Acoustic Sounds

Clearaudio

Performance DC AiR

Clearaudio Performance DC Turntable Review
By: Dean Cacioppo

December 18th, 2023

Category:

Tonearms Turntables

Reviewing the Clearaudio Performance DC AiR Turntable with Tracer Tonearm

Including the Professional Power 12V Linear Power Supply Upgrade

Clearaudio, best known for its turntables, tonearms and phono cartridges, has been in business for 45 years, producing in-house almost all of its precision components at its Erlangen, Germany factory. A small proportion of its components are externally sourced. The family-owned business markets its products worldwide in more than seventy countries.

Watch Michael Fremer tour their manufacturing facility in the video below.  

I've never had a Clearaudio turntable in my system, but of course I'm well aware of the company's reputation for producing well engineered, great sounding analog products. When presented with the review opportunity, of course I said "yes."

A Vinyl "System"

Most of us have pieced together products over time to create a complete "system"—speakers, amplifiers, cables and source components to produce sound we find enjoyable. Vinyl playback can be looked at as a system within a system: a turntable, tonearm, cartridge and a phono preamplifier.

Musical Surroundings offers the Performance DC AiR turntable with the Tracer tonearm, which is also available separately. The combination saves you $900 off the cost of the arm alone. You save money and get a matched system. Clearaudio’s Satisfy Carbon fiber and TT-5 linear tracking arms are available extra cost options.

Clearaudio’s Performance DC AiR and Tracer Tonearm

I have spent the last few months with the Clearaudio setup including their Performance DC AiR turntable and Clearaudio Tracer tonearm. In addition, I was also provided with the Professional Power 12V linear power supply ($800) as an upgrade over the supplied wall wart and The Twister record clamp ($175). 

Performance DC AiR with Tracer ArmFor the sake of this evaluation, I didn’t look at this as multiple items, but as an analog playback system which also included the Hana Umami Blue moving coil cartridge

The Performance DC AiR Turntable ($3,600)

The Clearaudio Performance DC AiR is a straight forward looking table, which shows off German engineering with insane tolerances, elegant design and high level of build quality. The Performance DC AiR comes in a variety of combinations with silver or black finish anodized aluminum plates and silver or black banding. They also have wood options under a slightly different model number.

The Performance DC AiR is the most affordable turntable with Clearaudio’s CMB Bearing which combines a polished ceramic inverted bearing shaft, machined aluminum spindle top and strong magnet rings to provide low friction and isolate vibrational energy.

The plinth of the Performance DC AiR uses the thick aluminum top and bottom plates to sandwich an MDF core to better control vibrational energy. The platter bearing is their very own CMB (Ceramic Magnetic Bearing) which was patented in 2008 and magnetically levitates the platter.  Yes, you read that correctly, it levitates the platter.  

The magnetic levitation of the bearing alleviates the need for any ball bearing to spin the platter, removing one more moving part that can create friction, noise and wear. The ceramic shaft of the CMB has a much smoother surface than lapped steel so this reduces friction for the platter to rotate more freely. With fewer parts with those parts not in physical contact, noise is reduced and rotational accuracy increased. The lack of friction in any turntable pays big dividends in tonal accuracy, imaging and low level resolution. 

Performance DC Air OptionsI had intended to show a video of spinning the platter (removing the belt from the motor) to demonstrate how long it would take for friction to stop the platter.  I gave up when I surpassed the five minute mark, it would have been a very boring video. This is an old school way of assessing the lack of friction in the main bearing.

The machined aluminum armboard uses a retaining ring on the plinth bottom to rigidly clamp it. It can be rotated to accommodate various pivot-to-spindle distances and can be ordered for other tonearms such as Kuzma, Tri-planar, and SME.

The platter is made of POM (Polyoxide Methylene or Delrin®) as it is a material that can be precisely machined, is mechanically stable, and has low ringing or resonance. The Performance DC POM platter has a thicker weighted rim for enhanced flywheel effect thus more accurate speed stability. 

POM is similar to vinyl so when you couple your LP to the 40mm POM platter, you effectively make the record thicker and more immune to unwanted vibrational energy. It does not require using a mat to damp its resonance as required on platters or metal or glass that ring. 

The Twister clamp ($175) is also machined from POM and uses a locking collet spindle clamping system to best couple the LP to the platter.  Though technically an accessory, I found the Twister Clamp to be a necessity as the album would otherwise slide on the platter.

The AiR 12v Motor

The new AiR motor (used in the Performance DC Wood AiR, Performance DC AiR, Concept Wood AiR, and Concept AiR) use coreless DC motors to provide more linear speed and torque characteristics. In addition, they are more efficient and live longer than iron core motors.

AiR DC Coreless Motor by ClearaudioCoreless motors were developed and used for demanding high tech applications including robotics, medical including analysis, imaging and prosthetics and radar. Instead of an armature with coiled wire, the coil is wound to create a basket weave, honeycomb, or bell. Freed from magnetic saturation concerns, these motors can use rare earth magnets including AlNiCo, Samarium-Cobalt, or Neo-dymium. The AiR motor has both lower moving mass and 5 conductive contact points for smoother and more accurate operation. You can see why Clearaudio's extensive work in cartridge design comes in handy. 

The motor itself is decoupled from the plinth via elastomer isolators and the pulley drives the aluminum sub-platter via a flat belt. The AiR motor has three speeds, 33 1/3rpm, 45rpm, 78rpm, easily changed by the push of a button.

The AiR motor can also be purchased as an upgrade for the Concept and Concept Wood ($500) and includes the AiR motor and new circuit board for controller function.

The Tracer Tonearm ($3,300)

The Tracer tonearm retails on its own for $3,300 but Musical Surroundings (the US distributor) has created a package price with the Performance DC AiR turntable for $6,000.

Clearaudio Tracer TonarmThe Tracer has a machined aluminum headshell, carbon fiber arm-tube, 3 point bearing with 2 tungsten points on sapphire thrust plates for the vertical plane and a single tungsten point on sapphire plate for horizontal plane. The carbon tonearm tube is both extremely rigid and very lightweight

The counterweight is eccentric for a low center of gravity placing the mass closer to the stylus in the groove and features a fine pitch threaded adjustment. The lower center of gravity of the counterweight means less interference from the arm height to VTF.  

Anti-skate is magnetic and mechanically decoupled and controlled by a simple dial. Azimuth is handled simply and effectively at the headshell and VTA is adjusted with a locking collar on the armboard. Although not VTA on the fly, it is easily adjustable and locks into place. The tonearm “foot” is marked so you can quickly revert to any VTA setting.  

Clearaudio Tracer Tonearm rawIn keeping with the system concept,  the arm is wired continuously from cartridge clips to the 1.2 meter output cable with Clearaudio Sixstream copper wire that has independent positive and negative legs plus ground for each channel and braided shielding for noise isolation. This creates one connection from cartridge to phono stage and eliminates the need for an interconnect.

Professional Power 12V Linear Power Supply

Introduced at Axpona 2023, the new 12V Linear Power Supply ($800) is modeled after the larger Professional Power 24V linear power supply that was developed for those more expensive Clearaudio turntables.

The 12V Linear Power Supply replaces the included "wall wart" and is designed to provide more consistent power to the DC AiR motor. The upgraded power supply uses a vibration-damped toroidal transformer in conjunction with stiff regulation, providing clean power to the AiR motor.

Clearaudio Professional Power 12V Linear Power SupplyAn IEC power connector allows use of your preferred AC cables and grounding post provides an additional earth ground point.

Setup 

Setup of the Performance DC AiR with the Tracer tonearm was easy and straightforward. The adjustable feet paired with manual showing the where to place the level (about 2:00 and about 2 songs in on the platter) made leveling easy. No problems setting the tracking force or VTA.  Everything locks in place with no drift of any fine tuned setting. Even after moving the table, everything stayed perfectly set up. 

The close tolerances of the Ceramic Magnetic Bearing was impressive.  I placed the sub platter on top of the CMB and routed the belt around the motor.  Because of my impatience, I then turned on the motor only to have the belt consistently come off the subplatter.  After a few moments of being perplexed, I placed the (quite heavy) platter in place which weighed the floating CMB bearing down about a ⅓  inch. This put the motor and subplatter on the same plane.  Now the belt stayed on.  Imagine that.   

In setting the antiskating I set the skating force to zero and played some music.  As expected, the right channel showed no dynamics, while the left channel was over dynamic.  Slowly turning the anti skate, the right channel came more alive as the left settled down.  I played with this until both channels sounded equally dynamic, never to be touched again. 

Performance

First album up was The Vinyl Check (Tacet L210). Upon running through audible tests, the Performance DC AiR passed everything with flying colors. Speed was rock solid and I couldn't get the arm to mistrack. I have a go-to song for audibly evaluating wow and flutter - Steve Miller Band "Wild Mountain Honey" (Fly Like an Eagle - Jacksonville Pressing Capitol ST-11497).  The lingering synth lets you identify even tiny fluctuations in time. 

Over the next few months I listened to a ton of different music including the entire 5 album, box set of Tool Fear Inoculum (RCA – 19439-86879-1) which was recorded on 2” analog tape.  It was so enthralling, I listed to the entire thing in one setting. Had to take a nap after it was over.

The Performance DC AiR was a pleasure to use and never showed any tonearm resonance or was bothered by vibration.  The arm lift is smooth and the platter gets up to speed quickly.  Although I don’t own any 78 RPM albums, I love the fact that I can get a quick cleaning done using the 78 RPM button right before dropping the needle.  :-)

Clearaudio Performance DC AiR speed settingsBecause my system doesn't have monstrous bass, I brought in a car audio subwoofer and connected it to an old NAD amp I had laying around. I wanted to see how the Performance DC would respond to pressuring the room.  Even playing Primus, Sailing the Sea of Cheese (Rainbo Records – S-67310) at an obscene level, the Performance DC AiR was flawless.  She handles vibration well.

Conclusion

The analog front end of the Performance DC AiR paired with the Tracer tonearm and Hana Umami Blue never disappointed.  Turntables have a few seemingly simple tasks to accomplish:  spin the album at a consistent speed, achieve little to no vibration from the motor, push any resonance of the arm out of the audible range and reduce any friction that would color the sound.

That may sound easy but getting all that right ain't easy. The Clearaudio system checked all of the boxes. Awesome sound, solid engineering and feels great to the touch. I'm not looking forward to sending it back.


Specifications

Performance DC Air Specifications

Construction Details: Resonance optimized chassis with internal damping, belt-driven with user-adjustable speed control, dynamically balanced 40mm / 1.5-inch POM platter

Bearing: CMB (ceramic magnetic bearing)

Platter: CNC-machined POM (polyoxymethylene), 40 mm thickness

Motor: Decoupled DC motor with low-noise bearings

Speed ranges: 33 1/3, 45, and 78 RPM, convenient electronic controls

Speed accuracy: ± 0.5 %

Weight: 22 lbs with tonearm

Dimensions: 16.5" x 14" x 6"

Warranty: 5 years

Owners Manual

Tracer Tonearm Specifications

Construction Details: Radial tonearm with horizontal sapphire bearing and vertically ball bearing. Fine adjustment of the azimuth. Available in black or silver carbon with matching aluminum parts.

Cartridge Balance Range: 3 gram – 17 gram

Overhang: 16.935 mm

Effective Mass: 10 grams

Offset Angle: 25.54 °

Wiring: Clearaudio Sixtream Super Wire (1.1m) terminated with RCA plug

Mounting Style: Clearaudio (diameter of bore 24.85 mm)

Total Weight: 363 gram (incl. counter weight)

Warranty: 3 years

Owners Manual

Manufacturer Information

Clearaudio

Distributed in the US by:

Musical Surroundings

Tel: 510.547.5006
Fax: 510.547.5009

Website: http://www.musicalsurroundings.com
email: info@musicalsurroundings.com

Comments

  • 2023-12-18 09:53:23 PM

    Jeff 'Glotz' Glotzer wrote:

    I liked the technical depth of this review and tests quite a bit. I really like your Primus test. This is a huge point of concern with my stereo rack and speakers on the same front wall, with 2 REL T-7x's nearby (despite much effort into vibration control). Needless to say, playing 'Tommy The Cat' at really loud volumes without bass intrusion is what I really want. At this price point, I am also a whore for comparisons, even if from memory and no models are mentioned. I will have to hear this deck and arm at my dealer (which is 'the way'). I do wonder how it stands up to the Acoustic Signature Neo Maximus. That will be a tougher comparison, but these are the two main 'tables I will be looking at in 2024 (and perhaps a VPI Classic Signature). I do applaud Clearaudio for the combo price perspective. Thanks man and Happy Holidays, dude.

    • 2023-12-20 12:16:00 AM

      Dean Cacioppo wrote:

      I can't tell you how it will stack up vs the Acoustic Signature Neo Maximus -- but I can say that the Clearaudio rig is easily a table for life

      • 2023-12-20 12:27:58 AM

        Dean Cacioppo wrote:

        Also --- the VPI Classic Signature is awesome in every respect.

        • 2023-12-20 06:30:57 PM

          Jeff 'Glotz' Glotzer wrote:

          Thank you for the response, Dean. I own a heavily modded HW-19, so your validation of the Classic really does help.

      • 2023-12-21 06:27:58 PM

        Jeff 'Glotz' Glotzer wrote:

        No question.. Auditioning the Clearaudio DC Air is on my list for 2024... Regarding the Acoustic Sig Neo Maximus: Wink, wink, nudge nudge??

  • 2023-12-18 11:56:43 PM

    Josquin des Prez wrote:

    I'm a huge fan of Clearaudio turntables and arms. I recently upgraded my 12 yr old Ovation with 9" Universal arm to an Innovation with 12" Universal arm, plus an extra arm board for the 9" from my Ovation (which I sold armless). I have the Innovation (all 63 lbs of it) sitting on a HRS R3X Isolation Base. I'm in a smallish room (11' x 17') with Dynaudio Confidence C2 Platinum speakers and a pair of REL S/510 subs. I can crank the music all I want and the Clearaudio never misses a beat. It just performs so well. Great bass, great soundstage, excellent stability, low noise.

    The Performance DC and Tracer arm is one of the sweet spots in the lineup. Lots of bang for the buck.

    • 2023-12-19 01:08:27 AM

      Josquin des Prez wrote:

      I would also add that Musical Surroundings customer service for the last 12 yrs or so has been great. Second to none.

      • 2023-12-20 12:18:03 AM

        Dean Cacioppo wrote:

        They have been pleasant and helpful in all of my communications.

    • 2023-12-20 12:17:29 AM

      Dean Cacioppo wrote:

      The Tracer can make you regret spending more on an arm for sure!

      • 2023-12-20 03:53:32 AM

        Josquin des Prez wrote:

        But I can assure you – OTOH – that the Clearaudio Universal will not make you regret spending more on an arm. It is a real thing of beauty, and it will bring out the best a cartridge has to offer.

  • 2023-12-19 05:22:43 PM

    Jim Shue wrote:

    Dean - kick ass review! Fremer has put together an excellent equipment review team - Redmond, McNair and Cacioppo. Your review of the Hana Umami Blue was a key decision point that led to my purchase this past Fall. 2024 is the year to buy a new TT. Looking at the Technics 1200G - this ClearAudio package and the new Rega Naia (not a fan of the Planar 10 - to my ears the Technics 1200G smokes it imo and you get the ability to easily roll cartridges). Looking forward to your next review.

    • 2023-12-19 07:54:38 PM

      Jeff 'Glotz' Glotzer wrote:

      That Technics deck for $4k is looking pretty pretty too..

      • 2023-12-19 11:50:51 PM

        NLak wrote:

        I am a big fan of the 1200G, have heard it several times, and think it’s the best thing for $4k. I’m a big fan of SME tables, but honestly, I think the 1200G is the best, a giant killer.

    • 2023-12-20 12:22:43 AM

      Dean Cacioppo wrote:

      Thanks for the kind words! I'm glad that I assisted with someone purchasing the Blue --- it's so damn good I bought one too! As for a new table -- Although I have not heard or played with the Rega Naia, the Technics 1200G is a fine table but I think I would lean towards the Clearaudio setup. Really mates with the Blue also.

      • 2023-12-21 07:06:33 PM

        Jim Shue wrote:

        Dean - your Hana review was spot on!

        My revised 2024 TT list for purchase consideration:

        • Technics SL-1200G
        • Clearaudio Peformance DC Air /Tracer tonearm package - as you reviewed
        • SME Model 6 Classic
        • Rega Naia

        A range from $4300 to $12,500

        VPI not on the list - have not had good experiences in the past - reliability or support.

        If I had the budget I'd get the Technics SP_10 RE-S - roll my own arm and base (all in $20K++) and declare victory :-)

        • 2024-01-11 04:38:44 AM

          Dave McNair wrote:

          I'm working on my review of the SME Model 6 Classic as I type this.

        • 2024-03-08 03:12:41 AM

          Jeff 'Glotz' Glotzer wrote:

          Totally valid point. I'd like to move to a German, Swiss or English table. I like your list quite a bit.

  • 2024-03-13 12:01:11 AM

    Vincent T Dragani wrote:

    Thank you for the detailed review. I have come to a point where I am ready to buy a new turntable, however there are no brick-and-mortar stores near me where one can listen and compare tables and cartridges. I am leaning towards Clear Audio(Concept Wood AiR with Satisfy Carbon tonearm or Performance DC AiR with Satisfy Carbon tonearm), VPI(Prime 21 with 10.5-inch 3D-printed gimbal-bearing tonearm) or Pro-Ject(RPM 10 Carbon).

    A few questions; Is the cost of the Performance DC over the Concept Wood worth it? Would it be worth considering the higher price for Performance DC Wood? Does the magnetic bearing, plater thickness and plinth material in the Performance DC eliminate the Concept Wood as a choice? How does the Project RPM Carbon 10 match up? The Carbon 10 also uses a magnetic bearing, but I have heard the Satisfy Tonearm is superior to the EVO. Is this true and should I even consider the Pro-Ject against the VPI and Clearaudio tables?

    I listened to a friend’s VPI Scout, and it sounded great, but I was not a fan of the uni-pivot tonearm. It was a bit heavy in the bass section of certain music types.

    Any clarity you can give on these questions would be greatly appreciated as comparative listening is not an option for me.

    Thank you in advance, Vince