Congratulations I also like clear audio turntables very well-built the MC would have been the better choice but that's definitely something you need to do in the near future get a nice low output moving coil but congratulations on the Step Up from the mid fi to hi-fi looking forward to your next video where you let us know how much more you enjoy your music and what are the difference is you here
Great video! I love Audio Element! I couldn’t help but notice your record label and record store are in Oregon. Audio Element is a loooong drive from Oregon. Did you relocate from Pasadena to Oregon after this video or do you also have a store in Los Angeles? Great channel content!
awesome video I like the turntable and how the shop associate explained a lot of good details. 10:39 too bad that new pressings has a slight gentle warp. I wonder how that effects the tracking.
Too Many Records okay that's good, I figured that. most times people don't seem to be concerned about it with new heavier records. I have two questions about the turn table. Is it belt driven and does it require a phono input? I imagine the answer is yes to both questions but I thought to ask now.
@@mercurialmagictrees It is belt driven, unlike my last table which is a direct drive. As for the phono question, I'm not quite sure. It doesn't have any sort of build in preamp as far as I know. Mine's connected to the Pioneer receiver.
In high end audio circles, this is an entry level turntable. Hardly the end all, best ever. But, it’s a great step above all the budget record players out there. The fact is, most people are not that concerned with sound quality. And many, just can’t hear it. The pursuit of higher resolution is certainly not for everyone, but don’t knock what you don’t understand. Most people who knock high end audio have never actually heard a system properly set up, people are not buying ten thousand dollar amps or speakers or record players because they are fooling themselves, there are real differences, and maybe some people don’t have the ears for it? Some spend their money on race cars, some on boats, some on alcohol, so calling someone who enjoys good stereo crazy is certainly uncalled for.
Obviously a top of the line turntable, but for the money I'll still take my $250 Fluance RT 81. I love the sound and definitely prefer the beautiful walnut finish as opposed to the sterile look of this model. I hope your turntable gives you a lifetime of great listening. As an old guy, it's great to see so many young people getting into vinyl.
At 1,600 it's top of the line. At that price it's over priced so anything more expensive would be ridiculous. If $1,600 is "entry level"...how stupid can some buyers be?
Not true. You really believe the i phone should cost $1,000? Really? You really believe Niki sneakers are worth hundreds of dollars when a longer lasting sneaker can be had for $20 at Walmart? And cut the socialist crap about "under paid workers." The most expensive turntables, sneaker, phones, etc. are all made by under paid workers in foreign countries. The average American wouldn't know real quality if it slapped them in the face.
Super interesting seeing the cartridge alignment tools and the azimuth setting and all that good stuff... Got to be better than printing a PDF protractor out and doing it by eye.
@Thomas Headley True, although my JVC ql a75 handles warped records like I've never seen before. Although I do have very very few that are even a little warped. But I've seen it in action on a record I used to have and it was ridiculous. Couldn't even tell
@Thomas Headley Definitely with tone arm mass and cart. Mid to low mass arm with my empire 600 lac is a perfect match. Since then I have screwed with the vta a bit. But I'm now back close to where I was. Long story. VTF and Anti Skate are spot on. Recently I'm having an issue with left and right channels but Honeslty, I think it's the way the records were cut on purpose or something. If I switch the rcas, it follows them so it's not the amp. Like I bought an lp, off suggestion for great sound, Wonderful sounds of female vocals. Son of a precher man for example. Right channel the drum, snare, etc cracks. Lefr channel, when moving with between left and right, with channel changing on amp, no crack, barely can hear the drum, muted. But then u hit mono. Everything is fine. Plus other songs are fine. Some others are also cut like this. Voices always centered no matter what. It's just some Instruments, particularly highs or bass crack, on the left isn't there. Or muted and thicker. I was driving myself fucking nuts. Now, I'm starting to think it's the cut on certain songs. Especially old ones.
Excellent choice with the Clearaudio, Matt! I’ve been using a highly upgraded and modded Technics SL-1200 M3D, but if I were to buy a new deck, it be that exact same turntable. Your guy at the hifi shop did an awesome job with the set up. You could’ve even made this a TT set up vid! I’m sure you’ll sleep better at night after knowing it’s set up properly and getting the VTA dialed in! I certainly do... You’ve just gotta keep going down that extremely deep rabbit hole, which you’re obviously stuck in by now. Now new phono pre, preamp, power amp, speakers, cables, etc., etc. 😜🤪
Congrats, excellent choice! I recently upgraded to The Classic by Pro-Ject & a vintage Marantz. Worth every penny! Nothing beats spinning vinyl through a really nice system. Now every time I put on a record it feels like a special occasion, hahaha.....
Too Many Records Exactly! It definitely ups the fun factor. How’s the table sounding now that you’re home? Took me awhile to really dial my sound in from my previous table. Also cartridge break-in and all that stuff. Now it just sounds like sweet heaven 😉
Congrats on your new turntable man. Clearaudio make some of the nicest TT's from the modern era. I have plenty of vintage TT's, some PL 570s and PL 530s and would love to have a modern turntable to be able to compare. I'll never sell my vintage gear. It's too beautiful and awesome to let go.
@bcdhifi Most people, including me, don't like feedback or other vibrations to be picked up by the cartridge, only the movement caused by vinyl grooves itself should be picked up. To prevent that, vibration dampening materials are mostly used, sometimes decoupling mechanisms are used, like various types of suspensions.
@bcdhifi Most people on UA-cam have over 40 years of experience, but that does not correlate to the reality. I agree that dampening is not always needed, but in 99,99% of all cases it is useful.
@bcdhifi Just like your comment, and everything else on UA-cam, I don't have any data to back up things in my comments. I just comment things that are the most reasonable or the most likely explanation of things. If you are looking for absolute truths with factual support, you are looking at the wrong place. Instead of UA-cam, try a bachelor/master on subjects like psychoaccoustics, analogue electronics or materials science.
1. Remove the platter. 2. Pretty much common-sense from there ... - ensure tonearm is secure. - keep approx flat. - support from movement - perhaps best in box and support box. (Note: you'll unlikely get it back in box as originally packed). - take the drive easy. (presuming it's not drone/ helicopter delivered 😉).
Congrats on the new table bud! I can tell you’re gonna get a ton of enjoyment out of this. The Clearaudio Concept is a great table, in a day and age when there are countless audiophile-tier tables on the market… Clearaudio’s offerings are some of the very select few I would ever recommend, or actually consider for myself. I think you can see (and hear!) first hand what their design philosophy is all about. In the future, a cart upgrade would be right up your alley (we’ve spoken about this quite a bit in the past hahah) and would be the next step to really taking things to a totally unbelievable level. Of course you’d have to go through the whole tonearm/cart setup procedure again, so... hope you took notes ;) Now with this new table you might find you’re hearing more into your records than ever before... and maybe also hearing the deficiencies in a lot of them. Seriously looking into preferred masterings of titles you’re interested in would be a good idea, and I’d love to see you go more in depth on this in future videos as well! Pro-rip: If you’re looking for a good setup/test/reference disc, the “Ultimate Test” LP your dealer used in the video is probably my favorite, but IF and only if you manage to get a well-pressed copy. I’ve seen several bad/off-center copies and I’ve gotten burned by this myself. Not fun, and totally defeats the purpose of owning such a disc. Picking out a “choice copy” might be something your dealer can help you out with. The old CBS laboratories professional discs are really good too, and sealed copies do turn up every now and then. Other Pro-tip: your new turntable also does 78 RPM. That’s a pretty big deal! Definitely do NOT attempt to play one with your regular stylus though (unless it is a modern microgroove/vinyl record cut at 78, that’s totally fine) Old 78s are standard groove as opposed to microgroove, and pressed on shellac… I know I’m probably preaching to the choir here, but just in case you didn’t know I’d figure I’d give you a heads up. Your arm doesn’t allow you to swap headshells (I prefer a dedicated cart for 78s on tonearms with an SME headshell mount) so in order to play them you’ll need to choose a cartridge that’ll ideally allow you to swap your stylus on the fly... and of course you’ll need a stylus appropriate for 78s to go with it. That limits your options a bit, but all stuff to consider for the future. If you ever get into it, you’re essentially opening up your collection to 60+ years of music you mostly wouldn’t have had access to before. Hope you have room for a few more shelves hahah. Anyway, congrats again bud. Make the most of it and enjoy!
Please do a follow-up on your thoughts on the new turntable. I want to pull the trigger on better quality gear but I am afraid I'll spend the dough and not hear a noticeable difference.
tube amps are pretty pecualir . it's interesting that they're manufacturing new ones again. for awhile I would say between 80s and 2000s it was not being manufactured much.
What’s a great cartridge upgrade for this turntable, as I purchased it 6 weeks ago with the recommended ClearAudio MM cartridge etc? I had a SOTA with a Dynavector 17D2, but it got damaged in shipping to my new home. The ClearAudio Concept is setup properly, but that cartridge is poor compared to even most good $100 MM’s I’d still not choose. The dealer recommended the cartridge highly. He was definitely wrong. I want a great properly compliant cartridge for this table, where instruments and voices sound natural, with high transparency, great imaging and an articulate, but fluid/natural sound. What would you recommend?
Clearaudio Concept comes along with a perfect aligned setup! No one has to "align" the weight or the vta. Clearaudio has got a gauge that they use on every Player! I would slap any salesman finger if he is touching a screwdriver...
Why is the tonearm different on my concept? Mine didn't come with the huge thumb screw. Is this upgraded? Also, how do you adjust the VTA with the biz cards?
@@TooManyRecords Who tf sets the speed without a record being played, there's the weight of the record and the drag from the stylus, minute but there.
You can and you don't have to spend that kind of money to get one. Buy vintage set it up properly get a good cartridge and you would save over 1k in comparison to this table. I have $300.00 invested in my table and thats with the $169.00 shure cartridge. It sounds fantastic!
Per the video today’s turntables are better built with newer better materials....well I will have to agree with them to a point! Case in point my 40 year old Sony PS-X7 with a carbon fiber that arm, resin type plinth called SBMC, and Sony’s Xtal speed control that reads the actual speed of the platter references it to a quartz crystal and adjusts the motor speed accordingly holding the record thus the music at perfect pitch. To cancel any acoustic feedback the heavy acoustically inert SBMC plinth sits on four gel filled feet for added feedback rejection. In manual operation the tonearm is fully disengaged from the auto mechanism. Finally how does it sound .....well good enough to hold its own to a lot of modern turntables that I have listen to including the Clear Audio in this video. Don’t get me wrong that’s a nice turntable but will it be around in 40 years? So don’t count vintage turntables out especially the TOTL models....Japanese engineering and manufacturing at its best which equals anything today! Put a modern cartridge on one of these and give it some TLC and your kids might still be making good music with it 40 years from now! Save your money and put it into better speakers which give you more music for your buck!
Pedro Perez I also have a PS-X600 in my stable of vintage turntables. Full automatic version of yours and definitely a step up in sound quality from my PS-X7!
Agreed. Sonys are some of my favorites. Ps-x 7s are nice. My pops has a couple. I have a jvc ql a75 myself and as long as the IC chips don't go bad, I'm not replacing it. Love it.
Congrats Matt! A little overly technical at times for me, but enjoyed seeing what $$$$ can get. Too bad that we could here any music (damn copyrights). Maybe a live stream with a little Richard Houghten in the background with the new setup?
That is cool turntable! Pioneer PL-518X might be better than my unreliable Pioneer PL-740. I end up decide to replaced my PL-740 for Marantz 6300, since they are well known and more adjustable feature.
What tonearm is this? Has the Concept had an upgrade? The anti skate adjustment used to be under the arm (and plinth), and a pain in the neck! Ok, it’s the Satisfy tonearm, and a major upgrade on standard. Perhaps you might like to point this out? Still a great setup guide.
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As someone who works at a Hi-Fi showroom, I can't thank you enough for making this video. THIS is what people getting into the hobby need to see. There's a reason that turntable costs $1,600, and you nailed it here. I also wanted to add that Musical Surroundings is a wonderful company to work with, and Garth is a great dude. He really taught me a lot about turntables, materials, and craftsmanship when I started in the industry, and I'm sure if you're in the Midwestern US, he'll send you straight to my store.
Yes! This is amazing, Eric. Thank you for this textual support.
Dunno bout everyone else but Matt and his new turntable is the best valentines couple of 2019 imo
#GOALS
What a beautiful table and what an amazing store. I went in there for a simple cartridge upgrade and Sean took the time to answer all my questions and make suggestions.
Sean is a saint, man. Real stand up dude.
I've had my pair of Technics 1200MK2's for 27 years with no problems or service and they still look and play like new. I paid $750 for the pair in 1993.
Always learn how to set up your own table. That's how you learn to care for and upgrade it.
exactly! VinylTV has given some very good tutorials on how to do just that.
Definitely
I'm planning on getting a Rega 3 soon. I assumed it would take an hour tops to set up assuming the cartridge is preinstalled. This video has me second guessing myself.
@@unklecorky2181 Time and patience in setting up you table is an absolute requisite. Michael Fremer has the definitive set up video, but it's a DVD and it'll cost.
100%%%%%
I basically had to set up mine from almost scratch and its given me such a stronger bond
I love the smell of brand new hi fi equipment.
Nice video, still happy with my old Technics 1600 mk2 , Pioneer 518 & Pioneer receiver Sx 780. They keep working for decades, lol
@14:58
I know Garth; met him at audio shows.
He is very knowledgeable and personable.
Big thumbs up on a very good video.
There are countless people that swear by digital, based on lousy sound coming from their records. If those folks would see this video, and understand that proper alignment is imperative to getting the magic out of the grooves, they might realize that their poor record playing experience is due to using a department store turntable and not setting up any adjustments.
This place is the real deal. I bought my Rega there last year. Incredible service. They even called me about a week later, just to check up on my turntable and how I was liking it.
Really, "the real deal" no it isn't, you should ALWAYS set the speed with a record being played, because of weight and drag. Hopefully he's learnt that by now.
Nice table. I just upgraded to a 2016 VPI Scout 1.1 from a vintage Thorens TD-160 MkII. Sounds great.
Don’t make the rabbit hole sound like a bad thing. My system brings me so much joy that I can’t imagine life without it. I’m firmly in the “highly efficient speakers driven by tubes” camp. Setup: VPI Prime w/ Dynavector 20x2H cart, Lounge Audio LCR MKIII and Counterpoint for phono stages, PrimaLuna preamp and monoblocks for amplification into a pair of modded/upgraded 1979 Klipsch Cornwall speakers. Dynamics that will scare the shit out of you and not at all showing any of the “shouty” and shrill characteristics people claim Klipsch display. You just GOTTA use tubes...EL34 preferred. I listen to too much heavy music to go the flea-watt SET route.
Eric Jenkins sounds like a very nice system! I’m a big fan of Klipsch speakers too, I’ve been thinking about building a set of La Scalla’s from scratch. My friends may think me crazy for spending so much on stereo, but that doesn’t stop them from coming by to listen to it every weekend!
Must sound good. Super dynamic!!!
Eric Jenkins I have a Primaluna Dialogue HP integrated amp and I’m taking delivery of some Harbeth super hl5 plus very soon. Looking at replacing my old Gyrodec with a VPI Prime next year. Can’t wait
Agreed! I have the poor man klpisch's KG4's, but with crossovers they sound great! Will be ordering tbe Crites tweeter soon.
Clearaudio makes great turntables. Great choise.
My Clearaudio Performance is some 10 years old and still as solid as when I first bought it.
The Performance also has a magnetic bearing for the platter. It 'floats' and takes forever to come to a full stop after giving it a push.
Damn... I knew I had forgotten something! I wanted a magnetic bearing, too... but then I made an impulse buy going by the looks only, as with all my audio stuff :P
Baerchenization You bought a turntable on impulse? Wow. Is it any good? 😀
@@theaudiophilebarista2424 I don't know! I still need to buy a tonearm and cart on impulse :) Also, it does not have a lid/cover, which doesn't go well with our cat... need to find a matching cover on impulse first ;)
@@Baerchenization Well, I wish you some impulsive days then. Have fun
Loved this video. Hey please don't listen to the naysayers. I've loved audio for 45 years now, if you're happy with your new gear, then I say wonderful! Make choice, spin up, arm down, sit back, tune out life and relax. Hundreds of people, musicians, recording engineers, producers, audio engineers, assemblers, even packing and shipping people, have devoted their life so you can enjoy 35-40 minutes of their soul. Peace my brother man, now stop reading this and get back to the tunes!
That Norah Jones LP he tested your turntable with looked warped. Nice purchase
Clearaudio tables are excellent pieces of kit, congrats! I would have gone with a VPI myself, but different strokes for different folks.
My guy at the local audio shop likened VPI to a Ford Mustang and ClearAudio to a refined German auto. So, as you said “different strokes … “
VPI owner here…and it’s amazing. Absolutely no urge to upgrade after 5 years.
Dude Congrats !! Beautiful Turntable for sure. Enjoy it brother!
The same people who scoff at investing in quality equipment at a store like this are the same ones who would have bought a $99 BIC table back in the 70s saying $399 was crazy for a Techniques SL 1200. The BICs are in the dumpster and check the price of a vintage 1200. There’s a reason tables like this cost more and people are willing to pay the price. All of my equipment is worth (almost) as much now or worth more than when I purchased it. Had to wait many times to afford what I wanted. But, you’ll never regret buying quality gear.
I've had my pair of 1200MK2's for 27 years with no problems or service and they still look and play like new.
WOW, what an amazing service!. When I purchased my Concept no one check or set up anything!...they just hand me a box and that was it.
A properly restored 518 is all the turntable anyone needs. My restored pl41 is spot on. No need for bling.
The never ending quest, good luck to you all.
Good choice on the Clearaudio. IMO, their arms are really hard to beat at their price point. I like their use of magnets and using them for anti-skate is far cleaner than a fishing weight that's used on some higher end designs.
It’s an extremely impressive piece, and after seeing Sean put it all together like this, it’s even more so.
yeah good points
@@TooManyRecords so Antiskate is not adjusted from the bottom of the table?
Good job here, the most important part is establishing a relationship with a local dealer, there is simply nothing like it. Enjoy your new table and now you can attest to the fact that there is a difference in turntables.
Yes it's always nice to have weed too.
Yes, you can start the 'relationship' by telling him you set the speed with a record and the arm in play, ffs.🤷🏻♂️
"as long as it's not Mumford and Sons I'm fine" lmao and couldn't agree more
The reflection of the fan or whatever it might be, drove me crazy :D
same
i have the same TT, everything is fine until you need to set the antiskating! Can you show how to do that in a Concept?
How do you get it home without messing up all the settings?
Sick man!
Homie hooked you up, he tweaked that turntable hella clean. Wish I had a store close to me with this type of service, especially when dropping this kind of cash on a record player.
Yeah he did a BANG UP job. But that's what they do. They're professionals. Best of the best.
Nice job .. great questions!
Great choice for a turntable. I have had my Concept turntable for about 7 years now and I love it. No issues so far. The only maintenance so far was to lubricate the spindle with the supplied lubricant. The tone arm on yours looks slightly different than mine. There is no visible anti-skate adjustment on my tone arm (there is a way to adjust the anti-skate but is not easy). So far I haven't seen the need to play with the factory set skating adjustment. Also when I bought my turntable it came factory set for the included MM cartridge (basically plug and play).
One of the features that attracted me to this turntable was the magnetic bearing in the tone arm. It gives great isolation between the arm and the table. What impressed me when I listened to it at the show-room was how quiet it was between passages on an LP (I heard it described as a "black background" by some reviewers which perfectly describes the lack of rumble and surface noise).
9:51 that record is warp as hell!
Very nice video!
Brian and his crew at Audio Element are first class.
They carry a very good selection at the lower end of the high end, up through the extreme high end.
Every major city needs people like that. I would totally go for that service.
Good for you. Always exciting to upgrade equipment. Hope you enjoy. Remember we never get done upgrading.
I've owned thousands of vinyl records and had dozens of turntables in my life and I didn't know any of this stuff. Holy smokes!!!
The best part about buying decent equipment is when you’re in the mood for an upgrade there are
people more than willing to pay
good money for your used stuff.
If you’re lucky like I have been you can sell it for what you paid 10-20 years down the road. Some stuff
becomes a classic that guys have
a hard time to find. Those are the units no one wants to part with.
Good equipment will last a life time. I’ve had my table over 35 years like most of my other stuff.
Best money spent by far. 😎
Looking at that same table. Great video!
Cool video .Gonna buy mine tomorrow. Excited af.
Thank God you finally upgraded to a really nice turntable! Congrats!
Thanks Brent!
That looks really clean! I finally upgraded to my Mcintosh greeen ufo saucer and havent looked back!
I use this video to fall asleep because it's so relaxing.
I use it for a good laugh watching someone setting the speed of a turntable without a record being played.😂😂
So much for Clearaudio saying the Concept is a plug and play turntable.
Going to purchcase my first turntable within the next weeks. I am a little bit worried for the amount of adjusments and hope that my dealer is as competent as yours in this video. Anyways, was a great pleasure to see the adjustment.
What are you purchasing?
@@TooManyRecords Hey, I am considering either the Rega Planar 3, the MoFi StudioDeck Plus or the Cambridge Audio Alva TT (as an all-in-one alternative). In the next weeks I will go to a dealer for a test listening and make the decision on this basis. I hope you still have a lot of fun with your turntable and have fun with your records :)
well-deserved upgrade! congrats
Thank you
I looked at the Conceot really hard. Ended up getting the technics 1200GR. I gotta have a dustcover and I got a ortofon 2m bronze cartridge. Germans have excellent engineering. I really like the looks of thd Clearaudio Concept black. I see down in the comment section the audio technica crowd is around. They love substandard Chinese made products. Low cost over quality is all they know.
This is Brian Kim Keenan. I've been an audiophile for 50 years. As a technician and audio broker I have owned and serviced practically every type of component available. In looking back at basic things I believe are essential to audio enjoyment, Number 1 is a turntable that has anti skate 2. It must have a dust cover. 3 If P- mount cartridges were more sensitive, I'd only have a Linear tracking unit. 4. Great non Bose and non reflecting speakers. 5. A Remote Control, at least to control
volume and Mute. 6. An elliptical stylus, tracking at 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 grams. This sounds better and preserves records. I got tired of jumping out of my chair to control volume and the plastic sheet I had to put over my turntable after use to avoid dust looked awful. I also hated my records wearing down due to no anti skate and heavy tracking forces. What? No Dust Cover? For How Much? Phooey!
Are you gonna make another video about what your new player is like now that it's home?
Yes, after I spend some solid time with it!
I thought mine $300 is pretty good and I know a lot about turntable, OH BOI THIS IS THICC! now I know why hifi/great digital music is so much easier than CD or vinyl, but it also makes me appreciate the true audiophile and good turntables/LP culture more. Great video!
Turntable goals.
Congratulations I also like clear audio turntables very well-built the MC would have been the better choice but that's definitely something you need to do in the near future get a nice low output moving coil but congratulations on the Step Up from the mid fi to hi-fi looking forward to your next video where you let us know how much more you enjoy your music and what are the difference is you here
Me too :)
Great video! I love Audio Element! I couldn’t help but notice your record label and record store are in Oregon. Audio Element is a loooong drive from Oregon. Did you relocate from Pasadena to Oregon after this video or do you also have a store in Los Angeles? Great channel content!
NYC -> LA -> NYC -> Portland -- crazy decade :P
Congratulations on your upgrade buddy!👍👍
Thank you my man!
Happy for you man, that turntable is GORGEOUS
It really is :)
Wow that was so extremely detailed. Awesome video and awesome turntable.
Thank you! They really do pay great attention to detail, we just captured it :)
The video on how to identify a quality pressing when? You made a reference to it and I'm hyped
Soon!! Between this and TMR Fest I've been so slammed.
awesome video
I like the turntable and how the shop associate explained a lot of good details.
10:39 too bad that new pressings has a slight gentle warp. I wonder how that effects the tracking.
It's only a slight visual warp. We noticed it, and they concurred that it wouldn't cause any issues. They know better than me :P
Too Many Records okay that's good, I figured that. most times people don't seem to be concerned about it with new heavier records.
I have two questions about the turn table. Is it belt driven and does it require a phono input? I imagine the answer is yes to both questions but I thought to ask now.
@@mercurialmagictrees It is belt driven, unlike my last table which is a direct drive. As for the phono question, I'm not quite sure. It doesn't have any sort of build in preamp as far as I know. Mine's connected to the Pioneer receiver.
Too Many Records allright swell thanks for posting videos and commenting. enjoy!
In high end audio circles, this is an entry level turntable. Hardly the end all, best ever. But, it’s a great step above all the budget record players out there. The fact is, most people are not that concerned with sound quality. And many, just can’t hear it. The pursuit of higher resolution is certainly not for everyone, but don’t knock what you don’t understand. Most people who knock high end audio have never actually heard a system properly set up, people are not buying ten thousand dollar amps or speakers or record players because they are fooling themselves, there are real differences, and maybe some people don’t have the ears for it? Some spend their money on race cars, some on boats, some on alcohol, so calling someone who enjoys good stereo crazy is certainly uncalled for.
Whacha doing with your old table?
Great customer service!
Congrats brotha on the new TT...... looking forward to see episodes with the new set up. cheers \,,/ JC/Miami
Obviously a top of the line turntable, but for the money I'll still take my $250 Fluance RT 81. I love the sound and definitely prefer the beautiful walnut finish as opposed to the sterile look of this model. I hope your turntable gives you a lifetime of great listening. As an old guy, it's great to see so many young people getting into vinyl.
At 1,600 it's top of the line. At that price it's over priced so anything more expensive would be ridiculous. If $1,600 is "entry level"...how stupid can some buyers be?
Not true. You really believe the i phone should cost $1,000? Really? You really believe Niki sneakers are worth hundreds of dollars when a longer lasting sneaker can be had for $20 at Walmart? And cut the socialist crap about "under paid workers." The most expensive turntables, sneaker, phones, etc. are all made by under paid workers in foreign countries. The average American wouldn't know real quality if it slapped them in the face.
AGREED! Have a great day.
Where can I find this same turntable setup for sale? Audio Elements website doesn't list it.
You can grab it here: www.needledoctor.com/Clearaudio-Concept-Turntable
@@TooManyRecords That has a different tonearm
@@danw7574 hmmm.. I would contact Musical Surroundings and see if they can point you in the right direction
Super interesting seeing the cartridge alignment tools and the azimuth setting and all that good stuff... Got to be better than printing a PDF protractor out and doing it by eye.
Just a little :P
not sure how you can accurately set vta with a record that warped! yikes.
@Thomas Headley True, although my JVC ql a75 handles warped records like I've never seen before. Although I do have very very few that are even a little warped. But I've seen it in action on a record I used to have and it was ridiculous. Couldn't even tell
@Thomas Headley Definitely with tone arm mass and cart. Mid to low mass arm with my empire 600 lac is a perfect match.
Since then I have screwed with the vta a bit. But I'm now back close to where I was. Long story.
VTF and Anti Skate are spot on.
Recently I'm having an issue with left and right channels but Honeslty, I think it's the way the records were cut on purpose or something. If I switch the rcas, it follows them so it's not the amp.
Like I bought an lp, off suggestion for great sound, Wonderful sounds of female vocals. Son of a precher man for example.
Right channel the drum, snare, etc cracks. Lefr channel, when moving with between left and right, with channel changing on amp, no crack, barely can hear the drum, muted. But then u hit mono. Everything is fine. Plus other songs are fine. Some others are also cut like this. Voices always centered no matter what.
It's just some Instruments, particularly highs or bass crack, on the left isn't there. Or muted and thicker. I was driving myself fucking nuts. Now, I'm starting to think it's the cut on certain songs. Especially old ones.
It is so warped lmao
Exactly!!! Snake oil salesman.
And he's the guy that suckered you into spending $1,600 on a turntable
Excellent choice with the Clearaudio, Matt! I’ve been using a highly upgraded and modded Technics SL-1200 M3D, but if I were to buy a new deck, it be that exact same turntable. Your guy at the hifi shop did an awesome job with the set up. You could’ve even made this a TT set up vid! I’m sure you’ll sleep better at night after knowing it’s set up properly and getting the VTA dialed in! I certainly do...
You’ve just gotta keep going down that extremely deep rabbit hole, which you’re obviously stuck in by now. Now new phono pre, preamp, power amp, speakers, cables, etc., etc. 😜🤪
So Antiskate in this table is not done from the bottom of the table as one review said?
The concept is a great turntable. I have one as my mono deck with ortofon quintet mono cart. Sounds very good. Enjoy.
Can’t wait for the follow up speaker video 😉
Mathew Parsons eventually my friend. Gotta spend some time with this first. I’m so happy why rush it all
What is a sort of magnetic force?
Super video! I’ve been looking at one of these! Congrats
Take the plunge!! I’ll do another video after I spend some more time with it :)
I hope to do so soon.. interested in your thoughts . Take care
I would like to see how it matches up to my Kenwood KD990
I'd put my Crosley suitcase tt up against your garbage rig any day. 😎
@@skunk12 Hey MUAMUA
Congrats, excellent choice! I recently upgraded to The Classic by Pro-Ject & a vintage Marantz. Worth every penny! Nothing beats spinning vinyl through a really nice system. Now every time I put on a record it feels like a special occasion, hahaha.....
Seriously! I’ve spun maybe... 6 records since I got it and each one felt like the first time I ever spun a record. It’s magic.
Too Many Records Exactly! It definitely ups the fun factor. How’s the table sounding now that you’re home? Took me awhile to really dial my sound in from my previous table. Also cartridge break-in and all that stuff. Now it just sounds like sweet heaven 😉
Jeffrey Woodke immediately sounded amazing.
Ques.. if you were to replace this cartridge (when it wore out) with the same cartridge would all this calibration be needed again?
Cool to see Diego Luna working for a high end audio store. He's one of the peeps!
Just wondering if you ever have any time to listen to Records?
The pretension level is off the scale! 😜
@bert smith Carbon fiber: The new miracle material, just like plastic was. :) BTW, my tonearm on my turntable is carbon fiber and was made in 1977.
Congrats on your new turntable man. Clearaudio make some of the nicest TT's from the modern era. I have plenty of vintage TT's, some PL 570s and PL 530s and would love to have a modern turntable to be able to compare. I'll never sell my vintage gear. It's too beautiful and awesome to let go.
How is the platter of this turntable dampened?
I don't see any vibration dampening material on the back.
@bcdhifi Most people, including me, don't like feedback or other vibrations to be picked up by the cartridge, only the movement caused by vinyl grooves itself should be picked up.
To prevent that, vibration dampening materials are mostly used, sometimes decoupling mechanisms are used, like various types of suspensions.
@bcdhifi Most people on UA-cam have over 40 years of experience, but that does not correlate to the reality.
I agree that dampening is not always needed, but in 99,99% of all cases it is useful.
@bcdhifi Just like your comment, and everything else on UA-cam, I don't have any data to back up things in my comments.
I just comment things that are the most reasonable or the most likely explanation of things.
If you are looking for absolute truths with factual support, you are looking at the wrong place.
Instead of UA-cam, try a bachelor/master on subjects like psychoaccoustics, analogue electronics or materials science.
Matt, how did you take it home so it didn't get unbalanced with the bumps of the road?
With this table, once you set it up, it stays because of the type of parts. It's magical.
Wow. That is truly fantastic.
1. Remove the platter.
2. Pretty much common-sense from there ...
- ensure tonearm is secure.
- keep approx flat.
- support from movement - perhaps best in box and support box. (Note: you'll unlikely get it back in box as originally packed).
- take the drive easy. (presuming it's not drone/ helicopter delivered 😉).
Congrats on the new table bud! I can tell you’re gonna get a ton of enjoyment out of this. The Clearaudio Concept is a great table, in a day and age when there are countless audiophile-tier tables on the market… Clearaudio’s offerings are some of the very select few I would ever recommend, or actually consider for myself. I think you can see (and hear!) first hand what their design philosophy is all about.
In the future, a cart upgrade would be right up your alley (we’ve spoken about this quite a bit in the past hahah) and would be the next step to really taking things to a totally unbelievable level. Of course you’d have to go through the whole tonearm/cart setup procedure again, so... hope you took notes ;)
Now with this new table you might find you’re hearing more into your records than ever before... and maybe also hearing the deficiencies in a lot of them. Seriously looking into preferred masterings of titles you’re interested in would be a good idea, and I’d love to see you go more in depth on this in future videos as well!
Pro-rip: If you’re looking for a good setup/test/reference disc, the “Ultimate Test” LP your dealer used in the video is probably my favorite, but IF and only if you manage to get a well-pressed copy. I’ve seen several bad/off-center copies and I’ve gotten burned by this myself. Not fun, and totally defeats the purpose of owning such a disc. Picking out a “choice copy” might be something your dealer can help you out with. The old CBS laboratories professional discs are really good too, and sealed copies do turn up every now and then.
Other Pro-tip: your new turntable also does 78 RPM. That’s a pretty big deal! Definitely do NOT attempt to play one with your regular stylus though (unless it is a modern microgroove/vinyl record cut at 78, that’s totally fine)
Old 78s are standard groove as opposed to microgroove, and pressed on shellac… I know I’m probably preaching to the choir here, but just in case you didn’t know I’d figure I’d give you a heads up.
Your arm doesn’t allow you to swap headshells (I prefer a dedicated cart for 78s on tonearms with an SME headshell mount) so in order to play them you’ll need to choose a cartridge that’ll ideally allow you to swap your stylus on the fly... and of course you’ll need a stylus appropriate for 78s to go with it. That limits your options a bit, but all stuff to consider for the future. If you ever get into it, you’re essentially opening up your collection to 60+ years of music you mostly wouldn’t have had access to before. Hope you have room for a few more shelves hahah.
Anyway, congrats again bud. Make the most of it and enjoy!
This is just the best comment. Thank you Rom! I'm sure I'll have questions for you down the road ;)
Too Many Records hahah I welcome them, always glad to help out! Anytime dude.
Excellent video.
What cartridge are you using?
The stock MM it comes with.
@@TooManyRecords Any idea what that cartridge is? That cartridge is over 2 years old now and maybe time to upgrade....
Please do a follow-up on your thoughts on the new turntable. I want to pull the trigger on better quality gear but I am afraid I'll spend the dough and not hear a noticeable difference.
See, I was slightly skeptical as well. Go spend some time at your local hifi store (reach out to Garth!) and listen to equipment there.
I'll do that. Thanks.
Now comes tube amps and better speakers.
And down the rabbit hole I go.
At that point you need a dedicated music room and probably a different house to boot. In for a penny out for a pound as they say.
tube amps are pretty pecualir . it's interesting that they're manufacturing new ones again. for awhile I would say between 80s and 2000s it was not being manufactured much.
Do it Matt... DO IT!!!
Watch out for classic cassette decks, you`ll be amazed at the sound some can produce/reproduce.
On this note, you should do a video overview of expensive top-shelf turntables that we can all aspire to buy, but in no way could justify doing so.
What’s a great cartridge upgrade for this turntable, as I purchased it 6 weeks ago with the recommended ClearAudio MM cartridge etc? I had a SOTA with a Dynavector 17D2, but it got damaged in shipping to my new home. The ClearAudio Concept is setup properly, but that cartridge is poor compared to even most good $100 MM’s I’d still not choose. The dealer recommended the cartridge highly. He was definitely wrong. I want a great properly compliant cartridge for this table, where instruments and voices sound natural, with high transparency, great imaging and an articulate, but fluid/natural sound. What would you recommend?
Honestly, I'm not sure, I haven't upgraded mine and I'm really enjoying it as is..
Clearaudio Concept comes along with a perfect aligned setup! No one has to "align" the weight or the vta. Clearaudio has got a gauge that they use on every Player! I would slap any salesman finger if he is touching a screwdriver...
Not to mention setting the speed without the weight of the record and tone arm is laughable.
$1600 for a platter that spins clock-wise.
Nice!
There’s a few more things to it
I've been using Clearaudio for 10 years. Their tonearms do an excellent job tracking poorly pressed LP's (i.e. warped or out of round).
Why is the tonearm different on my concept? Mine didn't come with the huge thumb screw. Is this upgraded? Also, how do you adjust the VTA with the biz cards?
I didn't know this was a thing! Awesome to see it put together from the ground up. Thanks for sharing :)
It’s a beast. In the best way.
@@TooManyRecords Who tf sets the speed without a record being played, there's the weight of the record and the drag from the stylus, minute but there.
Congratulations! I can't imagine spending that much money on something other than student loans. I hope one day to get a great table as well!
You can and you don't have to spend that kind of money to get one. Buy vintage set it up properly get a good cartridge and you would save over 1k in comparison to this table. I have $300.00 invested in my table and thats with the $169.00 shure cartridge. It sounds fantastic!
there's a huge difference between the Satisfy BLACK vs the CARBON? I prefer by design the BLACK but the CARBON cost more, so why is better?
Per the video today’s turntables are better built with newer better materials....well I will have to agree with them to a point! Case in point my 40 year old Sony PS-X7 with a carbon fiber that arm, resin type plinth called SBMC, and Sony’s Xtal speed control that reads the actual speed of the platter references it to a quartz crystal and adjusts the motor speed accordingly holding the record thus the music at perfect pitch. To cancel any acoustic feedback the heavy acoustically inert SBMC plinth sits on four gel filled feet for added feedback rejection. In manual operation the tonearm is fully disengaged from the auto mechanism. Finally how does it sound .....well good enough to hold its own to a lot of modern turntables that I have listen to including the Clear Audio in this video. Don’t get me wrong that’s a nice turntable but will it be around in 40 years? So don’t count vintage turntables out especially the TOTL models....Japanese engineering and manufacturing at its best which equals anything today! Put a modern cartridge on one of these and give it some TLC and your kids might still be making good music with it 40 years from now! Save your money and put it into better speakers which give you more music for your buck!
K Koller Agreed ! My Sony PS-X500 is such a joy. That bio trace arm is such a masterpiece. 💪🏽
Pedro Perez I also have a PS-X600 in my stable of vintage turntables. Full automatic version of yours and definitely a step up in sound quality from my PS-X7!
Re new vs old - have you heard a well cared for Garrard 301/401?!
Agreed. Sonys are some of my favorites. Ps-x 7s are nice. My pops has a couple. I have a jvc ql a75 myself and as long as the IC chips don't go bad, I'm not replacing it. Love it.
@@kkoller8952 U like it more huh? I gotta check on out. Looking for a second TT. I'm familiar with the 7s. I'll have to look into the 600. Thanks
does anyone know where I can find that human head, headphone holder?
A wig or beauty supply store.
Congrats Matt! A little overly technical at times for me, but enjoyed seeing what $$$$ can get. Too bad that we could here any music (damn copyrights). Maybe a live stream with a little Richard Houghten in the background with the new setup?
Livestream today at 5:30 PM PST!
That is cool turntable! Pioneer PL-518X might be better than my unreliable Pioneer PL-740. I end up decide to replaced my PL-740 for Marantz 6300, since they are well known and more adjustable feature.
Happy listening man! Not my kind of TT but I appreciate the detailed setup they did!
Can't decide between the Concept or Planar 6.
What tonearm is this? Has the Concept had an upgrade? The anti skate adjustment used to be under the arm (and plinth), and a pain in the neck!
Ok, it’s the Satisfy tonearm, and a major upgrade on standard. Perhaps you might like to point this out?
Still a great setup guide.