Platine vinyle manuelle Pro-Ject XA B

PRO-JECT XA B: SKIRTING BOARD AND FEET

The skirting board is made from rigid acrylic for perfect transparency.

It also offers perfect rigidity and the performance of more expensive models, while being lighter.

The technical elements appear to float thanks to the almost invisible acrylic sheet.

However, using acrylic is not as simple as you might think. The high internal damping capacity of this material can result in a very dry sound. It is therefore necessary to make precise choices of combination in terms of tonearm, platter and feet to ensure that the sound reproduction is homogeneous.

The plinth of the XA B rests on three height-adjustable cushioned feet to ensure perfect support. The use of three feet increases stability on uneven surfaces.

PRO-JECT XA B: Turntable and drive unit

The Pro-Ject XA B is equipped with a 1.7 kg anti-magnetic die-cast aluminium platter. This is reworked and precision-balanced in an additional stage to obtain a perfect platter in terms of inertia.

It is driven by an AC synchronous motor servo-controlled by a highly accurate DC/AC power generator, guaranteeing precise, highly stable music reproduction.

The 33t and 45t playback speeds are electronically controlled and are selected by a switch that makes it easy to switch from one speed to the other.

The XA B is supplied with Record Puck E.

PRO-JECT XA B: Arm and cartridge

The XA B turntable is equipped with a 10-inch aluminium tonearm. It is fitted with solid bearings similar to those used on the 10CC EVO arms.

The arm bearings have 4 points of ultra-low gyroscopic friction. They guarantee precise, stable and durable tracking. The arm tube is made of one-piece aluminium. Pro-Ject seems to prefer this to the traditional carbon tube in combination with a rigid acrylic frame.

The base of the arm is made entirely of aluminium. The arm is fully adjustable for azimuth and vertical tracking angle (VTA).

The arm is fitted with an anti-skating weight and, for the downforce, a TPE N°34 damped counterweight from the EVO series. This counterweight makes the arm compatible with all cartridges (excluding compliance) with a mass of between 5 and 10g.

The XA B is supplied with a 1.23m Connect It E 5P/RCA phono cable.

PRO-JECT XA B: Technology

The ‘B’ in XA B stands for ‘Balanced’. Pro-ject emphasises the significant advantage of a balanced connection, which eliminates picked-up noise and interference.

The Pro-Ject XA B comes with a balanced MM cartridge, the Pick it Pro Balanced and a balanced 5P DIN phono output. Normally, only MCs can claim a balanced output. To take advantage of this, of course, you'll need to replace the phono cable with a Connect It PHONO DS 5P/XLR and own at least one balanced phono preamp like the Pro-Ject PHONO BOX S3 B.

MC phono cartridges are by nature symmetrical signal transducers, unlike MM. But the Pick it Pro Balanced has been modified to access the full balanced signal.

Pro-ject seems to be making this technology a ‘hobbyhorse’... we remain cautious about the real benefits of this technology. But it doesn't matter, because the XA B is compatible with any phono preamp, and what goes around comes around.

PRO-JECT XA B: Playback

The Pro-Ject XA B offers both transparent (like its appearance!) and detailed reproduction while retaining a certain ‘roundness’ and realistic timbres.

Dynamics are excellent and convincing without projecting the instruments in front of the speakers. The Pro-Ject XA B favours and clearly preserves the neutrality and cleanliness of the signal. This makes it very versatile, as it does not colour or embellish the music. It gives excellent results with all types of music, from rock and classical to jazz and electronic.

The Pick It cartridge is of good quality, but it can't offer the nuance and musicality of a low-level MC cartridge. We fitted an MC quintet Blue, which took this turntable into another world in terms of finesse and timbre.

In terms of reproduction, the XA B is somewhere between a Debut PRO S in terms of dynamics and an X2 in terms of neutrality.

This new Pro-Ject XA B turntable not only has a magnificent design, it also offers convincing musicality at a reasonable price. In the long term, it will also allow numerous upgrades by changing the cartridge, the platter cover, the cable, etc.

A great success! Highly recommended!