Basis vs.VPI

I have had alot of exposure to VPI all through the years,at many friends' homes.Also,I too like Basis...but...

Basis is very costly,though quite good(an understatement).I appreciate their upgrade path,and a good vacuum system is still very effective.Personally,I cannot for the life of me figure out why SO many hugely expensive "high mass" designs with NO true clamping system can be so popular?

Anyway,the current crop of VPI products(especially their better offerings) are superb!The HRX "fully maxxed out" is about as good a table/arm "system" as anyone is likely to need(as in hear)!

One thing about "quality" in tables,not particularly mentioned often enough....

Be wary of those mfgrs who do not make a "Quiet" system!With today's ultra high resolution cartridges and phono stages,even the slightest buzz,or hum can affect our music...

In my experience,with the monies asked today,one should expect a noise free product....that stays that way!!

Good luck...either way,you should be quite happy with your choice.

You should read the technical papers from Basis, you can learn from them. When you think, other manufacturers have the same standard (knowledge, precision, thinking about what-is-responsible-for-what), or better, well, then you have your answer.

Sbrown,

I went from a HW-19 IV to a Basis Debut Vacuum/Vector arm combination. I later added a separate power supply/motor control unit. This is a terrific table, though the VPI was no slouch either.

The vacuum clamping system is a particularly nice feature with the Vector. It is amazing how well this dampens vibrations from the vinyl itself. If one places the arm in a groove with the table at a standstill, a fairly hard tap on the record near the stylus with a pen or other object will produce little output from the cartridge compared with doing the same thing with other tables.

The VPI offers a rim clamp, but, I am not a fan of those tricky to use devices. They just offer too many opportunities to accidentally hit the cartridge with the clamp or to set the needle down in the wrong place and have the needle snagged by the clamp.

Larryi is right about the ring clamp "potential" disaster.My close pal had "that" scenario.He was a bit careless,and became cantilever-less-:)

Lucky for him,the cartridge importer was a super nice guy,and gave him a new one for free(Titan i).

Still,it does work well in the coupling of an LP.How many designs "really" couple an LP correctly(which is clearly audible,in the "utmost resolution of a musical signal").

I'll give serious kudos to Basis for doing that to the max!....and....

From my experience with a Debut/vacuum unit on the BIG four tower infinity speakers,the table "is" dead quiet!!I LOVE the Debut,but sadly it is a bit out of my reach,especially with an upcoming wedding for my daughter....OUCH!!!

Yet,the latest VPI HRX is a KILLER combo(including the new 12.7 arm) at a superb price(I won't say bargain,because it seems "anything" in high end audio is a bit pricey).Comparable performance from the competition is quite a bit more moola.This system I've heard "do" all of the famous LP's from Mercury,RCA and Decca etc.Believe me when I state it is about as good in retrieving musical info as you can get.BUT,you do have to be careful with that ring clamp.

I make no arguement against anything someone can afford,but it "is" nice to save a few bucks on occassion.

Good luck

I own a Basis 2500 Signature with a Graham Phantom arm and love that combination. If you can't do a home demo or listen to other peoples systems, then your are stuck to opinions here or reading magazine reviews. Reviewers have given the 2200, 2500 and 2800 all with Vector arms excellent reviews. Reviewers have given the VPI HRX with VPI arms excellent reviews. Clearly these are both great combos and just either would be a great choice. From reading those reviews I think some writers seem to describe the VPI combination as ever so slighly dark and slighly cold. I would describe the Basis products as very neutral. Maybe the HRX has the slightly lowest better bass.

The Basis systems have a much smaller footprint than the HRX which is very large. Footprint size may or may not be important for you, but you will need much more width with the HRX.

They are both available now, "used", on Audiogon at great prices. Buy one, get it home and just enjoy the music.