Wilson Benesch Full Circle TurnTables

Wilson Benesch Full Circle TurnTables 

USER REVIEWS

Showing 1-6 of 6  
[Apr 27, 2003]
Oxpecker
AudioPhile

Strength:

Nice extended highs and lows. Very clear and clean sound. Holographic. Designer looks. Not a volume seller.

Weakness:

Difficult arm to set up properly, but once done, it's OK. Accentuate surface noise. Change cartridge?

Bought a Circle and Act 0.5 arm, without cartridge. Product was manufactured in Aug 2000, so I bought a new-old-stock (NOS). Cartridge mounted is a 2 year old Ortofon MC15SuperMK2. Arm was quite fiddly to set up initially and I had problem with the arm lift as it couldn't lift the cartridge out of a playing record. Had to unlock many tiny allen-screws to fine tune the arm. Could be "scary" & "daunting" for first-timers like myself. Took me a few days to realise how to set up the tonearm correctly. A 5 year old kid could write better instructions than the provided manual. Turntable quality was a bit "cheapskate" to me cos most of the parts are from Rega - on/off switch, rubber belt and arm-lift. However I tend to think of it as a "Designer-Rega" that slots between the P25 and P9. Other than that, it's a nice simple design. Sound-wise... beautiful, holographic 3D imaging, extended highs and powerful bass. Very clean sounding and clear. However I noticed that surface-noise tends to be high (due to cartridge?) and it doesn't have toe-tapping PRAT of Rega. Sound was a bit "sterile" with not much emotion to me. But I could always tune it with a slightly warmer and PRAT cartridge. So not much of a problem for me. Conclusion: I am happy with the purchase and could live with it for a long time to come. I made a dustcover from corrugated plastic sheets that cost me less than $5. And the turntable sits on 3 unicones which opens up the sound.

Similar Products Used:

Rega Planar 2. Shortlisted Circle against Scheu Premier2, Acoustic Signature, Spacedeck/spacearm. And finally decided that the WB offers the best value for money. Nothing much to tweak... it just play

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Mar 24, 2003]
danev
AudioPhile

Strength:

Graceful, Open clean & clear

This table allowes the listener to forget about the system and get into the music. It's clean clear and open like it's looks. It has a transparency about it that allows me to follow the individual instruments and passages within the music. This table is very impressive with well recorded acoustic jazz and small ensembles.I'm using a Dynavector 20dv and am very happy with the results especially for the money. I'm glad I waited for this table and did'nt settle for something less. The hardwired interconnects are another reason why this package is such a bargin. I highly recommend the circle

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Oct 25, 2002]
GregMac
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Rhythm, Rich Sound on Instruments, Great Bass. First rate build quality. Handsome table.

Weakness:

No cover.

I just purchased a Wilson Benesch Full Circle. This product was well packed. The player is well thought out and quality built. I love the style and appearance of the product. Changing speeds is an uncomplicated procedure. Listening is first-rate – great bass extension, controlled, great rhythm. It doesn't matter what you put on it for vinyl, everything sounds good. I love guitar music and playing it on the Full Circle is unbelievable. Impressive realism. Voices are clear and clean. The Wilson Benesch 0.5 carbon fibre tone arm did not take long to set up. The arm is equal in appearance and quality to the table. I am impressed every time I listen to this table. It's a beautiful product. I'm using the table with: Sonic Frontier Power 2 Tube Power Amp Sonic Frontier Line 3 Tube Pre Amp Sonic Frontier SF CD1 Tube CD Player Siltech Speaker Cable Siltech Interconnects Kimber KCAG Interconnects Nordost SPM Reference Speaker Cable Gutwire Power Cords Audiomat Power Cord Reference R645 Speaker

Similar Products Used:

None owned but several auditioned through friends.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
4
[Aug 10, 1999]
Heiko Bosman
an Audio Enthusiast

Today i had the opportunity to hear the Circle with ACT 0.5 tonearm and a Sumiko Blue Point cartridge with a friend of mine. We both took a lot of our LPs to check out how the player would react to surface noise, scratches and mostly how it would sound with different recordings. Surface noise and scratches were about how any player would reveal them which was a bit of a downer (maybe the cartridge is at fault here) but the sound of the player was excellent, great highs without distortion and impressive and focussed lows while midband was just right. Soundwise i would buy this player immediately, however i probably won't because a) manual belt lift, one has to remove the platter (!) and lift the belt to select 33/45 and i have a lot of 12 inches that i frequently play... b) the arm seemed a bit wobbly and it was extremely difficult to place it at the start of a track, a bit inconvenient. Great on sound, pretty bad on convenience (no dustcover either). It is pretty compact though so it doesn't take up the space a normal player would. Auditioned with the new Proac tablettes on Solidsteel stands, some sort of supercables, Primare A30.1 integrated and AH! phonostage.

OVERALL
RATING
3
VALUE
RATING
[Mar 15, 2001]
John Costanzo
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Minimal setup time. Fast,Airy, Articulate with a real sense of painting an accurate portrait of the music. Incredible Value.

Weakness:

None

Minimum hastle in setup, maximum performance. Out performs some much higher priced table/arm combos. Best with its own, Act 0.5 arm. The arm/table combination is, in my opinion, Analog's best kept secret. Detailed, with a sense of space between all instruments represented in the music, best describes where the Circle excels. Kudos to WB for their contribution to the audio industry, specifically working with Carbon Fibre. PS...The Act 0.5 arm also excels on other fine tables, taking them to higher levels of performance. Highly recommended.

Similar Products Used:

Rega PL25 or PL 9, J.A. Mitchell Gyrodec Spyder, Kuzma Stabi

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Apr 29, 1999]
Charles
an Audio Enthusiast

This turntable is intellegently designed, well manufactured, and expertly machined. I enjoy it's compact size. The unit is built like a tall, round layer cake, just slightly larger then a LP. The look is very cool and modern. The arm and cartrage, when at rest, hangs out in open space. This took a bit of getting used to as I always had a large squared base underneath the cartrage to protect it. However given the position of the cartrage at rest, it makes it very easy to clean the stylus. I added three energy absorbing feet, which was all the isolation it required when sitting on a plain wood table. This turntable is a keeper. I would find it too difficult to upgrade without spending much more money.Associated equipment: Rega RB 900 arm. Benz LO4 cartrage. Melos phono pre. Aronov pre/power. Merlin VSM spkrs. Audiodyne copper/silver wire throughout.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
Showing 1-6 of 6  

(C) Copyright 1996-2018. All Rights Reserved.

audioreview.com and the ConsumerReview Network are business units of Invenda Corporation

Other Web Sites in the ConsumerReview Network:

mtbr.com | roadbikereview.com | carreview.com | photographyreview.com | audioreview.com