Audiophilepure

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“I’m a little in awe of VPI’s Prime Signature. Each time I approach it, I see it again as if for the first time and give a little start. It’s not the most beautiful turntable out there. It’s not the biggest, and it’s certainly not the most complicated. But all that said, the Prime Signature radiates competence. Although it’s just this side of being overbuilt, there’s nothing extraneous — no frippery, nothing that doesn’t need to be there. Instead, it’s well engineered and practical in every aspect of its design and functionality. At $6000, it’s also a bargain.

My own Pro-Ject RPM 10 Carbon, descended from a long line of other RPMs before it, is also a bargain ($3499). Here in my room I have two smoking-deal turntables at two different price points. They’re so wildly different in construction, form, and design that it’s nearly impossible to find similarities between the two. The Pro-Ject radiates elegance and slickness of manufacture. In contrast to the VPI’s brute-force approach, it’s better finished, and packed full of technical innovation. That said, the JMW 10 3D tonearm is, far and away, superior to my RPM 10 Carbon’s 10cc Evolution tonearm in its adjustability.”

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“Yes, you can get really good analog sound out of VPI’s much less expensive alternatives, as well as out of many of its competitors. To go back to a point I made earlier, however, no real audiophile can resist exploring the limits of a turntable like the Avenger Reference if he has the resources to buy one. It really is a great unit, and if you are going to buy a top cartridge and phono preamp, you are going to need a turntable-tonearm combination of this quality to match them.

I also have to say in defense of the Avenger’s price that it is a practical exercise in technology and physics. There are some “extreme” turntable designs which seem to be more exercises in high tech than practical units. Don’t get me wrong, some much higher ne plus ultra competitors are superb, but some aren’t. I’d wanted to be sure I could hear real differences—if any—before I paid more and not simply judge by the price tag. I’d also wanted to ensure what I bought was built to last. You can always pay more, but getting more over time can be a different thing.”