Tonearm Reviews

In his 2019 review of the original The Wand 12-inch tonearm on our sister site Stereophile (which you can read (here), the late Art Dudley wrote, “In my view, [its] idiosyncrasies are more than offset by The Wand’s extraordinarily good sound — and by its exceptional value for the dollar. In my system, the 12" Wand Plus delivered Class A sound, and now joins the similarly accomplished Schick Tonearm as one of the two least-expensive paths to that level of performance.”

Since Art’s review, The Wand tonearm, a product of Design Build Listen Ltd. of Dunedin, New Zealand (with U.S. distribution by Profundo Audio), has undergone several refinements. While the arm retains its reputation for intricate setup and occasional idiosyncrasies as noted by Art, it has been enhanced to abate these challenges, a common hurdle regardless of user expertise.

Features & Specs
Key changes have been implemented by The Wand Plus’s designer, Simon Brown, on the model I’m reviewing here today, which is The Wand Plus 9.5-inch tonearm (SRP: $1,950). They include a new plastic protractor, as the previously supplied metal protractor was potentially stylus-damaging; a new rear weight system that makes counterweight adjustment easier; new wire guidance (Cardas throughout) and clamp system; and a new “micro mount” scheme that allows users to adjust overhang more easily and with greater accuracy.

The Wand Plus follows an aesthetic departure in tonearm design. Its imposing silhouette — a sharply truncated, horizontally oriented cylinder finished in a somber gray — evokes an industrial elegance reminiscent of high-end, minimalist architecture. Equally, it would be at home in The Joker’s rig or Darth Vader’s hi-fi.

The Wand tonearm is a unipivot design made of carbon fiber with a counterweight machined from brass. “Its large diameter (7/8"), carbon-fiber armtube makes it at least four times stiffer than ‘traditional’ arms,” boasts The Wand’s official site. “It is available in 9.5", 10.3", and 12" lengths and in three specification levels: The Wand Plus, The Wand Master, and Master S (Lite) Series.”

According to Bob Clarke of The Wand’s U.S. distributor, Profundo Audio, “The actual [bearing] housing is inside the arm wand, and is made of metal with a sapphire bearing. The post is stainless steel. The plastic cueing device lever is nylon. The cueing device and assembly were designed by Simon Brown after the Jelco device he (and so many others) had been using went out of production with the demise of Jelco. Now built in-house, it is a combination of nylon and stainless parts, chosen for optimum combination of mass and durability.” (Art Dudley, as only he could, said of The Wand in his aforementioned review, “A small, oddly shaped fitting made of laser-sintered titanium serves as the cartridge-mounting platform; this is cemented to the underside of the armtube’s snout.”)

Setup
The Wand Plus 9.5-inch tonearm arrived with a comprehensive toolkit dedicated to its precise setup, including a specialized alignment device. To ensure optimal performance, Profundo Audio enlisted the expertise of renowned turntable technician, Stereophile Spin Doctor and occasional AP contributor Michael Trei, who installed The Wand Plus on my Thorens TD 124 turntable. Mike also drilled holes in a custom armboard to accommodate the arm. A Luxman LMC-5 moving-coil (MC) cartridge was selected to complement the system for this evaluation.

Beyond the nuts and bolts of alignment and counterweight adjustment, The Wand presents a tricky setup challenge. Its substantial RCA interconnects necessitate secure anchoring to prevent interference with the tonearm’s delicate movement, including its lead wires. I used black gaffer’s tape to affix the interconnects to my Kuzma Platis 54 isolation platform, positioned under my Thorens TD 124 table. Furthermore, The Wand Plus’s atypically short ground wire required an extension using salvaged Radio Shack cable and more gaffer’s tape to ensure an immovable force, interconnect-wise. These complexities underscore the importance of meticulous installation for optimal performance of The Wand Plus.

My system for this review included the previously noted Thorens/Luxman combo, PrimaLuna EVO 100 phono preamp, Shindo Allegro preamp, Air Tight ATM-1 2024 Edition power amp, and Voxativ Ampeggio 2024 floorstanding loudspeakers. I used cables from AudioQuest and Triode Wire Labs, plus an AudioQuest PowerQuest 707 line conditioner.

Listening Sessions
Of late, I’ve been comparing pressings of Steely Dan’s November 1980 LP Gaucho for review over at my YouTube channel. They include the original 1980 MCA pressing (MCA Records MCA-6012), the 1980 Masterphile Series half-speed remastered version (MCA-6102), and Analogue Productions’ 2024 200g 45rpm 2LP UHQR edition (Analogue Productions UHQR 0015-45).

The Wand Plus easily discerned the differences — some small, some huge — between these three pressings. The original Gaucho LP is big and fat with rich tone, and plenty of bass overhang. It’s like dessert before the main course — a gooey, creamy affair that’s impossible to refuse. The half-speed-remastered Gaucho is a cooler customer. It rolled with more restraint, and leavened a more balanced, quieter whole that let me see a little deeper into the mix, though Donald Fagen’s eternal question — “Who is the gaucho, amigo?” — and other vocals were slightly recessed compared to the OG.

The 2024 UHQR edition tears the roof off the joint. It’s clean, clean, clean, with deeper, better defined, and tighter electric bass. Jeff Porcaro’s snare drum was re-envisioned with better tone, tighter snap, and more distinct bass-drum notes. Just as his hi-hat notes were cleaner and more distinct, the assorted guitar finery and female background vocals were more silken, with improved sheen and texture within a denser whole. Regardless of its SRP being $150, the 2LP UHQR Gaucho is the final word, and The Wand Plus proves that point as such in all its carbon-fiber glory.

Even with these sonic details, it’s difficult to convey the absolute superiority of The Wand Plus over my previous Jelco TS-350S 9-inch tonearm. The now-defunct Jelco was indeed a good value at $1,500, but The Wand Plus completely outperformed it. The sound was a revelation — a refreshing slap in the face that redefined my vinyl listening experience with the Thorens TD 124 table. The bass was tight and pointed, the treble was precise, and the overall presentation was so confident, bold, widespan, and assured that it felt like a new way to enjoy old records. The Wand Plus commandeers vinyl playback with nothing left to the imagination, at a price point that redefines the lower end of high-end tonearms.

I continued my evaluation with records I know well, ones that present a challenge to any tonearm, and finally, old favorites. For example, I dove into some electronic tonnage with Kems Kriol’s 2021 Equanimity EP (Nous’klaer Audio NOUS024). Typically, a wobbly, bass-heavy affair, The Wand Plus arm transformed this music into a lean, mean machine, firing off truncated tones and reverberating sounds like a missile barrage. The bubbly tablas were beautifully isolated, floating above ominous, wormhole-like bass blips. Where the music was once oversaturated and murky, The Wand Plus turned it into a punchy, foreboding message.

Seeking sonic recovery, I dug into the 1975 Pablo Records classic, The Louis Bellson Explosion (2310 755), featuring a stellar cast including horn masters Blue Mitchell, Pete Christlieb, Bobby Shew, Cat Anderson, and Snooky Young. Hearing their performance of Herbie Hancock’s “Chameleon” (Side 2, Track 1), I was initially struck by the surprisingly intimate scale of the sound. But soon, The Wand Plus revealed its microscopic mastery, unearthing every instrument in this massive 16-piece big band. Each horn and reed were delicately layered in a deep, immersive soundstage. The result was surgical precision that was both thrilling and satisfying. Christlieb’s tenor sax solo carried real weight, while Bellson’s drums, though somewhat buried in the mix, were a testament to the recording’s limitations, not The Wand Plus’s.

The 2009 2LP update of Kraftwerk’s August 2003 album Tour de France (Kling Klang STUM 310 50999 9 66109 1 6) is a cornerstone of my vinyl collection, known for its rich, chocolate-brown bass, deeply layered instrumentation, and expansive soundstage. While the VPI Avenger Direct with 12in Fatboy gimbal tonearm and Umami Blue MC cartridge offered a generally superior presentation, The Wand Plus delivered a diamond-clear sound, with spooky vocals chiseled from a deep, cavernous space. The overall impression was one of illuminated clarity, pristine treble and warm, propulsive bass bursts.

Conclusions
From the first needle drop with The Wand Plus 9.5-inch tonearm, I knew my Thorens TD 124 turntable paired with the Luxman LMC-5 MC cartridge had been forever transfigured. The differences were glaring, from the initial plummet of Gaucho to the final circling of the track with Kraftwerk. The Wand Plus arm soars to the top of the just-under $2K price range. It’s like being jolted awake to discover a windfall in your bank account, a wide-open weekend ahead, and life suddenly looking rosy and blessed. To be blunt, The Wand Plus 9.5-inch tonearm brings audio nirvana to this audiophile thing of ours.

For more about The Wand Plus tonearm, go here.
To find out how to buy The Wand Plus tonearm in the United States, go here.
To inquire about where to buy The Wand Plus tonearm worldwide, go here.

Author bio: Former musician, former artist, and former legal wastrel Ken Micallef has written numerous hi-fi equipment reviews for Stereophile and Analog Planet, and his byline has also appeared within Mojo, Electronic Musician, and The Grammys. You can also find him at YouTube (Ken Micallef Jazz Vinyl Audiophile).