New Kronos review!

asiufy

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http://www.monoandstereo.com/2015/12/kronos-pro-limited-production-turntable.html

Pretty interesting, maybe the first time an AF1 and a Kronos were put side-by-side, along with a Clearaudio Statement.

Some choice quotes:

"In term of sonics, the Kronos Pro Ltd is not only in the league of the very best turntables available today, but in actual comparison, it is a few notches above the TechDas Air Force One and the Clearaudio Statement."

"As for its price of admission, I would say that purchasing a Kronos Pro Ltd, is really a "No Brainer", even if you have more money to spend. I own some of its competitors. They cost several times more but they do not provide a higher performance level."

Nice :)
 

spiritofmusic

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That was a sweet review. A little on the effusive, minimal information end of the reviewing spectrum, but we're left in no doubt as to the gist.
It seems the noise flr is well and truly subterranean on this one, just letting more musical cues thru. That's got to be good.

Just how would it be imprvd for the tt to sit on active isolation like Herzan, or even SOTA passive like Spiers And Robertson?

What's the price on this thing?
 

MadFloyd

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According to the designer, active isolation impairs its performance.

The reviewer was using a tonearm I'm not familiar with (as opposed to the Black Beauty). Anyone know it?
 

asiufy

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It's $35000 for the Kronos Pro, and $8500 for the Black Beauty tonearm.

The tonearm is the Vertere Reference, that costs (IIRC) $35000, and caused a stir when it was announced. It was often paired with the AF1, to almost universal praise. It was a very good call to test the Kronos with that tonearm, as that's what had been used on the AF1, so the reviewer had a good base for comparison.
 

jeff1225

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It's a rare thing to have so many world class turntables in one listening room. I know that audiophile "blind testing" discussions have been beaten to death, still it's nice to have comparisons.
 

audioblazer

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Heard it twice . Between AFO & Kronos . I think I prefer AFO ;). Especially true when I heard it paired with Black Beauty the 1st time . Maybe I m biased since I owe AFO. However my friends felt the same way
 

number95

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An interesting review as the reviewer owns all of those beasts so he is not biased and shared his honest views. Apart from personal tastes (ie if I was listening to the same setup with those t/t I might have been choosing TD or CA over Kronos etc), he explicitly says Kronos has a lower noise floor, which is remarkable. Air suction, air bearing and air suspension all together could not deliver a lower noise floor than offsetting platters and suspension?! Wow...
 

Audiophile Bill

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An interesting review as the reviewer owns all of those beasts so he is not biased and shared his honest views. Apart from personal tastes (ie if I was listening to the same setup with those t/t I might have been choosing TD or CA over Kronos etc), he explicitly says Kronos has a lower noise floor, which is remarkable. Air suction, air bearing and air suspension all together could not deliver a lower noise floor than offsetting platters and suspension?! Wow...

I know - I was surprised in some regards. Having said that the sme 30/12 is quieter than the Air Force One according to Hifi News measurements - sme are using rubber bands!
 

rockitman

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Heard it twice . Between AFO & Kronos . I think I prefer AFO ;). Especially true when I heard it paired with Black Beauty the 1st time . Maybe I m biased since I owe AFO. However my friends felt the same way

I find it hard to believe in the reviewers words...the Kronos has a much lower noise floor than the AFO.

In term of sonics, the Kronos Pro Ltd is not only in the league of the very best turntables available today, but in actual comparison, it is a few notches above the TechDas Air Force One and the Clearaudio Statement. If one wishes to prefer one turntable's character over another’s, then there isn't much to argue, but it remains a fact that the Kronos Pro Ltd is able to retrieve an extra level of detail at low frequencies, and has a much lower noise floor. It provides a more solid foundation for the "wholeness and completeness" of the musical presentation, and a soundstage that better represents the venue of the recording. As it stands, I have yet to hear a better turntable than the Kronos Pro Ltd.
 

Chris F

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Should it not be possible to measure the noise floor by hooking up an ADC and looking at RMS in empty groove, dynamic range etc etc..? Or am I missing something here?

He also makes lots of claims about low freq response etc... Again, hook up an ADC and show me because these things can be measured?
 

asiufy

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Oh, and the Kronos won "Turntable of the Year" award from Hi Fi+, the UK mag affiliated with TAS. Again, notice the comment about "silent background"...

50b7a8f9df211480f63e56e19bafef8a.jpg
 

Frank750

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I know - I was surprised in some regards. Having said that the sme 30/12 is quieter than the Air Force One according to Hifi News measurements - sme are using rubber bands!
I won't address which is more quiet as I never took measurements but I owned the 30/12 for 4 years and now own the Air Force 2. I can tell you in no uncertain terms that there is no comparison sonically between the two. It should take all of 30 seconds to make that determination.
 

Audiophile Bill

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I won't address which is more quiet as I never took measurements but I owned the 30/12 for 4 years and now own the Air Force 2. I can tell you in no uncertain terms that there is no comparison sonically between the two. It should take all of 30 seconds to make that determination.

Hi Frank,

Don't worry - I am no measurebator. I actually *love* Air Force one TT and would love one. It sounds far superior to the sme 30 IMHO also. I am not familiar with AF2 although I heard it once.
 

asiufy

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Well, I guess everybody agrees that the AF1 is superior to the SME, even the reviewer, who sold his SME to make way for the Kronos!
 

rockitman

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I think people are drinking too much kool-aid if they think the Kronos is superior to the AF1. In terms of quiet, no way a non air bearing design can beat an air bearing in the low rolling noise dept....I will also add that no air bearing is quieter than the AF1 since it doesn't even have a bearing. The entire platter floats on a cushion of air. The spindle is not a bearing..only a centering device for the floating platter. In any event, the review is careless. Even though the guy owns AF1 and CA Statement...he was probably greased with a free Kronos for his glowing and non tech specific review. Happy spinning folks !
 

Audiophile Bill

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I think people are drinking too much kool-aid if they think the Kronos is superior to the AF1. In terms of quiet, no way a non air bearing design can beat an air bearing in the low rolling noise dept....I will also add that no air bearing is quieter than the AF1 since it doesn't even have a bearing. The entire platter floats on a cushion of air. The spindle is not a bearing..only a centering device for the floating platter. In any event, the review is careless. Even though the guy owns AF1 and CA Statement...he was probably greased with a free Kronos for his glowing and non tech specific review. Happy spinning folks !

Hi Rockit,

I am not knocking AF1 as I love it but Hifinews has indeed measured it and it has noise levels similar (a fraction worse) than sme 30.
 

rockitman

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Hi Rockit,

I am not knocking AF1 as I love it but Hifinews has indeed measured it and it has noise levels similar (a fraction worse) than sme 30.

I guess I need to hear it for myself. As Frank750 mentioned...he owned the SME before the AF2 and he says the AF2 is quieter to his ear. So much for un-audited measurements. And if I seem defensive, I am not. In terms of listening preferences...everyone hears differently. Sounds like the Kronos is a sonic bargain.
 

Audiophile Bill

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I guess I need to hear it for myself. As Frank750 mentioned...he owned the SME before the AF2 and he says the AF2 is quieter to his ear. So much for un-audited measurements. And if I seem defensive, I am not. In terms of listening preferences...everyone hears differently. Sounds like the Kronos is a sonic bargain.

Af 1 is the best source I have heard to be honest. Bar none. Obviously doing something else that SME is not!

I heard Kronos twice at shows so not fair to judge - with Maggies and it was awful but the setup was shocking so I am ignoring it completely.
 

MadFloyd

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I'm guessing you can't go too wrong with either of these turntables.
 

bonzo75

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Af 1 is the best source I have heard to be honest. Bar none. Obviously doing something else that SME is not!

I heard Kronos twice at shows so not fair to judge - with Maggies and it was awful but the setup was shocking so I am ignoring it completely.

You should visit the guy with the SPJ Alba, Koetsu Blue Lace MC, and FMA 122. He also replaced a SME 30/12, btw
 

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