Hana Umami Black

@dwette Thanks for the insight. 

I've seen the black/piano Master and it does look cool.

My local dealer has a Statement in the showroom. It redefines imposing.

Did you sell/trade the Innovation for the Master or buy the upgrade kit?  

@macg19 I was going to buy the field upgrade kit (about $20k) but my dealer made me a great trade-in offer for my Innovation Wood and I got a completely new Master Innovation. The tonearms weren't part of the deal. I kept the two I already had and bought a third arm (since the MI supports 3 tonearms).

This appears to be the cantilever part they’re using (includes MR stylus), from Orbray / Namiki:
https://orbray.com/en/product/jewel/product/shop_diamond_microridge.html

Costs $2500 for 1 pc, but the price comes down quite a bit in quantity. This part is also exactly what the Koetsu diamond cantilevers look like under magnification. Koetsu must have specified a different stylus (their usual), but this looks like the cantilever part maker. Here’s my Coralstone circa 2018. It’s a lil sloppier of an attachment than my Blue Lace lol

Did you sell/trade the Innovation for the Master or buy the upgrade kit?  

I don’t know anyone who did the upgrade. With secondary markets and dealer trade-ins, there’s no real price incentive to do an upgrade kit. I had an Innovation Wood and did a "sort of" trade in with my dealer for their demo Master. "Upgradeable" turntables can be a big selling point but they fall flat in practice. 

@mulveling My original plan was to do the upgrade. However I have the Piano Black version, and Musical Surroundings wanted to make sure I had well-matched plinths so they worked with my dealer to offer a trade for a new retail unit of the MI, and it didn't cost me more either. I guess it pays to be a good and repeat customer over the years.

I now have three tonearms on my MI: two 12" Universal and a now a Tracer in addition.

@mulveling My original plan was to do the upgrade. However I have the Piano Black version, and Musical Surroundings wanted to make sure I had well-matched plinths so they worked with my dealer to offer a trade for a new retail unit of the MI, and it didn’t cost me more either. I guess it pays to be a good and repeat customer over the years.

I now have three tonearms on my MI: two 12" Universal and a now a Tracer in addition.

Yep. They’ve also incorporated small changes / upgrades into the Master over years. The central bearing column has been notably beefed up. Acrylic platters you get today from Clearaudio can be a different color than those of 10 years ago. For lots of reasons, the best way to get a "coherent" Master is to buy a table that was manufactured as a Master! Agreed, a good dealer relationship helps enormously. Mine just retired :(  

And the black lacquer you have is the best looking version IMO (though all versions are cool) - enjoy! How is the Tracer versus the Universal? Is it better in any ways? I liked the Universal, though sold it a while back.