Since acquiring SME in late 2016, Ajay Shirke’s Cadence Group has moved cautiously. First, it revamped and cleaned up the company’s somewhat chaotic worldwide distribution. More recently, the new owners eliminated from the bottom of the line the SME Model 10 turntable, introduced in 2000.

The Model 10 was the first SME turntable to not use the company’s familiar O-ring suspension, as well as the first to use the company’s M10 tonearm, which was not available separately. The M10 was said to be a derivative of the tapered armtube 309 and, according to SME, a superior performer—though it certainly didn’t look better (or even as good). That combo, which I reviewed 19 years ago, then cost $5500 without arm or $5995 with the M10 (about $9000 in today’s dollars). In other words, SME threw in the arm for $495, which made it a very good deal.

At the 2018 High End show in Munich, SME introduced the Synergy, a $22,995 luxury plug’n’play turntable; this year, at High End 2019, they debuted the $10,900 Model 12A turntable, which looks very much like the Synergy, minus its full-feature plug’n’play capabilities and fitted with the 309 arm: less costly than the Synergy’s Series IV arm. Everything about the 12A shouts “SME” in ways the Model 10 only whispered—and for not that much more money, adjusted for inflation, than the original Model 10.

SME’s first-ever integrated turntable
In creating the all-in-one Synergy, SME partnered carefully with three outside suppliers: Nagra supplied the player’s built-in MC phono preamplifier (a mains-powered version of their $2395 battery-powered BPS); Ortofon supplied their $4390 Windfeld Ti moving-coil phono cartridge ($2395); and Crystal Cable, in which Mr. Shirke is now a major investor, the tonearm’s monocrystal internal wiring and DIN-to-RCA cable. (The silver cartridge leads are from Siltech, which is Crystal Cable’s sister company—or, more accurately, their husband company, since Siltech’s Edwin van der Kley is married to Crystal Cable’s Gabi Rijnveld.)

Conveniently, I’ve already reviewed the Windfeld Ti (in the August 2017 Stereophile) and the Nagra BPS phono preamp, so I had a good idea what I’d hear going into this review. Plus, I’ve reviewed the SME Model 15 and other SME ‘tables.

The Windfeld Ti features an SLM (selective laser melting) body of titanium, a boron cantilever to which is fitted a Replicant 100 stylus, and coils of gold-plated copper wire. Recommended tracking force is 2.3gm, and it outputs a low 0.2mV.

The Synergy uses the SME 15’s approximately 10lb, 12″-diameter platter, which is topped with SME’s diamond-turned-and-scrolled Isodamp material, plus a modified version of that ‘table’s bearing. The three pillars that support the aluminum subchassis, which in turn supports the main bearing assembly/subplatter and tonearm mount, are isolated from their surrounds by means of an aerospace polymer developed to SME’s specifications. (SME’s new CEO, Stuart McNeilis, comes from the aerospace industry. If you’re sensing a pattern here, I am too—a very smart one!)

A high-mass aluminum base sitting on three adjustable feet contains the phono preamp, as well as the Model 20-derived three-phase inductance motor with neodymium permanent magnets and three integrated Hall position sensors. The motor is physically decoupled via large rubber O-rings as is typical in SME motor-isolation designs; drive is via a flat belt fitted around a metal subplatter.

The motor control unit, housed in an hourglass-shaped, machined aluminum case sculpted to “nest” neatly against the turntable chassis, contains a microcomputer-controlled closed-loop servo system that allows for instantaneous switching between 33.3, 45, and 78rpm. Out of the box, the platter ran ever so slightly slow, but that was no problem—microfine adjustment of each of the three speeds is easily accomplished. The platter got up to speed quickly, and as you can see from the charts, speed consistency was very good.

Together, the main chassis and power supply weigh 35lb; the former measures approximately 15″ × 14″ × 7″, with the latter measuring 6.75″ × 12″ × 2.65″—a surprisingly compact design, considering the mass.

Setup and use: With this product, SME makes it easy to own a high-performance turntable—though the Synergy is not exactly “plug’n’play.” (In fairness, that was my label, not SME’s!) Removing the motor-transport locking bolt and adding oil to the spindle bearing are the two most difficult setup items—but considering the price, it’s likely a dealer will take care of them. Otherwise, because the arm and cartridge come prealigned, with preset tracking force and antiskating, there’s not much left to do—just making sure the chassis is level, connecting the motor and phono preamp umbilicals (the power supply for the built-in Nagra phono pre is moderately large but can easily be placed out of sight), and grounding the turntable itself. So the Synergy is close to plug’n’play.

If you’ve never handled or closely examined an SME product, you probably haven’t come to the realization that, in terms of build quality and fit’n’finish, few if any turntable manufacturers match or even approach what SME manages. A few brands I can think of that compete are TechDAS and Brinkmann; certainly there are a few others—but not many! And while SME’s industrial design is on the austere side—especially the looks of their bigger, squarer ‘tables—they also exude a comforting, machine-shop solidity that gives you the feeling they will spin on for your lifetime and those of future generations of vinyl enthusiasts (which we can now be confident there are and will be).

With its one-piece pressure-die-cast magnesium armtube and its obviously high-quality bearings—the latter provide a solid, secure feeling that’s especially important for a vinyl newbie—the player’s 9.18″ Series IV arm, badged with the Synergy logo, is a pleasure to look at, use, and listen to. That said: It doesn’t provide for either azimuth or zenith angle adjustability (the headshell isn’t slotted), so on those counts, you’re at the mercy of the cartridge manufacturer. (That’s another good reason for SME to have chosen a top-tier Ortofon.) So those who feel they need the last bit of setup perfection may end up looking elsewhere. This is something SME should address in the future.

It’s easy to imagine this handsome-in-an-understated-way piece of high-class machinery gracing the desk of a music-loving executive, or on the shelf of a well-to-do digital audiophile—the kind of guy or gal who says “Let me hear what the big deal is all about with vinyl.” Play one good record on this sweet yet detailed-sounding setup, and any skepticism will be digital toast.

The Windfeld Ti is a high-performance cartridge that extracts and provides a great deal of detail, but it is not at all “analytical” or mechanical sounding. It’s sort of the “Dockers” of high-performance Ortofons. The cartridge has a relatively sweet, lush midrange compared to the more detail-oriented Ortofons like the A95 and especially the new Anna Diamond. The Windfeld Ti is harmonically generous, with transients that are clean but don’t bite. I went back to my Windfeld Ti review, and what I heard here was essentially what I wrote there.

I revisited the recordings I auditioned for that review (and of course many more), among them the Bach Brandenburg Concertos, with Karl Münchinger conducting the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra (3 LPs, London CSA 2301), and another version with Nikolaus Harnoncourt on cello and conducting the Concentus Musicus Wien, from an original black and gold Das Alte Work Telefunken set (SAWT 9459/60).

I don’t know how anyone who hasn’t been exposed to great analog reproduction would react with anything but “Wow!” to the sounds of these LPs on the Synergy. The graceful attack and natural sustain produced by this rig and the complete freedom from mechanical artifacts—plus the soundstage three-dimensionality—betters the best digital. I’ve been playing the Telefunken set for 50 years (!), and it’s still dead quiet and never fails to fully engage my attention.

From a grouping of Command Classics recorded to 35mm tape, I pulled out Virgil Fox Plays (Command CC11018SD), which was the very first recording made at Lincoln Center’s Philharmonic Hall on the Aeolian-Skinner organ that was later removed during the hall’s first major renovation: the first of many failed attempts to get the damn place to sound any good, which it still really doesn’t. (The organ ended up at Robert H. Schuller’s Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, CA, now a Roman Catholic church.)

Footnote 1: SME Limited, Mill Road, Steyning, West Sussex BN44 3GY England, UK. Tel: (44) (0)1903-814321. Fax: (44) (0)1903-814269. Web: sme-audio.com. US distributor: Bluebird Music Ltd., 1100 Military Trail, Kenmore, NY 14217. Tel: (416) 638-8207. Fax: (416) 638-8115. Web: bluebirdmusic.com.

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