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Vinyl Heaven : Lyra Atlas on a Durand Talea 2

I am not usually given to expletives but WOW....this is sooo effing good I can't believe it. The Atlas has less than 6 hours on it.The Atlas replaced a Titan i and initially, I was a wee bit underwhelmed, as the cart loading was at 100 ohms,the same as the Titan. Switching to a 1000 ohmn loading was a revelation.The 1000 ohmn loading resistor on my Nagra VPS phono will presumably require some break in.
My quick and evolving first impressuions of the Atlas vs the Titan i : the Atlas does everything the Titan i does, except it does it a whole lot better. The traditional Lyra agility and speed( the Atlas is my 4th Lyra after the Helikon, Skala and Titan i)is there in loads except there is now an organic wholeness to the music with a longer sustain and decay of notes. In every respect, IMHO, the Atlas is way way better than my previous favorite cart, the Transfiguration Orpheus L.There is so much more detail being extracted from the grooves. Does the Atlas make all recordings sound good ?Far from it. It made me realise how crappy the Pink Floyd reissue of WYWH is.
Should point out that at the time the Atlas joined the party, the TT,a TW AC 1, also benefited from a major upgrade with the Black Night PSU and 3 motor unit.
If you ever contemplate an upgrade to the best, that the state of the art has to offer,you will do yourself a favor by auditioning the Atlas and the Durand Talea 2.
I have no relationship with any manufacturer.
Cheers
Pradeep

128x128sunnyboy1956
actusreus
733 posts
 
Isn't it more or less a $20,000 combo? I'd expect it to sound good, good heavens.

Btw, can you elaborate on the crappy reissue of WYWH, please? I have it, and I agree it does not equal the quality of the original pressing, but did not find it "crappy." I'm just curious what made it so bad for you. And congratulations on your new cartridge.
cyclopse
21 posts
 
I would expect this combination to perform every bit as described. However, have you considered what the Durand Telos may bring to the party?
jfrech's avatar
jfrech
1,816 posts
 
excellent news ! I am getting real close to making a impulse purchase here! The
recent reviews and comments all seem outstanding!

I did try a E.A.R. MC 4 step up transformer with my Nagra VPS. It's a nice
addition (currently using a very low output (.18mv) Allaerts). I know the Lyra
allows me to skip this...

What arms did you use before your talea 2? Did you use a Tri Planar (like I
currently have) Any comments on the arm change? Thanks !!
lewm
13,014 posts
 
The genius of the Telos (besides its merits as a great tonearm) is that it makes the Talea look like a reasonable idea, in terms of cost. You can buy a Talea and still feel good about yourself as a prudent consumer. I am working up to it.
peterayer
1,382 posts
 
Sunny, did you have the opportunity to isolate the performance of the arm and then the cartridge before the turntable change? If not, how can you be sure what is what?

I have just bought a new turntable with a 12" arm and a new cartridge. I'm doing everything to resist the urge to put them all in my system at once. So I'm comparing turntables first, with my old 9" arm and cartridge on the new TT. After a week or so I will switch the arms and listen for another week and finally I will add in the new cartridge. I want to be able to learn about the changes and be sure I understand what is doing what. It's a bit frustrating for sure, because of the time involved, its very educational.

Congratulations on the arm and cartridge. I've heard the Talea II, and it's excellent. Haven't read Fremer's review of the Atlas yet, but it must also be quite good. I did also upgrade my power supply and like many upgrades, it made a big difference.

Lewm makes an excellent point. Are there any arms that are more expensive than the Telos?
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