Origin Live Calypso MK4 Turntable

Description

Origin Live Calypso MKV Turntable

The Performance

For out-and-out performance, this deck has all the attributes you could ask for. Strengths lie in superb transparency, timing, musicality, dynamics, and tangible sound-staging. Capable of outperforming much more expensive, respected decks, Calypso MK4 is not going to disappoint you. Also, being neutral and system-friendly, it suits most applications very well.

The Calypso performance improves over Aurora in all aspects of music. In particular bass weight, definition and depth are increased. Resolution across the whole audio spectrum is significantly improved. Dynamics and the projection of voices take on a new realism. These improvements are made possible through the added specific features listed lower down.

Performance Features differentiating this deck from the Aurora:

• Heavy inertia disc for mounting the sub-chassis reduces vertical modes of vibration
• Inertia discs positioned at extremities of Plinth resist rotational forces arising from ground and airborne vibration
• Higher grade Swiss Motor with double the Torque of Aurora Motor
• Higher tolerance Bearing

Origin Live Calypso Specific Features

Arm Mount

The deck mounts all Origin Live 240mm (9.5″) tonearms. A mounting option to fit 12″ arms is also available, but this is an either/or choice, rather than an addition. Customers can change over to the 12″ option at a later date, but there’s a considerable saving if you order it with the deck.

High Specification Sub-Chassis

The sub-chassis plate balances the armboard with the platter and bearing house, decoupling both from the turntable plinth. Its mass heavy design also helps to effectively damp vibration travelling through the armboard and platter.

Heavy Inertia Disc

Pictured here beneath the arm board and platter, this stainless steel disc adds a large mass to the plinth, greatly reducing resonance. Placed at the point of its connection to the sub-chassis, this weighs down the plinth, effectively reducing vertical modes of vibration traveling across the plinth and into the sub-chassis. This minimizes any vibration that could travel into the platter or arm board to disturb your vinyl.

Front Loading Inertia Discs x 2

As well as the heavy inertia disc, these smaller inertia discs are positioned at the extremities of the plinth, where the plinth may be susceptible to vibration. The small inertia discs resist rotational forces arising from ground and airborne vibration. This maintains the plinths equilibrium and in turn the equilibrium of the whole turntable.

Suberb Styling

The Calypso’s circular forms evoke curving mid-century designs. The unmistakable profile and black polished finish make it an eye-catching asset for any decor.

REVIEWS FOR THE ORIGIN LIVE CALYPSO

“…it will come as no surprise that I am totally smitten with this player. It is a permanent part of my system and I seriously doubt if there is a player out there that can beat it in terms of outright enjoyment and musical flow. And even in technical and audiophile terms, I’ve not heard a better performance than this.” Read the full review >
Hi-Fi Advice, Christiaan Punter

“Sonically speaking, the Calypso and Encounter were truly addictive. I pretty much lost interest in listening to my digital front end. I marveled at just how much music was locked in a humble LP groove.” Read the full review >
Audio Ideas

“The musical and sonic resolution of the OL pair results in a deep aesthetic reaction to music, the most satisfactory and consistent I’ve yet experienced. A Most Wanted Component of the Year? Yes.” Read the full review >
Stereo Times

“Pace is second to none along with precision and an extremely believable sound stage. Even with the least expensive pick up arm, this turntable projects an image that at times is frighteningly realistic.” Read the full review >
Hi-Fi World

“The Aurora Mk1 provided two years of great pleasure in this home and if the sound it delivered could have be described as good then this upgrade is simply astonishing, and I now understand the praise the Aurora Gold has received from so many reviewers. This is a giant killer of a deck and delivers a true sense of realism in music. Thanks again.”
Read more owner comments >
John Betterton, UK – Owner Comment

Read More Reviews! (Detailed Origin Live Calypso MK4 Review By Hi-Fi Advice, Christiaan Punter)

---

High Performance Turntables Produce the Ultimate Sound Quality

The record player still reigns supreme in terms of performance. Experts agree that leading turntables provide a more satisfying musical experience than any digital counterparts. Unlike digital streaming & CD, there seems no limitation on the musical information that turntables can extract from vinyl. In recent years, advances in some turntables have caused the gulf between digital performance and vinyl to widen even further. Origin Live draws together many long-established principles of high-end turntable design, along with advanced innovations, to reveal just how much the vinyl medium is capable of.

Why invest in a quality turntable?

If you are unfamiliar with Hi-Fi you may be unaware of the major sound quality differences between one turntable and another. There are over 800 different decks on the market. Faced with such a colossal choice, many buyers take the shortcut and assume “if it looks good, and has a good review, it must be good”. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. To its credit, the Hi-Fi press has long extolled the importance of a good turntable for high sound quality. If the source signal is degraded in the first place, everything else in the Hi-Fi Chain can only exaggerate the problem. It is important to choose your turntable based on its sound quality, which comes from its engineering and design.

Here at Origin Live, we make almost all of our components in our own workshop in the UK, this means we are in total control of the materials, quality control, and design of our products. You won’t find any chipboard, plywood, or flimsy components in these turntables. Using mass effective design in our bearing houses, plinths, arm boards and platters, all possible areas where jitter and vibration can be removed have been carefully considered. Through relentless development, we have selected materials that produce the natural, uninhibited tone from your vinyl.

Turntable Differences Are Greater Than Any Other Item Of Hi-Fi Equipment

CD players sound different to one another, but not a lot in comparison to turntables. Turntables have more influence on the sound of a system than almost any other item of Hi-Fi equipment and the differences between them are massive. A better turntable will improve the clarity, dynamics and ability to follow every strand of the music plus other aspects too numerous to mention. Gone is blurred, woolly bass and general confusion in the sound. Better turntables also have increased pitch stability adding a sense of sub-conscious sense of rhythm, security and confidence to your listening experience.

Rewards Of Higher Investment

A cheap £165 turntable will fall well short of CD performance, whereas a good £1500 turntable should outperform CD. The pursuit of the ultimate sound goes well beyond CD quality however. Turntables can improve a lot further with the right choices in equipment, and often this involves higher investment.

No one could blame you for being sceptical that a truly high-performance turntable is worth the investment. It’s usually only by hearing a direct comparison between two similar-looking decks, that the penny drops. The difference in musical cohesion, dynamics and ability to follow music effortlessly is simply jaw-dropping. It leaves one wondering how such massive differences can possibly exist when outward appearances can look so similar. Usually, this is down to materials, design and engineering. We explain further in our article: what makes the best turntable.

The conclusion is that it’s worth hearing turntable differences so you know what’s possible in terms of sound quality.