Basis Turntables: Worth it or Ripoff?

There are many good tables on the market, and that certainly includes the Basis tables.  The particular strength of Basis is very tight manufacturing tolerances.  You will not see any rotational wobble, platters are carefully balanced, and one rarely hears about manufacturing related problems with the tables.

Most of their tables are designed to damp vibration created by the stylus tracking the groove so that this energy does not feed back to cartridge.  This does impart a particular character to the sound--the Vector Arm and Basis table combinations tend to sound "dark" and not as "jangly" as some other tables.  To some, this is a very good quality, to others, the sound might seem a little "dead."  I own a Basis Debut with a vacuum clamp and a motor controller, so I like its well damped behavior (the rest of my system is lively sounding so this might be a case of synergy). 

 

ctsooner, I have not listened to either Basis arm so I can not make any comments on how they sound. I have spent a lot of time playing around with Graham arms. I will not even look at unipivots for myself because (and this is going to sound a bit harsh) they are mechanically incompetent and you can see it just lifting the arm! A tone arm has to hold the cartridge rigidly in the appropriate orientation to the record with only two degrees of freedom, up and down, side to side. Wobbling on axis is just plain out of bounds. I do not think it takes a mechanical genius to see this. It is popular because it is a cheap easy way to make a tonearm. You just have to plop the thing down on a single point which in the case of VPI arms wears out frequently. It is much more expensive and difficult to use fine bearings and get them oriented and loaded perfectly. 

A unipivot does have the freedom of movement to rock from side to side.  Whether this wobble actually occurs when playing a record, and the degree to which such motion will adversely affect the sound, is the subject of much debate.  But, the Vector arm is NOT a conventional unipivot.  In addition to the pivot point at the top of the arm, there is a second point perpendicular to the main vertical pivot that stabilizes the arm.  The Vector arm is weighted to lean in one direction (clockwise tilt if you look from the front of the arm toward the pivot).  That tendency to lean toward the right is resisted by a horizontal pin that contacts a bearing around the axis of the main vertical post/pivot.  By screwing that horizontal pivot in or out, that stabilizing pivot also allows for precise setting of azimuth.

This design means that this is NOT a unipivot--it has two pivots, and it is stabilized from any kind of rocking motion.  As with any design, this involves some, at least theoretical, disadvantages, such as an increase in friction in the movement of the arm.

Thanks Larry,
This is a problem in audio. Many of us have summarily not liked something based on what we've read or know or heard without listening to said product.  I'm sure that everyone has done this at one time or another.  Many actually do this all the time which is why they are constantly chasing their tails and keeping AG in business (so thanks for that, lol).

I'm nothing close to an engineer, but I do know what I like to hear without listening to sales folks for even friends.  I've been looking at TT's again this week, thinking I may get another lesser set up than what I had in the past.  I have been told that direct drive is now best, because they can control the vibrations better.  I've been told that this arm is better than that arm and that this bearing will sound better than that one.  It's really interesting to hear folks tell me what sounds best, yet only two stores so far have told me to come in and audition.  Fidelis in NH and Audio Connection in NJ are the two and both carry a nice array of tables including the Technics.  

I can't afford a Basis this time around, but if I could, I'd still audition it next to the Technics, Acoustic Signature, VPI and the Music Hall/Project tables to name a few.  To me, convenience and sound are the only things I care about.

ctsooner, you should check out SOTA tables if you get a chance. Look at the tonearms the reviewers prefer to use in their systems.

Mike