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REVIEW: Audio Note AN-TT Two Turntables

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Model: AN-TT Two
Category: Turntables
Suggested Retail Price: $1,399
Description: Two motor (AC synchronous) belt drive turntable, suspended sub-chassis, acrylic platter, 33/45 RPM
Manufacturer URL: Audio Note
Manufacturer URL: Audio Note

Review by footsurg ( A ) on August 24, 2006 at 16:46:50
IP Address: 65.38.15.244
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Review

Audio Note TT-2/Arm 2/IQ3

Introduction

Sometimes one comes across a product or design that is so good that you know you're looking at an instant classic. That describes how I felt about the Audio Note TT-2 after I began listening to it. What we have in the TT-2/Arm2/IQ3 is a complete analog front end that can be had for around $3000 whose performance defies its price category.

Philosophy

Because it is a relatively inexpensive turntable I did not expect much from it. Its a rather austere looking, lightweight turntable that looks anemic compared to all those 200-300 pound granite and steel monsters that adorn the covers of all the high end audio magazines. In fact, going by design principals alone, the TT-2 goes against the grain in almost every conceivable way. Most of the designers of premium turntables today believe that to get the most information extracted from the record groove, you need to have an unsuspended and massive plinth, extremely high mass platter with some sort of fancy microprocessor controlled drive system, outboard motors or pneumatic drive systems, and an arm and cartridge that together cost more than a new Honda Civic.

Enter the world of the Audio Note TT-2. It is a lightweight, 2 motor, 3 point suspended turntable with a low mass platter. It costs a modest $1500 while the arm 2 and IQ3 cost $750 and $800 respectively.

The first thing that one may notice about the TT-2 is the rather lightweight looking, low mass acrylic platter. Peter Qvortrup of Audio Note feels like high mass platters are great collectors of energy. "Instead of isolating the record from vibration, high mass platters serve to gather energy and channel it directly into the grooves which causes playback distortion". While it is true that heavy platters tend to have greater inertia, which helps with speed stability, the addition of a second motor on the TT-2 offers more stability control than having the highest mass platter you can imagine. And the low mass acrylic platter keeps airborne energy transmission to a bare minimum. Indeed, the TT-2 is one of the quietest turntables I have ever heard.

Arm 2 and IQ3

My particular setup includes an Audio Note Arm 2 and the most excellent Audio Note IQ3 cartridge. The Arm 2 is really an Audio Note modified Rega RB-250 that has silver Audio Note internal tonearm wire and Audio Note 15 strand pure silver AN-V leadouts that terminate via high quality AN RCA connectors. The arm 2 has an anti-skating control. I have been advised to leave this set at “0” at all times. My arm 2 does not have the stock counterweight installed. Rather it has the Michell Technoweight, which replaces the stock counterweight itself as well as the plastic stub. In its place a high quality stainless steel stub and counterweight is used.

The IQ3 is a 6g MM cartridge loosely based on the Goldring 1042. The IQ3 is made by Goldring in the Goldring plant to strict Audio Note specifications. The IQ3 looks almost exactly like a Goldring 1042, but thats really where the similarities end. I understand that the coils are wound to Audio Note specs and the cantilever and diamond tip are totally unique to Audio Note. The cantilever is all titanium and the tip is the AN type II diamond, which is an identical stylus to that of the much more expensive $2650 IO1. Peter Qvortrup tells me that the IQ1, IQ2, and IQ3 are identical except for the design of the stylus. If you had an IQ1 and decided to improve it, you could simply pull off the removable stylus and replace it with the stylus of an IQ2 or IQ3.

The IQ3 is a simple MM design with extremely high build quality. Its been said by many that a well constructed, high quality MM cartridge will outperform most if not all of the inexpensive high output MC designs. It is very difficult to build a really good sounding, but inexpensive MC cartridge. To get the MC right you need to use some insanely high end materials which ends up yielding a high priced bugger with a really low output voltage. Because MM designs are simple, some pretty astoundingly good sounding examples can be made with a minimum investment compared to MC. The bottom line is the IQ3 is one of the finest sounding MM designs that I have ever heard. It is right up there with the Clearaudios and the Grados, but when used in an all Audio Note setup it displays a cohesive element that allows it to mesh better with the AN gear than a non AN cartridge. Peter tells me that he voiced the IQ3 using the phono stage in the M8.


System Synergy

One thing I have learned about Audio Note gear is that the more AN stuff you have in the chain, the better everything sounds. I don’t think anyone would disagree that Audio Note makes some incredibly good sounding equipment, but the sum of the parts seem to elevate the sound quality to a higher level than one would initially expect. When I first began my Audio Note journey I used Audio Note speakers with non Audio Note amps, preamps and digital and analog front ends. The sound was very satisfying. Then I added Audio Note 300B monoblocks. The sound evolved immensely to a degree that shocked me. Later I added the Audio Note TT-2, which again brought the system’s sound to a whole new level. Even later came the Audio Note preamp and cabling. This was the final stage that brought the system into focus and revealed dynamics and transparency that I had previously considered impossible from a system of this size.

Currently on the analog side I am running all Audio Note from the stylus to the speaker drivers. The increase in sound quality was far greater than I would have ever expected. Folks, its not just because of the high end parts and build quality that this system sounds like it does. All this gear was voiced together. The Conquests that I am using were voiced on the AN-E while using an Audio Note preamp that is similar to the one I own. All the cabling was Audio Note. The TT-2 combination was also tweaked on this same caliber of equipment. All of this gear is meticulously tweaked together and by ear until the desired sound is achieved. The result is system synergy that is practically unmatched anywhere else in high end audio.

When I first read about Audio Note system synergy and the level systems, before I purchased my first AN product, I thought it was a bunch of high end audio smoke and mirrors. Just about all high end audio dealers use the synergy term when selling gear. Lord knows I have gone through so many systems over the years and can tell you that there are good combinations and not so good combinations of equipment out there. I have personally heard the differences in making good and bad choices. However, the differences between good and bad were large but not earth shattering in any way. With Audio Note…….good grief!! When you add that last cable or preamp that finally completes the chain, the degree of improvement is astonishing. Far greater than I would have ever expected.

Audio Note Synergy Put to the Test

I have been busy testing out the strength of Audio Note synergy. During listening sessions I will arbitrarily change something. I will swap out the speaker cables or change an interconnect to a non Audio Note design. Not cheap stiff either. I am talking about Tara, Purist and Straightwire stuff. A few nights ago I swapped out my Lexus speaker cables for Purist Maximus and Dominus. The difference could not have been more immense. The size of the soundstage decreased, the dynamics suffered and the general “flow” of the system was altered using the Purist cables. I put the Lexus back in and boom everything I liked returned. Is that because the Lexus cable conducts better than the others? Is it because of the purity of the copper? Was it the design of the cable? The type of shielding? Is it because the Lexus is that much better than the others? I really don’t think it is.

I brought some Lexus speaker wire to a friend’s home recently expecting to wow him with the unexpected performance of this relatively low cost wire. We dropped it into his 2A3 and Klipshorn system only to find that it made little difference over his regular cables. Now it’s all making more sense. Why does that Lexus sound so good in my system? Because all my gear was voiced using similar cable material and design. Synergy not only has something to do with it….it has everything to do with it.

On to the TT-2 review you Idiot!

I must have forgotten that I set out to review a turntable here. However synergy in an all Audio Note system is so important and affects the overall sound so profoundly, that this review would be worthless in my eyes without discussing it and how it affects the overall sound of the system.

The strength of the TT-2 design is very evident before you even sit down to listen to one. That’s because the TT-2 in another form has been enticing music lovers for over 30 years. Its no secret that Audio Note purchased the rights to the turntable designs of the Scottish Systemdek corporation a decade or so back. The TT-2 is basically a highly modified Systemdek IIx. There are still legions of Systemdek turntable owners out there who cling to their old beloved tables like a mother to a newborn infant. Just check out the discussion groups out there. These folks are diehard. They kind of remind me of Apple Macintosh users. Very devoted and loyal. Even though the company has ceased to exist as Systemdek they continue to highly covet their tables. Why is that? Is it nostalgia? Is it because they are too cheap to buy something new?

After speaking with some of these guys, the reason became apparent. They have tried other tables. They had moved on to the Linns and Regas of the world only to find that something was missing. They always gravitated back to their trusty old Systemdeks, because the sound was superior.

TT-2 Construction

The TT-2 is a 14 pound, 3 point spring suspended table with twin opposing 24 pole asynchronous AC motors coupled to an acrylic sub platter with 2 oval rubber belts. The platter bearing has been modified from the original as well as the acrylic main platter. The original Systemdek IIx used a glass platter and only had one motor. The arm board comes drilled for the Rega arms and sits on a subchassis with also holds the platter bearing assembly and is suspended from the main chassis by 3 springs. The front of the table has a simple on/off rocker switch and does not light up when the table is in operation. The rear of the table has an earth grounding post, two posts for the attachment of the dustcover and a hardwired mains cable. The dust cover is clear plastic and is of above average quality.

The TT-2 can play either 33 and a third RPM or 45 RPM records. To change the speed the main platter must be removed and both belts must be moved between the 2 pulley options. The top pulley is for 33 RPM and the lower one is for 45 RPM.


Turntable Setup

All turntables benefit from proper setup. This one is no exception. The TT-2 however is a
Tad fussier about setup than most thanks to its 3 point spring suspension. If you’ve had Regas or Linns in the past then this sort of adjustment will seem easy to you. The first and foremost rule of setting up is to make sure that the table is dead ass level. This means leveling your equipment rack or wall shelf with a bubble level before the TT-2 even comes out of the box. Once the TT-2 is sitting on its level platform then its time to level the platter. You will need a 4mm allen wrench to turn the three suspension screws that are accessible from the top of the table and flush mounted on the top plinth. You will also need a metric ruler. This is to measure the distance from the bottom edge of the platter to the top of the plinth. I found that 4mm was the optimal distance for the best sound. If you plan to use an IQ3 then 4mm is especially optimal because no adjustment of the VTA will be required. 4mm puts the IQ3 at almost near perfect VTA provided that the cartridge is aligned in the head shell properly.

As you may already know, there is no way to adjust the VTA on the Rega arms except by placing washers between the arm board and the base of the arm itself. These washers are available in 2mm and 4mm thickness. They can be obtained from Rega or Audio Note.

The Rega arms come with a cardboard protractor that is very useful in lining up the cartridge to the head shell. This cardboard protractor looks very cheap and flimsy when you look at it. You may wonder if it’s possible for it to be accurate. Well I can assure that it’s dead on accurate. After aligning my IQ3 with it, I used a much nicer and expensive protractor made by DB systems, which showed the alignment, zenith and azimuth derived form the Rega protractor to be spot on.

Once the platter has been leveled, and the cartridge has been aligned with regard to zenith and azimuth, its time to adjust the vertical tracking force. This can be accomplished with a simple force gauge like the one made by Shure. It’s cheap in price but not completely accurate. I found mine to be off by almost 0.5 grams when I used a digital mass gauge to test its accuracy. A digital force gauge is the way to go. I ordered mine from Desmond Poon at Audio Note Singapore. It cost $95 including shipping and is worth every penny. It is identical to the one being sold by Acoustic Sounds for $185.

The IQ3 is rated for a tracking force as heavy as 2.4 grams and as light as 1.75 grams. I found 1.85g to be the most optimal tracking force. 1.85g to my ears yielded the best combination of soundstaging, low frequency extension and high frequency purity. Mario Binner from Audio Note likes his at 1.9g. I suspect if you are anywhere between 1.8 and 1.9 grams you will be in the zone.

Finally the nut that holds the tone arm to the arm board should not be overtightened. If you wrench tighten this nut, the dynamics will suffer greatly. This nut should only be tightened to FINGER tightness.

I also found that running the table with the bottom cover removed made a sonic difference as well. I am sure Audio Note will not be condoning this, but it did improve the focus a little to leave it off. Once you take the cover off, reattach the stock feet to the frame. I tried some spikes and pucks in place of the stock feet and found that these made no audible difference.

I would like to thank Mario Binner from Audio Note UK for all his wisdom and excellent suggestions in properly setting up my deck. Believe me when I say that proper alignment and set up is of the utmost importance with this kind of gear. Having it even slightly out of proper alignment will make the difference between unremarkable sound and jaw dropping performance.

The Sound

So what kind of performance should we expect from this very modest looking and modestly priced turntable? Given its lineage and the fact that Audio Note has had a hand in making it better than the original, I would expect it to be a top performer in its price range.

To begin, the first thing that struck me about the sound of the TT-2 was its excellent pace, rhythm, drive and timing. In this regard it bested every other turntable that I have ever owned. I am assuming the addition of the second motor has a lot to do with this. This turntable has a lot of torque. When you flip the rocker switch to the on position, the platter goes from stationary to full speed in less than a second. Placing a finger on the platter while it is in motion in an attempt to slow it down is futile. The platter maintains a constant speed in spite of outside force being applied to it. In order to demonstrate good pace and drive a table needs to have excellent speed stability. The TT-2 with its two high torque motors has the speed stability required for excellent dynamics and timing.

The TT-2 also has the lowest rumble I’ve seen as well. So well is the arm and platter isolated from the plinth, you can literally rap on the frame with your knuckle while listening to music, and will not hear even the slightest “thump” out of the speakers.

In addition to the great pace and drive, this table provides some of the most focused and highly resolved images that I’ve heard from any table at any price. There is air around the voices and instruments that I have not ever heard from a rig costing this little. It really does posses the imaging and drive characteristics of some of the “big buck” rigs that I’ve heard at some of the shows.

It demonstrates massive inner resolution of all instruments and literally gets to the soul of the music better than any table I’ve heard at this price level. A few nights ago I slapped some Bob Marley on the platter. The song was “Them Belly Full (But We Hungry)” off of Natty Dread, Island ILPS 9281, 1974. The bass notes were very powerful and punchy, with Marley’s voice coming in dead center between the speakers out of a sea of black with a large physical presence. The space and air between the rhythm section and percussion was staggering. I’ve heard this record a lot of times before, but I never remembered it having so much energy.

Next up was Patsy Cline’s “Showcase”. This was an original Decca DL74202 from 1961. I listened to “Crazy”. Patsy’s voiced drilled through the speakers with the energy of a wrecking ball. There was so much resolution it seemed I could hear through her voice. I could hear extra echo and reverb that I never noticed before. Her voice was so immediate and forward that I could almost see her sitting in that sound booth with the old stainless steel tube condenser mike hanging in front of her. On my previous rig she sounded as if she was singing from the rear of a long narrow hallway. On the TT-2 she was sitting right between my speakers 10 feet in front of me. I could almost see her face it was so vivid.

Patsy put me in the mood for something a little more mellow. Next on the platter was Alice Coltrane’s 1970 LP “Ptah the El Daoud”. I listened to the track “Turiya and Ramakrishna”. This is a bluesy little tune that has Pharoah Sanders shaking some bells on top of Alice’s piano. Those bells sound like they are right in the room with you. They are startling actually. They come out of nowhere, but they seem to be everywhere. They have weight and depth to them. They were palpable. They are very very believable. For grins I played my CD of this album right after listening to the LP. The bells could hardly even be heard at all. There was nothing palpable about them.

After looking through my record cabinet for a few minutes I came across one I had not heard in a long while. It was John Lee Hooker’s 1973 album “Born in Mississippi Raised Up in Tennessee.” Just some trivia, this is the only record that Van Morrison ever made an appearance with JLH. He played one track with him called “Going Down”. The great slide guitarist Elvin Bishop also played on the track. I listened to the entire record, but the track I liked the best was “King of the World”. John’s powerful voice just filled the room with high energy, while the electric bass and guitars came out of the speakers with such solidarity and authority that it was hard to believe that this was an old record being played on a hifi rig. The electric piano and electric melodica were presented with such purity and richness that after the song was over, I played it again. Most surprising…..this record is quadraphonic. These usually suck sonically, but that’s one of the most intriguing things about the TT-2. It has the ability to make even sonically “disadvantaged” recordings sound palpable and genuinely enjoyable.

Last record I will mention for this review was perhaps the best record I’ve played in some time. It’s a first pressing of Nick Drake’s “Pink Moon” on the original UK Island label, ILPS 9184, from 1972. Its kind of rare and getting harder to find these days in M- condition. This record sounds absolutely phenomenal on the TT-2. Nick was sort of a disturbed guy and this was his last LP before he committed suicide 2 months later. That’s at least how the story is told. There are many who dispute that his death was the result of suicide at all. Anyway, you can literally feel the distress in his voice on all the tracks. Especially on “From the Morning”. I can literally feel the emotion in his voice. I could not pick it up nearly as well on my previous rig. His voice is so clean and palpable that it takes on a rather haunting character. There is one solo guitar track on the record called “Harvest Breed”. The energy exhibited by the staccato plucking of the guitar strings is mind numbing. Each pluck is as crisp as an early spring morning in Maine. From outside of the listening room it sounds like someone is in there literally playing a real guitar in real air and real space. Astonishing.

The TT-2 does almost everything extraordinarily well, but there are a few faults that I noticed, and must bring up as well. The biggest fault may be simply the design of the suspension. It is very sensitive to any vibration or movement imposed on the stand in which the turntable rests. If you have a home with wood floors or carpet with a suspended sub floor beneath, this may not be the turntable for you. Spongy floors and this type of table don’t get along well. I am sure that it would be no different with any suspended design, so this problem is not unique to the TT-2, but is likely going to be present with any suspended design. A wall mounted shelf may be an alternative for those with creaky floors.

Another issue is with the placement of the second motor. This motor lies beneath the platter directly below where the cartridge tracks as it nears the end of the record. This motor obviously produces a magnetic field, which induces a slight hum as the arm tracks over the position of the motor. Peter is aware of this issue and has started installing a steel shroud around the second motor in an attempt to eliminate this hum. Audio Note provided me with one of the steel shrouds that I retrofitted on my TT-2.

After doing some listening I can confirm that the retrofit did reduce the hum to a minimum level, but it does not eliminate it. I have to admit that with the fix installed, the hum level is so low that it cannot be heard at all while listening to music. The only time it is noticeable is when the arm is cued over the motor and the volume is turned up. Even then its pretty minimal I must say.


Conclusion

The TT-2 is the most involving and palpable sounding table I’ve ever used. I’ve heard better, but not for less than $10,000. And not much better either. This table, arm and cartridge combination is literally a giant killer for what it costs.

To get the most out of it, it must be set up correctly and it must have a very stable platform. All tables more or less require this. The TT-2 demonstrates remarkable synergy when used in an Audio Note system. No doubt the TT-2 sounds killer being run through any high quality amplification and speakers, but Audio Note system synergy is like a component in of itself. However, the TT-2 is going to be one of the most musical tables you’re going to get for the money regardless of what other components comprise the system.

I would recommend this table without reservation to anyone seeking a table that runs with the big dogs, but can be had for less money than a year of tuition at an Ivy League university. The TT-2 can literally deliver most if not all of the goods of the monster rigs I have heard, and in some ways it is even better. Usually for $3000 you only get a taste of the high dollar rigs. The TT-2 delivers more than a taste I assure you. It’s almost the whole enchilada.


Mark Margiotta
August 2006

Associated equipment for this review:
Audio Note M3 phono with the new Galahad derived power supply
Audio Note Conquests 300B monoblocks
Audio Note AN-E Lexus loudspeakers on sand and shot filled Audio Note stands
Audio Note Sogon interconnects
Audio Note Lexus Biwired Speaker Cables
Meridian 508.20 one box CD player.
API Power Wedge 116 power conditioner
Dedicated power to listening room

Room Dimensions 14 feet wide, 22 feet long and 12 foot ceilings.
No room treatments
The speakers are 1.5 feet pulled out from the corners and are separated by 10 feet.
The speakers are toed in toward the listening position.
The listening position is 10.5 feet from the base of each speaker.


Product Weakness: Very slight motor hum toward the end of a record. Inaudible while listening to music.
Product Strengths: Amazing realism and palpability uncommon in a turntable in this price range


Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier: Audio Note Conquests
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): Audio Note M3 Phono (New Version)
Sources (CDP/Turntable): Meridian 508.20/ Audio Note TT-2
Speakers: Audio Note AN-E Lexus
Cables/Interconnects: Audio Note Sogon, ANVx, AN-V, Lexus
Music Used (Genre/Selections): Jazz, Rock, Folk, Reggae
Room Size (LxWxH): 22 x 14 x 12
Room Comments/Treatments: None
Time Period/Length of Audition: 2 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): API Power Wedge 116
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner




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Topic - REVIEW: Audio Note AN-TT Two Turntables - footsurg 16:46:50 08/24/06 ( 14)