A straight 12-inch tonearm with a hybrid carbon and aluminium tube, Swiss ABEC 7 bearings in a stainless steel block and silver wiring, in the HG finish with hand-polished aluminium parts. For cartridges of 7 to 20 g on high-end turntables.
EVO 12 CA Premium HG: the engineering choices
The HG version is recognisable by its hand-polished aluminium parts. The EVO 12 CA Premium HG is the longest in the series: 304.8 mm of effective length and a 291.6 mm mounting distance, dimensions that call for a turntable with room to take it. The offset angle is 18°, the smallest of the three, and the overhang 13.2 mm, with null points at 125 and 251.7 mm. Effective mass rises to 20.4 g and suitable cartridges weigh 7 to 20 g; tracking force adjusts up to 3 g.
The bearing is an inverted cardanic design with specially selected Swiss bearings of ABEC 7 grade and four stainless steel tips. Stable and very low in friction, it lets the stylus follow the groove without losing fine detail. The bearings sit inside a heavy block of stainless steel and the inner ring is a solid, massive part, while the outer ring is left open so that it cannot ring like a bell. The armtube is a hybrid: a one-piece carbon-fibre outer tube, light yet rigid, with a hidden aluminium tube inside it to damp vibration. Its conical profile, narrowing towards the cartridge end, stops standing waves from building up.
Set-up options are complete. Held by a single screw, the armtube rotates to correct azimuth; slackening two grub screws lets the arm move up or down steplessly until the VTA is right, and the silicone-damped lift can be matched to the chosen height. The TPE-damped counterweight is a new design, the internal wiring is high-purity silver, and the signal leaves through a gold-plated five-pin DIN socket. The parts are CNC-machined to high precision, the arm rest included, and the arm is made in Europe.
Specifications
- Effective length: 304.8 mm (12-inch)
- Mounting distance: 291.6 mm
- Offset angle: 18°
- Overhang: 13.2 mm
- Effective mass: 20.4 g
- Cartridge weight: 7 to 20 g
- Tracking force: adjustable from 0 to 3 g
- Null points: 125 mm and 251.7 mm
- Headshell slot spacing: 12.7 mm
- Arm weight: 520 g excluding the flange
- Armtube: conical, carbon outside with aluminium inside
- Bearing: inverted cardanic, Swiss ABEC 7, four stainless steel tips
- Bearing block: heavy stainless steel
- Internal wiring: high-purity silver
- Counterweight: TPE-damped
- Adjustments: azimuth and VTA
- Output: gold-plated five-pin DIN socket
- Finish: HG, hand-polished aluminium parts
