The debut Klaudio Magnezar KD-MGZ-TT1-NC turntable ($50,000) with Klaudio KD-ARM-AP12 12" tangential tonearm ($18,000) had attendees craning their necks around the display in the Klaudio room.
Klaudio claims on its site that "the Magnezar's platter floats entirely on permanent magnets, so there are no mechanical thrust bearings... Liquid is used to enhance stabilization." Also, the company says, an automatic clamping system "flattens both center and periphery of the LP." The Magnezar supports dual tonearms.
The Klaudio KD-ARM-AP12 was also new, styled in a way that reminded me of the scene in The Terminator where Schwarzenegger peels the skin off his forearm to reveal the various plates and rods that make up his limb.
The company says that its products are true mechanical tangential tonearms that offer "the advantages of linear arms without the cost or complexity of air bearings." Watching the Magnezar's platter descend, its internal liquid swirling while the clamping system flattened a vinyl LP, was genuinely striking.
The analog front end included Reed's new SF Optical Cartridge, developed with DS Audio (about $10,500), and a Reed EQ Phono Equalizer ($38,000). This chain fed a WSAudio PR2 preamplifier ($16,000), which in turn powered Lansche's Jubilé fully active loudspeakers ($195,000/pair). Also in the system: a Staltmanis LAB WR48 power cord (2m, $5300) and RCA48 interconnect (1m, $4200).
The Klaudio KD-ARM-AP12 was also new, styled in a way that reminded me of the scene in The Terminator where Schwarzenegger peels the skin off his forearm to reveal the various plates and rods that make up his limb.
The analog front end included Reed's new SF Optical Cartridge, developed with DS Audio (about $10,500), and a Reed EQ Phono Equalizer ($38,000). This chain fed a WSAudio PR2 preamplifier ($16,000), which in turn powered Lansche's Jubilé fully active loudspeakers ($195,000/pair). Also in the system: a Staltmanis LAB WR48 power cord (2m, $5300) and RCA48 interconnect (1m, $4200).
