Vinyl Heaven : Lyra Atlas on a Durand Talea 2


I am not usually given to expletives but WOW....this is sooo effing good I can't believe it. The Atlas has less than 6 hours on it.The Atlas replaced a Titan i and initially, I was a wee bit underwhelmed, as the cart loading was at 100 ohms,the same as the Titan. Switching to a 1000 ohmn loading was a revelation.The 1000 ohmn loading resistor on my Nagra VPS phono will presumably require some break in.
My quick and evolving first impressuions of the Atlas vs the Titan i : the Atlas does everything the Titan i does, except it does it a whole lot better. The traditional Lyra agility and speed( the Atlas is my 4th Lyra after the Helikon, Skala and Titan i)is there in loads except there is now an organic wholeness to the music with a longer sustain and decay of notes. In every respect, IMHO, the Atlas is way way better than my previous favorite cart, the Transfiguration Orpheus L.There is so much more detail being extracted from the grooves. Does the Atlas make all recordings sound good ?Far from it. It made me realise how crappy the Pink Floyd reissue of WYWH is.
Should point out that at the time the Atlas joined the party, the TT,a TW AC 1, also benefited from a major upgrade with the Black Night PSU and 3 motor unit.
If you ever contemplate an upgrade to the best, that the state of the art has to offer,you will do yourself a favor by auditioning the Atlas and the Durand Talea 2.
I have no relationship with any manufacturer.
Cheers
Pradeep

128x128sunnyboy1956

Showing 12 responses by sunnyboy1956

Actusreus
It's not even close to 20k, way below thanks to a competitive trade in package in Singapore .Thankfully , I don't believe that more $$ equals better sound.
Now for that crappy bit. I thought I may have let my exuberance get the better of me. I revisited side 2 of the lp twice. IMHO the sparkle is missing. The music, particularly the vocals ,are overly compressed. The sound is congested , almost congealed . This is astonishing music, probably the best rock ever recorded, IME. The last track on side 2, Shine On Your Crazy Diamond, is a pain. This is music i have loved and cherished for 30 yrs or more. The cd is way superior. Just my 2 bits. YMMV.
From everything i have read I am sure that the Telos is a better arm. But at this level, I suspect, the improvements are miniscule. Telos owners will rightly disagree .
Jfrech
The Triplanar was my original arm and the Talea was intended as a second arm. I found the Talea to be way superior to the Triplanar and ended up trading it in for a motor and PSU upgrade for the TT.
Peterrayer
Couldn't agree more with your approach. That's the sensible way to go. It was not feasible for me as I had traded in the original TW PSU and motor. I did , however, spin a few lps with the Titan I on the Talea I before mounting the Atlas. I played the same lps( Patrica Barber- Nightclub, Shelby Lynn, etc) with the new cart and wow couldn't believe the improvement. There was nothing amiss earlier except now there is so much more detail and musical enjoyment. I have had the Talea in my system for 18 months. All that has changed is the cart and an improved motor and PSU for the TT.
Cheers
Mike
You are obviously right about the Telos. My intent was not to belittle a great arm, but a narrow and somewhat theoretical curiosity :if this is soo good,can it /does it get any better than this? Fortunately I may never find out as I don't have enough real estate on my wall mounted TT rack to accommodate a 12" arm.
Goldeneraguy
My point precisely. Straight out of the box the Atlas is a superior cart to the Titan i.
A slight digression on the Floyd reissues: The Wall is really good
Cheers
Pradeep
Mike
You are obviously right about the Telos. My intent was not to belittle a great arm, but a narrow and somewhat theoretical curiosity :if this is soo good,can it /does it get any better than this? Fortunately I may never find out as I don't have enough real estate on my wall mounted TT rack to accommodate a 12" arm.
Goldeneraguy
My point precisely. Straight out of the box the Atlas is a superior cart to the Titan i.
A slight digression on the Floyd reissues: The Wall is really good
Cheers
Pradeep
I don't know how I ended up making the same post twice! Sorry.
Mike
We may have a common friend/ acquaintance who shuttles between Singapore and Seattle and helped me with the Atlas. Small world!
The Atlas continues to mesmerise ....Happy days are here.
Thanks to all Agoners for the positive support and encouragement .
Cheers
Pradeep
Dgad
Am grateful to you and Dev for highlighting the sonic virtues of the BN PSU/motor upgrade.You were spot on regarding a quieter background. In a sense it reminds me of my battery driven Sutherland Phd which i had years ago. I suspect if the mains supply is less than optimal(which is defintely true in my part of the world) the greater the discernible impact of the BN upgrade.
You owe yourself a listen to the Atlas and methinks you will come away bewitched!
Smoffat
ROI in high end audio, even sonically speaking,IMHO,is a bit of an oxymoron.There are many here on Agon who have more wisdom/experience to comment.Unless you are clear what you are looking for, I suspect the comments of others may be of limited value.Speaking of carts, would urge you to audition both the Atlas and the Ortofon Anna and go with whatever rocks your sonic boat.
njoy
Stringreen
I have no experience of the Etna but friends who rave about it.
Cheers
Pradeep
I am revisiting this thread to retract some inelegant words I used to describe the reissue WYWH lp. With a Hydra Triton( still breaking in with less than 40 hrs on it) replacing a Hydra VRay power conditioner, the Pink Floyd album is ,IMHO quite a musical treat with the compression/congestion reduced to a point I can happily live with.
Cheers
Pradeep
Hi John
Congrats on your Atlas. I have been using the tube gain on the Nagra for many years now after you suggested the possibility.I have alternated between 470 ohm and 300 ohm but honestly its not a day and night difference or a clear preference either way. Each loading card , I suspect requires some break in. For the present am sticking to 470 ohms . I will switch to the 300 ohm at some point. There are way too many system dependent variables.
THe reviews of the Atlas eg Tone Audio suggest a 1k loading, if I am not mistaken.
The 1k card did not work for me.
This a great cart and I am sure you are going to have a ball.
I heard the Rockport Aviors in Singapore a couple days back and was mighty impressed.
Cheers
Pradeep
John
Must be old age or dementia setting in ! I have done a fair bit of to and fro between the 300, 470 and 1k loadings and the 1k is my preferred setting. Sorry for the confusion.
Cheers
Pradeep
Hi Jean Marc
I have two TTs, a Garrard 401, with a 12" Ortofon R-309D arm and a Lyra Atlas that plugs into an Ortofon 80SE SUT and then into the MM input of a Nagra VPS phono. The other TT is a TW AC upgraded to BN status with a Talea 2 arm and a Transfiguration Proteus cart. This plugs into the MC input of the Nagra phono. All phono cables are Audience AU 24 SE except the cable on the Ortofon arm that is the stock el Cheapo cable which I am trying to upgrade.
Originally the Atlas was mounted on the Talea 2 but this is no longer feasible .
I hope I have responded to your queries. Do PM if you want more details.
Have a great weekend
Pradeep
Ebn and Mapman
Gentlemen, its the opposite of what you infer. The Atlas mounted on a Garrard 401 with a 12' Ortofon arm is clearly superior to the TW rig with the Talea.
NJoy
Pradeep