SME 20/3 or Oracle Delphi VI or Garrard 301

Dev,
"SP10 MK3 is a wonderful table and I would never suggest different but as you know it really does take a bit of effort and money to get the best out of it."

Yes, and I have spent both (effort and money). You may view a photo of the "finished" product in my system portfolio. A slate plinth 2.5 inches thick is bolted to a solid cherry and baltic birch base, to provide constrained damping. The Mk3 chassis is bolted through both sections, from below. Within the wood base is housed a large brass block. A threaded brass rod runs through the block to contact the underside of the bearing housing, a la Albert's plinths. The whole shebang sits on a carefully contrived suspension. The tonearm board is also made of slate, but I also have spares made of aluminum, and brass is planned. The Beat would be outside my budget, is all I meant to say. I prefer the fun of DIY in a perverse way.
By the way, the Mk3 was NOS; nevertheless I had it fully serviced by Bill Thalmann who also does Albert's tables. Bill found several leaky electrolytic capacitors in the power supply, despite or perhaps because of its virgin status. (Charging up an electrolytic periodically will extend its lifespan a bit, compared to its shelf life.) I am sure you would not leave your Veyron sitting around idle.

What happened to the SME 20/3 discussion? Could we get back to the OP? I too would like to hear from others who own it or who have heard it and compared it to other tables at a similar price point. SME tables are being sold in relatively large numbers but are not often discussed in these forums. How do they compare to the competition, especially the DD tables? I own an SME 10 and am thinking of upgrading.

Yeah, sorry. Got carried away.

Mauidj,

You have mentioned several times the Raven AC3 . Another suggestion would be to buy the Raven AC1 and mount your current arm/cartridge on it. This keeps your initial cost down and allows you to do further upgrades over time without having to restart again.

Peterayer, i went from a Model 10 to a Model 20/2 after 9 years with the 10. The upgrade was significant. Far more detail, less bass but it became tighter and far better defined, most of all though was the depth and feel to the music that comes through in a way that is only clear when you hear the one after the other. The 10 is very good, the 20 is excellent and worth the extra cost. As for the 20/3, well, i reckon you would just have to try and get a listen to one.