Analog Gear News

Here’s another cool turntable and tonearm combo that caught our collective eye of late: namely, The Wand 14-5 turntable — which follows in the considerable wake of the New Zealand company’s deservedly vaunted 14-4 ’table — and The Wand Dark-Light tonearm, which follows their original, notable, and standard-named Tonearm. Back in May, both of these new Wand products were shown and demo’ed accordingly at High End Munich 2023 by the ever-estimable Simon Brown in the DeVore loudspeaker room, which was located in Halle 3 K15.

The Wand 14-5 turntable and Dark-Light tonearm will now subsequently travel across the Pond to be shown at the upcoming Pacific Audio Fest in Seattle, which is being held June 23-25. Specifically speaking, The Wand team will be showing their gear in Cascade Room #9, which is located on the 2nd floor of the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Seattle Airport, SeaTac.

First, some company background. The original Wand Tonearm was introduced in 2011, featuring a large-diameter carbon-fiber arm tube that was at the time said to “make it at least four times stiffer than ‘traditional’ arms.” The Tonearm was made available in 9.5in, 10.3in, and 12in options, and in three specification levels — The Wand Plus, The Wand Master, and Master S (Lite) Series. The Master could also be made to special order as a 14in arm.

Meanwhile, The Wand 14-4 turntable — as seen in the above unboxing and setup clip — was launched in 2019, and it features a 14in (diameter) multi-layer platter, computer-machined anti-vibration chassis, acrylic screw-down clamp, German plywood main structure, Zentroidal three-point suspension system, and a DC motor with electronic speed control.

Finally, July 2020 saw the launch of The Wand EQ Phono Stage, a collaboration with their fellow Kiwi amplifier company Pureaudio and designed by Gary Morrison, who sadly passed away in 2021. The Wand EQ Phono Stage can either be fitted inside the aforementioned 14-4 turntable, or purchased separately.

And now, four years after the debut of the 14-4, The Wand is introducing the 14-5 turntable, which is currently scheduled to come into the marketplace by the end of 2023. In addition to retaining the core specs of the 14-4 ’table, the 14-5 (which also appears to be about 1.5x bigger than the 14-4), adds the following features: a carbon-fiber record mat and matching top plate, provision for a second tonearm mounting, battery supply integrated in a separate base unit, and additional vibration/shock isolation via IsoAcoustics feet.

The Wand is also introducing the new, fully adjustable Dark-Light tonearm — likely to have an SRP between £5-7,000, or roughly between $6,300-9,000 U.S. — with a tapered carbon-fiber arm tube for vibration dispersal with a 40mm diameter at the counterweight end. The new tonearm also sports a nominal length of 10.3in, but has an adjustable mount to suit three different overhang lengths (210, 222, and 246mm). The Dark-Light also boasts a plate that affixes to the usual cartridge mountings that bolt into the slots that allow setup in the aluminium headshell.

The SRP for The Wand 14-5 turntable has yet to be announced, but as soon as the company confirms it with us directly — and/or confirms a more specific SRP for the Dark-Light tonearm — we will update that information here accordingly.

For more about The Wand, go here.
To find an authorized Wand retailer, go here.