AJASOM introduced SME—its newest brand—with special guest Kerry St. James, at dusk in the Damaia Auditorium.
SME (originally “Scale Model Equipment”) began in the UK as a precision-engineering firm before finding its calling in high-fidelity playback, a territory where micrometric changes can yield audible differences. From the classic 3009 Series II and Series V tonearms to today’s reference-grade turntables, the guiding principle has been consistent: eliminate noise before it reaches the stylus.
That philosophy underpins the new Model 35 and Model 8 turntables demonstrated by Kerry St. James at AJASOM.
SME Model 35
The Model 35, successor to the Model 30, incorporates selective trickle-down technology from the flagship Model 60—including a state-of-the-art speed-control architecture with a separate transformer—to reduce noise within the audible band and ensure rotational stability.
It also introduces the Series Vi tonearm, along with a revised suspension/decoupling, and a hydraulically damped main bearing, all designed to control resonance and micro vibrations without simply increasing mass.
SME Model 8
The more affordable Model 8 replaces the Model 6, adding real substance: approximately 40% more mass, a thicker platter, upgraded adjustable feet, and a new-generation electronic speed controller derived from the Model 60. It comes fitted with the SME 309 tonearm featuring Crystal Cable internal wiring. In practice, the extra mass and refined drive/control lower the noise floor, firm up bass, and reduce wow and flutter. For this demo, AJASOM mounted Lyra moving-coil cartridges on both decks.
The system: Ayre KX- R20, Ayre MX-R20, Vivid Audio Kaya 45
Vivid Kaya 45 - each driven by an Ayre MX-R20
Wattson Madison LE + Ayre MX-R20
Kerry St. James is an old acquaintance from my audiophile journeys. Formerly the Ambassador of YG Acoustics and Nagra, he now feels completely at home at SME—no surprise, given he’s a dyed-in-the-wool vinyl lover. His collection of rare (and costly!) LPs is as well known as his captivating introductions, each record delivered with a story.
Kerry St. James' SME presentation
The presentation opened with SME’s own short films, succinct primers on the brand’s philosophy and engineering, which we will show in full at the end of this article, before moving to music.
Kerry’s selections ranged from the ‘Hungarian Rhapsody’ (directed by Leopold Stokowski) to Miles Davis’s last recording before his death at Montreux, and ‘My Romance’ by saxophonist Gene Ammons. I’m sharing below a ‘live’ take of the Ammons’ track, captured in the Damaia Auditorium with a Nagra SD digital recorder (courtesy of AJASOM).
- Note: the video images and the musical track sound were recorded separately; it is only natural that what you see does not match what you hear. For example, the red vinyl on the platter is not from Gene Ammons' album, but from Miles Davis'. The video is intended to illustrate the context in which the sound was recorded directly from the Vivid Audio Kaya K45 loudspeakers, driven by Ayre electronics.
SME official promotional video