What Hi Fi Sound and Vision
21 JUN 2005
Origin Live Sovereign
This is a sublime turntable – it might cost a lot of money, but it sounds better than the CD players at anywhere this price
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We vinyl junkies belong to a fairly bizarre sub-culture: everything we do revolves around our love for the black stuff. Whether we’re buying a house or looking for new clothes, the first thing to cross our minds is records – as in “will I be able to fit my records in here?” or “if go shopping with my partner can I go vinyl-hunting, too?”
Every now and again a turntable like the Origin Live Sovereign comes along to make us realise that not all addictions have to be bad. In fact, the Sovereign actively feeds your listening habit – well, once you’ve struggled through putting the package together, anyway.
The deck comes without a tonearm or cartridge, so we added Origin Live’s Encounter arm (£970) with the £150 Goldring 1042 cartridge. A few misleading details in the assembly instructions left several members of our test team scratching their heads like chimps in a zoo. However, if you’re spending four grand on a deck, you’re entitled to ask for a decent set-up tutorial from your dealer.
Millimetric precision
This Sovereign turntable is machined with millimetric precision, the only downside being that the adjustment bolts are hidden from view. Some lurk underneath the feet, so when fine-tuning is required the whole turntable needs to be moved, which is annoying. However, overall fit and finish are superlative, the styling speaks for itself, and sonically, the deck has stellar abilities.
How stellar? Well, the first slab of vinyl to hit the deck had us giggling like helium-addled hyenas. That soon turned to awe as the Sovereign revealed its true colours, leaving us with jaws so slack that any self-respecting redneck would have been proud. With all forms of music it remains effortlessly composed, giving tremendous insight into the original recording’s emotion.
Stunning detail
Detail levels stun, revealing subtleties we had never noticed even in some of our personal faves. The separation of instruments is fantastic too: the sound appears to be huge and beautifully spread through the vast soundstage, while bass is deep, tuneful and punchy.
The Sovereign even manages to change its mood to suit the music being played. One reviewer stated, “My God, I feel stoned” when listening to Portishead’s Dummy set, yet when listening to the new single, Popper, from Christopher & Raphael Just we felt compelled to have a dance.
Timing is also impeccable, and the beautifully expressive midrange makes it easy to get carried away – so you often find yourself singing along with your eyes closed while everyone stands around having a good laugh at you.