2020 update : JC Verdier La Platine

@dover , the following directly from Basis’ website. I was also wondering about that, but then I saw photos of the arm pot and motor pod being placed in different positions, and the plinth doesn’t have a single screw holes! 
 

>When A.J. was building his personal reference turntable, one of the design goals was to create a forever platform versatile enough to accommodate multiple tonearms of different lengths. This flexibility was accomplished through the use of a massive, solid alloy base on which tonearms can be placed anywhere on their respective spindle-to-pivot arcs.

Today, audiophiles have the opportunity to benefit from this supremely capable design. Purchasing a Transcendence with a large base enables one to use a tonearm of any length and offers the possibility of placing it at a desired location rather than a fixed mount, provided that the location is the correct distance away from the platter spindle. Additionally, upgrades are stress-free, since components can be swapped without the need for disassembly.<

>The custom motor is mounted in a massive, extremely rigid housing machined from a billet of stainless steel. The supremely inert, high-mass motor housing in conjunction with compliant elastomeric feet result in a low resonant frequency of the entire motor system. This low frequency system effectively damps any higher frequency motor vibrations.<

@dover , also thank you for the suggestion on Azzolina ! They didn’t list the Verdier plinth on the website anymore, but I may just send them an enquiry!

@dover Thank you for the Azzolina Audio reference. Looking at its own TT on offer, its plinth is made from a paper / resin composite with properties associated with ebony wood. 
 

@thekong The paper / resin composite would be my second choice as a plinth material. Taking inspiration from Azzolina Audio, my first choice would be a solid chunk of ebony with a 6mm copper bottom plate bolted to the ebony. A local supplier has a stash of real Indonesian ebony that would be perfect for the project. I wasn’t even thinking plinth replacement, but now……. Please update if you do  proceed with this as will I.

@thekong 

This flexibility was accomplished through the use of a massive, solid alloy base on which tonearms can be placed anywhere on their respective spindle-to-pivot arcs.

Purchasing a Transcendence with a large base enables one to use a tonearm of any length and offers the possibility of placing it at a desired location rather than a fixed mount, provided that the location is the correct distance away from the platter spindle. Additionally, upgrades are stress-free, since components can be swapped without the need for disassembly.<

Yes, but, every time the cleaning lady has finished I would have to remeasure the position and/or see a therapist for my OCD. On my TT if I change arms I have to get a custom bronze/gunmetal arm board cut and polished down to a thou. That is cheaper than a good therapist. The pivoting arm boards on the Verdier are quite advantageous, if somewhat ungainly.

@ledoux1238 , yes, paper / resin composite is an interesting option. The Immedia RPM2 TT’s platter also has a layer of what they called phenolic—paper. 

@dover , I agree with you, micro movement of the arm pot is certainly a real concern! Unless the arm pot has a very substantial weight, simply taking the arm out of its holder may cause micro movements! I would not worry too much with the huge arm tower of the Kuzma XL, but the Basis’ arm pot looks a lot smaller!