Lyra and OMA

You probably know that Lyra was way backlogged on their orders last year. I purchsed my Kleos in March of 2022 and finally received it eight months later. If you’re patient it’s probably worth the wait. Takes a bit of time to break in as well once you start using it. Raul though maybe fifty hours if I remember and his estimate seems to be on the money. Nice cart though, and I’m glad to have it now that the wait and anxiety of not knowing when, and if, it might ever arrive is over.

You might check in with the new US distributor to get an idea of how long they are backed up on their deliveries from Japan. My dealer thought there mght be a three month, rather than than an eight month wait as it turned out. If you’re lucky a dealer might have one on hand, which would be ideal. Good luck with your purchase.

Mike

@michaellent I know you want to know why. Its a big topic. Lets just say that in this case many decades of experience are speaking :)

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@noromance 

Project table sounds like a weak link.

+1 from personal experience with an RPM 10 Carbon

@michaellent , Your tonearm will work fine with the Kleos. The beauty of a light arm is that you can always add mass. With a heavy arm it is difficult to take it away. Soundsmith makes a lovely set of graded cartridge screws in four different weights. By the way your Voice is a fine cartridge. If you are looking for a large improvement is sound you might be disappointed and I say this as a Lyra Owner. The Lyra Atlas Lambda SL may be the finest cartridge I have ever owned. The Voice is a hugely better value and not that far off. For someone who is a rock and loud jazz fan The Voice may even be better. 

There are a few things you can do that will definitely improve your sound. The first is a reflex record clamp. My two favorites are the JA Michell for value and the Basis for absolute best. There is also The Sota Reflex clamp. DO NOT buy the Nobsound it is absolute JUNK! The internal collet is cheap aluminum and will crack and break after so many cycles. What you will notice is better pitch stability as these clamps flex the record into the platter and remove minor warps. Only vacuum clamping is better. Next is get a better isolation platform. The one that comes with your turntable has opposing magnet feet which might help isolate from high frequency noise but never from environmental rumble. A isolation suspension has to have a resonance frequency of between 1 and 3 hertz. The MinusK is the best. There are a few less expensive platforms that might work but I have no experience with them. The Suspension has to be tuned to the weight of the turntable. If the manufacturer does not issue different units matching the turntables weight, stay away. This will give you blacker backgrounds and isolate you from such things as foot fall skipping. Lastly is have a dust cover made you can use during play. A dust cover is only a problem if it is connected directly to the turntable chassis. If it is not it is actually a benefit as it further isolates the cartridge from airborne vibration, the stuff you are listening to! It also keeps things cleaner. Turntables and tonearms do not like dust.

Thanks to jcarr of Lyra for interesting information.

He wrote: "The Lyras will work OK in tonearms of 10~12g eff. mass (for example SME Type V, Technics SL-1200G), but will sound progressively better as the effective mass increases. Normally I’d suggest 16~18g as the sweet spot"

I run a Lyra Atlas (standard high output version) on a SME V arm. Should I add mass - even 6 g - to the arm?

Thanks for info!