Well I've had my Kronos Limited and Raven AC-2 for just over three months now and I can honestly say that I can't decide which table I like best! They are both wonderful! Some days I am convinced that the Kronos is better, others I lean towards the Raven. In all fairness, it's very difficult to accurately compare the two TT's because they have different arms and cartridges; I'm using Andre Theriault's 12" Black Beauty arm on the Kronos, and the TW Acustic Raven 10.5 on the Raven AC. I have a Miyajima Shilabe on the Black Beauty and a SoundSmith Sussurro on the Raven 10.5.
In general, I can confidently say that overall the Kronos is a quieter TT from the standpoint of self-noise. Sound pours out from a completely BLACK background with the Kronos and there's almost zero groove noise (this could be the result from the Shilabe however). The Kronos sounds so precise, so controlled, so incredibly quiet, it's spooky! The exception is the Kronos' motor which is not completely silent; I can hear it ever so slightly at the listening chair with no music playing. The Raven motor on the other hand is DEAD silent and extremely powerful with plenty of torque to spin the massive Raven platter. The Raven is more dynamic, presents a livelier and more upfront sound overall, and is a tab more 'extroverted' than the Kronos. Again, perhaps I'm hearing more of the characteristics of the cartridges than the tables. At some point I will switch cartridges, put the Shilabe on the Raven and the Sussurro on the Kronos but for now I am extremely happy with both tables. I will say this; when you consider that the Kronos costs (at retail) approx. 30% more than the Raven, and that the Raven can handle up to four arms (whereas the Kronos can only handle one arm) it's hard to go wrong with the TW! It's a wonderful, top echelon, table for sure!
Yes the Kronos is definitely not forward/upfront and a bit laid back, but layered behind the speakers, whenever I have heard it. Never heard the TW properly so thanks for this.
Hi Tang,
do you have Goebel cable?
Which cable,how they sound and what is the difference with Siltech?
Thanks
Gianluigi
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