holbo MK 2 turntable


Hello all,

Finally getting back into vinyl after a 30 year hiatus.  Been auditioning various packages in the $40-50K range.  I have always been intriqued by tangential tracking air bearing arms and air bearing or otherwise "levitating" platters.  A high end dealer that I know who has a very expensive system like this (VYGER) encouraged me to try ordering this deck, with a very expensive Japanese cartridge for it, and that it might be a "giant killer" of sorts.   Do any of you have any experience with this deck?  I have read the reviews but I am curious what the Audiogon analog forum has to say.

ACR

 

reynolds537

Holbo mk2 vs CS Port = 5500usd vs. 65000usd. I'm very interested in which tonearm has the ability to change VTA while playing and precise azimuth settings.wink

if you can find one on the used market, an Eminent Technology ET 2.5 would be a lot less money. Turntable not included. 

Here's another table with a linear tracking arm. Unusual to say the least with the platter moving. 

Solution 787 tturntable

https://soulution-audio.com/soulution-787-turntable/

@reynolds537 

If Richard has a current cartridge recommendation I'd like to hear it.  

Holbo has much more experience, and somewhere on their website there is a list of reviews and the cartridges they have.  I can only tell you what I am actually doing! 

I have a DS003 optical cartridge on order from DS Audio and I am very much looking forward to hearing it!  It seems to me that DS Audio has the same sorts of engineering advances in cartridge design that Holbo brings to the (turn)table / arm combination.

When you have several unique selling propositions, coupled with truly enthusiastic reviews, you are probably on to something.

I am coupling my optical cartridge with a just released SoulNote E-1 Ver 2 Equalizer which can switch between optical and MM or MC cartridges.  It is so new, there are no professional reviews.  The improvements it has made with my old Shure V15 are quite remarkable.  SoulNote is another manufacturer with unique selling propositions, many of which fly in the face of conventional wisdom but make complete sense from an engineering perspective if you shift from frequency analysis to waveform analysis.  I find it hard to stop playing records with this combination, which seems like the cliche'd end of a professional magazine review, but it is true!