My New TT : The Cello from Scheu Analog

Ah yes! Google also says one signal wire ground is connected to tonearm.

Asitda I read your compliance matching thread (I think that would have also helped in dead quiet hum free turntable) so your listening impression of low frequency music at little higher volume level will be very much appreciated.

A guide to look for various instruments...
Interactive Frequency Chart - Independent Recording Network
 
Okay, a short note on the price.

The Cello with Rega RB251 arm + Ortofon Super OM 10 cart costs around Euro 1200 in Europe. For this configuration, Jochen set an introductory price (for the first 3 buyers I think) at 60K exclusive of VAT. Now this intro offer has gone up to slightly above 61K + VAT, I suppose, because INR has depreciated significantly against the Euro in the last 6 months or so.

I have upgraded the cart to Super OM 30. That cost an extra INR 9500 +VAT. So the price came to INR 69500 +VAT. The Karnataka VAT is quite high at 14%. In aggregate, I paid almost 80K inclusive of everything.

The Cello comes in other more expensive configurations, with better arms etc. You have to contact Jochen directly for a full current price list.

Off to lunch. I'll answer all other queries whenever I find the time.

Regards.

PS: I contacted Jochen after people started asking the price I paid. I called up Jochen and he has no problem if I put the prices up openly.
 
Adding to Asit's post: the Cello can be had without tonearm and cart for 50K+. There are other configurations as well. For those, best to speak with Jochen directly!
 
Arnab,

Here are the answers:

1. RB 251 is an excellent tonearm, almost has become a standard, does the TT provides tonearm height adjustment? this is handy when one changes cartridge and its not from SHURE/ORTOFON

I do not think so. But one can use shims for this.

2. I have heard it has switchable 33/45, how is the drive and speed stability?

The Scheu tables are known for the drive and stability of speed. They use an inverted bearing which needs to be oiled before one puts on the platter. The bearing on the Cello is the same as their higher model Premier and Premier II which have much heavier platters. The oil comes in a syringe, all supplied with the TT. Instead of a rubber belt, they use a very thin nylon thread. The TT comes with a 200m reel of this thread. Scheu thinks that this is better sonically than rubber belts, because it is presumably more difficult to make rubber belts with low tolerance with respect to climate changes. The platter is made of acrylic and is made using the same material and precision (flat up to 1 in 100) as that of the Premier. But on the Cello, the platter is lighter, because the plinth is also perhaps lighter.

3. Did you notice any inner groove distortion? I have found it to be common in almost all TTs (some higher some lesser) no matter how you deal with it

So far I have listened for an hour to 75 minutes. I have so far not used any high quality vinyl records. But with the ones used last night, I did not find any noticeable difference with inner tracks. This depends quite heavily on the cut of the needle. Instead of the stock Super OM 10 which has an elliptical cut, or the Super OM 20 (with a nude elliptical cut), I chose the Super OM 30 just because of its nude fine line cut. This should track much better the inner grooves. I have serious budgetary constraint, but if I find something necessary for me, I will cut somewhere else in my expenses, and add the necessary bit. In this case, that meant an additional expenditure of over 10K including VAT. But in my judgment, it is money well spent. Time will tell.

4. whats the platter weight?

The platter weighs 2.5 kg and is 30mm thick. One is not supposed to touch the platter with bare hands to avoid finger-printing. Scheu puts in a pair of cotton gloves in the package. The gloves look exactly like the inner gloves used in cricket (mostly by wicketkeepers, but also used by a few batsmen like Rahul Dravid).

5. I guess the operations are fully manual for such a high-end TT?

I would not call it a high end TT. However, it is starting to be a serious minded TT from this point onwards. The thinking behind it, I suppose, pays attention to some of the basic things in building a good TT. Yes, all operations are manual. and I like it that way. I will pay for the sonics and build quality, and not for anything else. My Leben amp does not come with a remote, my CDP has a remote and I do not use it. The only remote I use is for the TV, because I have a habit of changing channels.

you should compare it with a popular entry level TT in terms of sound stage, attack, ability to reproduce more quieter moments, momentary thump, deep and detailed bass response, natural voice reproduction.....

It will be difficult to do this comparison. People around do not have entry-level TTs. Vasu has the VPI classic, Pratim has Pro-ject RPM 4 and Manoj has a Rega P5. Only Pratim's is the closest to an entry level, but much better than a Genie or a Debut. In addition, I would not request any of them to bring their TT over (because transporting a TT is not the most trivial thing, one has to do it carefully and the packing & unpacking hassles may not be worth it). But we will have a fairly good idea about my TTs true capabilities in a few weeks once it burns in and I have a few phono stages to try. But the starting impression is good.

why do you want to change 640P? are you not satisfied with it? I have found it to be incredibly VFM though I have no experience of more costly phono stages

I agree that the CA 640p phono is VFM. Actually just after I bought it, within 10 hours at the most, the motor of my Dual died. So, even the phono is not properly burnt in. I want to give everything at least 30 hours and then start making the first solid impressions. Given all that, there are better phono stages in this world. I will have to see if the improvement is significant to my listening ears given the extra money of the other more expensive one (of course one has to keep also in mind that the improvement is not a linear function of money spent). Whatever I buy is hugely driven by VFM considerations. This includes my CA 740c CDP and even my Leben amp. I hope this TT turns out to be one too.

one more query - is for the OM series the cartridge body is same and the needle changes or the whole cart-needle assembly is different for OM10/30?

Do not confuse OM with Super OM. There was also an OMB series. My Dual CS5000 came with the OMB 20. The Super OM is now replaced by the 2M series I think, but is still available in Europe directly from Ortofon. The OM series was a much earlier series. But, to answer your query, I think all Super OM (and the earlier OM and OMB as well, I think) bodies are the same, it's only the needle that is different. However, that is not completely true for the recent 2M series. The Red and the Blue have the same body, and the Bronze and the Black have an upgraded body. I hear that the Red is good, but the Blue is the real VFM, and if you have money, go for the Black. It's the best MM ever made - according to many, and performs and costs way over many MCs.


Regards.
 
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Bluu, Joshua, Sridhar, Sandeep, avidyarthy, Vasu, yezdian, omishra and Anil,

Thank you all for continuing to encourage me.

In the above, I have already answered the questions on the price. Bluu has also added to my post with information on the price without tonearm and cartridge.

Joshua,
Yes, I really thought the upgrade to Super OM 30 would be worth the extra money, as explained above in my reply to Arnab.

Sridhar,
As already answered by Bluu, Jochen has just started to deal with Trigon. In a week or so, I'll get the Trigon Vanguard II phono stage and the Volcano III power supply from Jochen.

Sandeep,
I am not the one just for the looks. However, I appreciate the beauty when I see a beautiful one. The TT really looks good including the Rega 251 arm, I think. The black and sobre looking arm gives it a low-profile that tames the glaze of the transparent acrylic plinth and goes well with the white semi-transparent acrylic platter :).

avidyarthy,
Yes, we should meet whenever you make a visit to Kolkata next.

Vasu,
As you know you are always welcome. This time, however, you have to come with your Nighthawk. I hope you do not mind. Alternatively Pratim can bring his Nighthawk too.

Hiten,
Yes, I did a lot of calculations with that formula and a lot of cartridges with the Rega RB251 arm. Indeed, I found the RB251 and the Super OM 30 a very very good match. Jochen tells me that with the help of a test record, he has determined the resonant frequency of this arm-cart combo and it comes to 10 Hz, absolutely ideal, I would say. Jochen also could determine the tracking ability of the arm-cart combo to be 80 micrometer, which is also very very good. This should also interest Arnab, because he was asking me earlier in the thread about tracking quality of the inner grooves.

Anil,
If you want to "see" it (as you have put it), there are two alternatives. Either go to Jochen's place next time when he brings another Cello (he has a Premier mk III for demo), or if you are in Kolkata, please drop in at our very humble place. I'll have pictures up in a day or two.

Folks asking for pictures,
I'll snap a few on my Canon DSLR. That's not the problem. The real problem is I will have to do a bit of post-processing and cut the quality big time, because the RAW format pictures are at least 25MB each. Pictures will come up this evening or tomorrow.

Regards.
 
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Folks asking for pictures,
I'll snap a few on my Canon DSLR. That's not the problem. The real problem is I will have to do a bit of post-processing and cut the quality big time, because the RAW format pictures are at least 25MB each. Pictures will come up this evening or tomorrow.

Regards.

thanks
venu
 
I think with these excellent purchases our interest for truly audiophile quality TTs is renewed. Probably all of us will agree prospect of getting such TTs in India is rather limited. Let us list all we know so that prospective listeners can give a try

1. Rega dealer: Lifestyle AV, Pune
2. Pro-ject Dealer: NOVA audio, Mumbai, I have heard SKS traders, Kolkata has a resonable stock of Pro-ject
3.Please enter the Scheu dealer info for our future reference
4.Any idea about dealers of Clearaudio, VPI and McIntosh in India as they are very popular in the above $1000 region.

Arnab
 
Goldenote's Valore TT with their entry level arm and cartridge combo is about 60-70K at J&B Mumbai. The thing that struck me about this setup was the fast dynamics.
Joshua
 
Hiten,
the resonant frequency of this arm-cart combo and it comes to 10 Hz, absolutely ideal,
That's good but what is supercool is I have calculated it to be 6 hz (5.8 hz to be precise) which is amazing. :)
Calculator - Resonance Frequency

I guess with two tonearms one can be used with elliptical shape stylus for innergroove songs, right ?
 
Asit, congrats for your new TT. From pictures it looks solid and classy. We all here are willing to know some detailed review of the same.

1. RB 251 is an excellent tonearm, almost has become a standard, does the TT provides tonearm height adjustment? this is handy when one changes cartridge and its not from SHURE/ORTOFON

2. I have heard it has switchable 33/45, how is the drive and speed stability?

3. Did you notice any inner groove distortion? I have found it to be common in almost all TTs (some higher some lesser) no matter how you deal with it

4. whats the platter weight?

5. I guess the operations are fully manual for such a high-end TT?

you should compare it with a popular entry level TT in terms of sound stage, attack, ability to reproduce more quieter moments, momentary thump, deep and detailed bass response, natural voice reproduction.....

why do you want to change 640P? are you not satisfied with it? I have found it to be incredibly VFM though I have no experience of more costly phono stages

one more query - is for the OM series the cartridge body is same and the needle changes or the whole cart-needle assembly is different for OM10/30?

Arnab
Hi Arnab,
Align your cart with Stevenson protractor which you can download from here Cartridge Alignment Protractors | Free Turntable, Tonearm & Cartridge Tools | Vinyl Engine
Technics arms are closer to Stevenson method.You should not notice any distortion in inner groove after alignment.

Regards,
Sachin
 
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