Has anyone tried the new Lyra Kleos?


I have used a Helikon for about 4 years and it is beginning to show its age. I thought I would either try the new Kleos or move up the ladder to the Skala. Does anyone have information about the Kleos or read a review?

Thanks.

Randy
randypeck
No, I have only used it on this table. I did use a less expensive MM cart (AT440MLa) on the table for a bit while waiting on the Delos. Phono stage is Pass XP-15.

Since this was my first unipivot arm, I did go through some trials and tribulations getting it set up, and I removed the arm a few times to do the physical parts swapping.

When I first started using it I didn't use the anti-skate, but I think removing the arm a few times flexed the leads enough that they no longer provided sufficient anti-skate on their own. I ended up applying the bare minimum anti-skate via the weight/lever/line mechanism. I might even be able to remove that now, I only had an issue with a single track on a Steely Dan album, but that album is one that I have settled on as a reproduction benchmark that I can detect subtle changes to the setup with. It's flawless now and sounds excellent even with the touch of AS, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to revisit "Can't Buy a Thrill" with no AS since everything should be settled in by now.

I need to emphasize that I am certainly no expert on any of this, so please don't take any of my postings as doctrine. Just an anecdote. The main point was that if an idiot such as myself can get this kind of performance from a Lyra Delos on this arm/table, I see nothing inherently incompatible between the two. I'd imagine the Kleos would behave similarly as far as mechanical setup is concerned.
Hi Jr W:

In past years we made physically shorter cartridges, like the Clavis DC. or the Parnassus DCt. With these, we sometimes received complaints from owners of certain tonearms such as the SME V and IV. The short cartridge height allowed the tapered armtube to touch down on the LP midway through a side, which was a most unpleasant surprise to the listener when it happened.

Since the Titan, Dorian and Argo, I have attempted to standardize on our cartridge dimensions, to make it easier for our users to change from one Lyra model to another. Those dimensions are as follows: in the vertical plane, between 17 and 18mm from tonearm headshell surface to stylus (with VTF applied), and in the horizontal plane, from 9.52mm (3/8 inch) from mounting screw centers to the stylus.

The only occasions when I have allowed myself to deviate from the above is when the size of the body mechanisms were too large to fit without enlarging the cartridge body. Fortunately, that has not happened in production yet - only for prototype cartridges.

In my recent designs, I have built various internal mechanisms into the cartridge body, and this has required a certain amount of physical space. It would not have been possible to package the mechanisms of the Kleos, for example, into a shorter cartridge, and even so I needed to use shorter components for parts of the body structure than what I normally use.

kind regards, jonathan carr
Yes, I realized even while posting that the arm just needed a little more UP VTA, I bet a person could shim the arm assembly -plinth junction a bit pretty easily. It's not really a problem unless you have your heart set on using a mat, and I don't.

It's still a keeper!
Jonathan,

Would the new lyra cartridges continue to have a hole drilled in the body, allowing for fast mounting on the Centroid arm?

Thanks

Gordon
I am using a Delos on a Origin Live Aurora with Encounter arm and I am having no issues. Setup is critical. 1.76 VTF and a fair amount of antiskate. Antiskate is imporatant to get right. VTA with the tone arm about level or slightly tail up, adjusted by ear. I listened to Lucinda Willams Live album last night and really enjoyed it. I felt about as close to being there as possible. I'm very happy with the Delos so far.