Turntables, Arms & Cartridges

Taylor Made
One area in which SME’s turntables usually excel is the low end, and the Model 15 MK2 keeps that reputation untarnished. However, I would argue that the Model 12 MK2 has the edge in terms of basic low-end punch, while the Model 15 MK2 fights back with bass detail and insight. The low synth notes that are a focal point of Jamie Xx’s instrumental track ‘Obvs’ [In Colour; Young Turks YTLP122] were impressively fulsome and deep, but a fraction less impactful than on SME’s smaller brother.

That said, a similarly synthesised bassline on ‘Fortnight’ from Taylor Swift’s recent The Tortured Poets Department album [Republic Records 602458933314] had a distinctive fluidity and texture. A lesser turntable can make this kind of thing sound like a cheap piece of electronica being idly manipulated by a bored teenager, but through the Model 15 MK2 the result was gloriously complete and immersive.

Neither could SME’s turntable be described as either lightweight or lacking in welly when required. The lacerative drum strikes on David Axelrod’s ‘Holy Thursday’, from the jazz fusion landmark Songs Of Innocence [Capitol ST2982], had all the impact and immediacy that I have come to expect. The Model 15 MK2’s soundstaging craft was on show here, too, as it skilfully laid out everything else going on in the track from funk bass and low brass to piano and strings.

Message Received
Best of all, this wasn’t a situation where the Model 15 MK2 had all the component pieces but had mislaid the instructions of how to put them together. All that filigree detail and imaging clarity merged effortlessly to pass on Axelrod’s overall musical message. SME’s Model 15 MK2 seemingly has little character of its own that it wishes to impose, and this means that the music itself always remains the main event – which is just as it should be.

Hi-Fi News Verdict
SME has played yet another masterstroke in updating its Model 15 to MK2 status. The AC motor and two-box PSU/speed controller debuted in the Model 60 and ’12 MK2 have already proved their mettle, and they work their magic again here. The result is a turntable that’s as solid, composed and utterly beguiling sonically as it is physically. For £12,000, I can’t think of another vinyl spinner I’d rather have.

Sound Quality: 90%