Review: Brinkmann Balance
Review of the Brinkmann Balance Turntable
Prior starting the review, a word of introduction about myself. I am a quite conservative ‘no non sense’ audiophile. I am a ‘plug and forget it’ kind of guy and constant tweaking is not for me. I also tend to keep each component for at least 10 years in my system. Therefore each new acquisition is the result of a lengthy process based on auditions in my audio room.
About 2 years ago, I started the renewal of my almost 15-year-old setup (at the time: Infinity IRS Epsilon in active bi-amping mode driven by 2 Krell KSA 200S, Krell KRC HR preamp + Krell KPE Reference phono, dCS Delius/Purcell DAC/upsampler + CEC TL1X drive and a Michell Orbe turntable).
I have now completed the journey and my new set up is described here: http://www.whatsbestforum.com/member.php?3309-dcc. Though I wanted to achieve significant improvements compared to my previous setup, I also wanted to have a relatively less complex and more compact system (single box vs. 3 boxes digital rig, no more bi-amping, less cables, etc.). As the audio room is also the living room, the motto was: every component should fit within the confined space of the 2 Infinite Elemente racks without further invasion in the room.
In October 2012, I acquired a new CD/SACD player (http://www.whatsbestforum.com/showthread.php?8779-Audio-Aero-La-Source-Pre-Transport-DAC/page2), which was in the lower range of the budget I had allocated for. A buddy also expressed some interest in acquiring my Michell turntable. I therefore went hunting for a new turntable.
This would be my ‘ultimate turntable’ but I did not want to go exotic (air bearings etc.). I was looking for a simple but highly musical turntable from a reputable manufacturer. I decided to look for a non-suspended design. My listening room is relatively immune from vibration. The floor is a big thick slab of concrete and the walls are made of bricks. You could be jumping right by the audio rack without any impact. The Michell Orbe is a suspended turntable and I found that it was sometimes too mellow and lacking precision.
Living in a country where vinyl audio still remains in the dark ages, auditioning and comparing high end tables is just mission impossible as most dealers don’t have high end turntables in their show rooms. You therefore need to rely on audiophile friends, shows, reviews and forums to form an opinion.
I drew the following shortlist from Europe based manufacturers (mark ups on US products are just becoming insane):
I excluded the Clearaudio from a purely esthetical point of view. I know that it has nothing to do with audiophile rationale but I found it too flashy for sitting in my living room.
I unfortunately discovered that the sole dealer who carries TW in my country is unreliable. I did not want to deal with a guy who let me down big time when I was on the search for a new digital front end.
I was therefore left with the Simon Yorke and the Brinkmann. The Brinkmann has been in production for more than 25 years with regular upgrades. It has been highly praised by some reviewers (http://www.stereophile.com/content/brinkmann-balance-turntable2, http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/brinkmann/balance.html). The Simon Yorke is also highly praised and can be sourced directly from Simon who resides in Spain. He will even come to your place for the set up.
A very close friend has the Simon Yorke S7. He also hesitated with the Balance. He took the Simon Yorke as he was able to strike a very good deal with Simon Yorke. The Simon Yorke is an exquisite table. I was able to compare the build quality of the Simon Yorke vs. the Brinkmann and clearly there is no match. The Brinkmann is far superior.
I had the opportunity to listen to the Brinkmann Bardo and Oasis turntables but never the top of the range Balance.
My audio dealer carries Brinkmann and arranged a personal meeting with Helmut Brinkmann. I met a very humble and somewhat shy gentleman. When discussing the merits of his design as well as the choice of tonearm and cartridge, he kindly suggested keeping my current tonearm and cartridge and gradually upgrading ‘should I feel the need to’. Knowing that Helmut Brinkmann also builds tonearms and cartridges, I was quite impressed by his integrity. He recommended acquiring the optional tubed power supply. He also informed me that he did not have a Balance rightly available and that he would need starting building one for me. I confirmed my order. I was informed some weeks later that it would be the first Balance fitted with the new motor based on the design of the direct drive motor used in the Bardo and the Oasis turntables. This would however require some additional weeks of patience.
Finally in late February, the turntable landed. Together with the dealer, we spent the whole afternoon assembling the unit. The table is mounted on a Symposium Super Plus platform sitting on the top of the Finite Elemente audio rack. The Turntable is equipped with two power supplies. The first SS power supply maintains the oil of the bearing at a constant temperature of 65° Celsius. It can also drive the motor. The second optional unit is a tubed power supply for the motor. I decided to first try the turntable with the sole SS power supply and plug the tubed power supply at a later stage so I could have a good comparison basis for assessing the improvements.
Currently, the turntable is fitted with the venerable SME V tonearm and a Koetsu Black cartridge from my previous setup. The phono stage is a Brinkmann Fein, which I acquired about one year ago. I was therefore in a position to assess the improvements brought by the sole turntable design.
I was not expecting such changes. The improvements are dramatic. Compared to my previous rig, the Brinkmann has lifted a veil:
A week later, I plugged in the tubed power supply. A sense of additional control and precision was brought in the analog set up. This has however a down side: playing poorly recorded vinyls is just unbearable.
Listening both to classical and rock/indie rock music is an equal joy. I however discovered that sometimes with rock music, I am better off using the Nordost Krell Cast interconnect cables between the pre-amp and power amps instead of the Argento Flow (the switch is easily performed by just flicking a switch on the power amps).
I am extremely pleased with this acquisition. I also know that considerable improvements can be brought in by some future upgrades. Possible upgrades that I am contemplating for the coming years are:
The SME V tonearm (short version) works pretty well with the Balance and is highly dynamic. I am therefore not considering any change at this stage though the Brinkmann can be fitted with a 12-inch tonearm.
Any suggestion or feedback on the above possible upgrades is welcome and highly appreciated.
Finally, I got a custom made dust cover from a local workshop.
Review of the Brinkmann Balance Turntable
Prior starting the review, a word of introduction about myself. I am a quite conservative ‘no non sense’ audiophile. I am a ‘plug and forget it’ kind of guy and constant tweaking is not for me. I also tend to keep each component for at least 10 years in my system. Therefore each new acquisition is the result of a lengthy process based on auditions in my audio room.
About 2 years ago, I started the renewal of my almost 15-year-old setup (at the time: Infinity IRS Epsilon in active bi-amping mode driven by 2 Krell KSA 200S, Krell KRC HR preamp + Krell KPE Reference phono, dCS Delius/Purcell DAC/upsampler + CEC TL1X drive and a Michell Orbe turntable).
I have now completed the journey and my new set up is described here: http://www.whatsbestforum.com/member.php?3309-dcc. Though I wanted to achieve significant improvements compared to my previous setup, I also wanted to have a relatively less complex and more compact system (single box vs. 3 boxes digital rig, no more bi-amping, less cables, etc.). As the audio room is also the living room, the motto was: every component should fit within the confined space of the 2 Infinite Elemente racks without further invasion in the room.
In October 2012, I acquired a new CD/SACD player (http://www.whatsbestforum.com/showthread.php?8779-Audio-Aero-La-Source-Pre-Transport-DAC/page2), which was in the lower range of the budget I had allocated for. A buddy also expressed some interest in acquiring my Michell turntable. I therefore went hunting for a new turntable.
This would be my ‘ultimate turntable’ but I did not want to go exotic (air bearings etc.). I was looking for a simple but highly musical turntable from a reputable manufacturer. I decided to look for a non-suspended design. My listening room is relatively immune from vibration. The floor is a big thick slab of concrete and the walls are made of bricks. You could be jumping right by the audio rack without any impact. The Michell Orbe is a suspended turntable and I found that it was sometimes too mellow and lacking precision.
Living in a country where vinyl audio still remains in the dark ages, auditioning and comparing high end tables is just mission impossible as most dealers don’t have high end turntables in their show rooms. You therefore need to rely on audiophile friends, shows, reviews and forums to form an opinion.
I drew the following shortlist from Europe based manufacturers (mark ups on US products are just becoming insane):
- TW Raven AC
- Brinkmann Balance
- Clearaudio Master Innovation
- Simon Yorke S7 or S10
I excluded the Clearaudio from a purely esthetical point of view. I know that it has nothing to do with audiophile rationale but I found it too flashy for sitting in my living room.
I unfortunately discovered that the sole dealer who carries TW in my country is unreliable. I did not want to deal with a guy who let me down big time when I was on the search for a new digital front end.
I was therefore left with the Simon Yorke and the Brinkmann. The Brinkmann has been in production for more than 25 years with regular upgrades. It has been highly praised by some reviewers (http://www.stereophile.com/content/brinkmann-balance-turntable2, http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/brinkmann/balance.html). The Simon Yorke is also highly praised and can be sourced directly from Simon who resides in Spain. He will even come to your place for the set up.
A very close friend has the Simon Yorke S7. He also hesitated with the Balance. He took the Simon Yorke as he was able to strike a very good deal with Simon Yorke. The Simon Yorke is an exquisite table. I was able to compare the build quality of the Simon Yorke vs. the Brinkmann and clearly there is no match. The Brinkmann is far superior.
I had the opportunity to listen to the Brinkmann Bardo and Oasis turntables but never the top of the range Balance.
My audio dealer carries Brinkmann and arranged a personal meeting with Helmut Brinkmann. I met a very humble and somewhat shy gentleman. When discussing the merits of his design as well as the choice of tonearm and cartridge, he kindly suggested keeping my current tonearm and cartridge and gradually upgrading ‘should I feel the need to’. Knowing that Helmut Brinkmann also builds tonearms and cartridges, I was quite impressed by his integrity. He recommended acquiring the optional tubed power supply. He also informed me that he did not have a Balance rightly available and that he would need starting building one for me. I confirmed my order. I was informed some weeks later that it would be the first Balance fitted with the new motor based on the design of the direct drive motor used in the Bardo and the Oasis turntables. This would however require some additional weeks of patience.
Finally in late February, the turntable landed. Together with the dealer, we spent the whole afternoon assembling the unit. The table is mounted on a Symposium Super Plus platform sitting on the top of the Finite Elemente audio rack. The Turntable is equipped with two power supplies. The first SS power supply maintains the oil of the bearing at a constant temperature of 65° Celsius. It can also drive the motor. The second optional unit is a tubed power supply for the motor. I decided to first try the turntable with the sole SS power supply and plug the tubed power supply at a later stage so I could have a good comparison basis for assessing the improvements.
Currently, the turntable is fitted with the venerable SME V tonearm and a Koetsu Black cartridge from my previous setup. The phono stage is a Brinkmann Fein, which I acquired about one year ago. I was therefore in a position to assess the improvements brought by the sole turntable design.
I was not expecting such changes. The improvements are dramatic. Compared to my previous rig, the Brinkmann has lifted a veil:
- Deeper and larger soundstage
- Impressive dynamics
- More precision
- Bass control – deep and tight - enabling the Krells’ iron fist to demonstrate their full capabilities
- Less noise
- Neutrality but still on the ‘warm side’
A week later, I plugged in the tubed power supply. A sense of additional control and precision was brought in the analog set up. This has however a down side: playing poorly recorded vinyls is just unbearable.
Listening both to classical and rock/indie rock music is an equal joy. I however discovered that sometimes with rock music, I am better off using the Nordost Krell Cast interconnect cables between the pre-amp and power amps instead of the Argento Flow (the switch is easily performed by just flicking a switch on the power amps).
I am extremely pleased with this acquisition. I also know that considerable improvements can be brought in by some future upgrades. Possible upgrades that I am contemplating for the coming years are:
- New phono cables - I am tempted by the Furutech Silver Arrows to replace the current VDH MCD 501
- New cartridge - I am biased and I would certainly stay within the Koetsu family, more probably a Jade Platinum
- New phono stage - I will certainly test the Brinkmann top of the range Edison
The SME V tonearm (short version) works pretty well with the Balance and is highly dynamic. I am therefore not considering any change at this stage though the Brinkmann can be fitted with a 12-inch tonearm.
Any suggestion or feedback on the above possible upgrades is welcome and highly appreciated.
Finally, I got a custom made dust cover from a local workshop.
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