Lyra Kleos SL Instructions

Lyra Kleos SL Instructions, Edition 1
Thank you for purchasing the Kleos SL moving coil phono cartridge, made
by Lyra Co., Ltd. Japan. Please follow these instructions carefully. Use sepa-
rately available turntable and cartridge set-up tools like precision bubble
level, alignment template (that allows direct visual alignment of cantilever
and stylus), stylus force gauge, and follow the set-up instructions included
with your tonearm.
Please notice that the Kleos SL does not have the letters SL printed on the
cartridge, so it is necessary to look at the serial number located on the
white output pin block for identification. A Kleos SL will have the lettering
KSL followed by a 3 digit number.(A regular Kleos has KL plus 3 digit, and
a Kleos Mono has KM plus 3 digits.)

Tonearm choice

Kleos SL is designed for use with high-quality tonearms that place the car-
tridge/tonearm low-frequency resonant point between 8〜12Hz. Avoid ton-
earms with loose or overly tight bearings, also avoid those with undamped
lift mechanisms, since these can "drop" Kleos SL onto the LP and shorten
the suspension life span.

Phono stage and loading

Connect tonearm cables to RIAA-equalized phono input designed for direct
use by low-output MC cartridges (0.25mV output voltage or less). If phono
stage input impedance is adjustable, setting loading by ear should be suffi-
cient, with 47kohm as highest and 86.6 ohms as lowest values.
For listeners interested in mathematically correct input loading, the value
depends on the total capacitance between Kleos SL and phono stage (com-
prised mostly by the tonearm cable). Note that "input loading" of low-
impedance cartridges has comparatively less to do with the cartridge and is
more about taming RF energy which could otherwise trigger non-linearities
in the phono stage and generate intermodulation distortion. Since different
phono stages have different tolerances for RF energy, the best-sounding
loading value will vary depending on tonearm cable and phono stage.
You may try setting your phono stage's loading according to the following
number pairs. However, this data was calculated for the regular 0.5mV out-
put, 5.4 ohms Kleos version, and at the time of creating this manual, no cor-
responding data had been generated for the Kleos SL, so please look at the
data only as an indication for reference.
In each pair, the first number is the total capacitance between Kleos and
phono stage (in picofarads), the second number is the corresponding opti-
mal impedance range: 50pF 523〜274ohm, 100pF
−
〜169ohm, 200pF 280〜147ohm, 250pF
−
350pF 215〜110ohm, 400pF 200〜105ohm, 450pF
− −
〜95.3ohm, 550pF 174〜91ohm, 600pF
−
number is selected to suppress any peaks at RF frequencies to about 3dB
(which should be acceptable to nearly all phono stages), while the second
number will give 0dB (at the cost of slightly poorer phase response and
reduced dynamics).
If you do not know the precise capacitance of your tonearm cable, 100pF
per meter is standard, while low-capacitance cable is likely to be around
50pF per meter (we do not recommend high-capacitance cable). As approxi-
mate loading figures we suggest 523ohms for 1m low-capacitance cable,
442ohms for 1.5m low-capacitance cable, 383ohms for 1m standard cable or
2m low-capacitance cable, 316ohms for 1.5m standard cable or 3m low-
capacitance cable, 280ohms for 2m standard cable or 4m low-capacitance
cable, 232ohms for 3m standard cable, and 200ohms for 4m standard cable.
If your phono stage is made for MM cartridges, use an additional head-amp
or step-up transformer between Kleos SL and 47kohm MM phono input (if
transformer, it must be of a type dedicated to cartridges of 10ohms or less,
and should be connected to your phono stage with low-capacitance cable).

Turntable levelling

Confirm with a bubble level (a large machinist's level is best) that the
turntable is absolutely horizontal.

Mechanical installation

Kleos SL's threaded mounting screw holes are metric JIS-standard M2.6
pitch 0.45 and preferably should be used with one of the three different
sizes of stainless steel screws (and matching hexagonal wrench) supplied.
Don't use other screws unless they are confirmed suitable by Lyra or its dis-
tributor, as the wrong thread size may damage Kleos SL's body. If the
thread size is correct, changing the screw headshape and material will
affect the sound, and experimenting can be fun. Nonetheless, the supplied
screws are made of a non-standard stainless-steel alloy which in our experi-
ence gives the best sonic results with Kleos SL. The tonearm headshell
must have non-threaded holes or slots that are accessible fromabove.
383〜205ohm, 150pF
−
249〜133ohm, 300pF 232〜121ohm,
− −
191〜100ohm, 500pF
−
165〜86.6ohm. In each pair the first
−

Electrical connections

Connect the red (R
(LG ) output pins at the rear of Kleos SL to tonearm (or headshell) lead-
−
wires. Match each colored tonearm lead-wire clip to the correspondingly
colored cartridge output pin. Kleos SL's red-green pins output the right
channel signal, the white-blue pins output the left channel signal.
The output pins of the Kleos SL are platinum-plated for superior sound
and essentially maintenance-free operation.

Stylus guard

Remove stylus cover only after provisionally installing Kleos SL in your ton-
earm (or headshell). Grasp both sides of stylus cover and gently pull it
straight forward towards the front of the cartridge and and then away, while
watching the cantilever assembly closely to avoid any contact between can-
tilever and stylus cover, or between cantilever and your fingers.
Stylus and
cantilever alignment
Stylus and cantilever alignment adjustments in the headshell should be
done with a separately available template (set-up tool) and a stylus force
gauge. Kleos SL' long footprint line-contact stylus is very revealing, and
careful setup (we recommend Baerwald or Lofgren A alignment) will be
rewarded with better sound.
Kleos SL incorporates another, simpler stylus alignment method. The Kleos
SL body has a 1.02mm hole drilled directly above the stylus, and this can be
used with compatible tonearms, with a 1mm hole (US 60 gauge or 0.040
inch) drilled through the headshell at the position which gives optimal
tracking of the stylus. Obtain a 1mm drill bit (or US 60 gauge or 0.040
inch), and push the dull end into the 1mm headshell hole so that it pro-
316
−
trudes by 5〜6mm from the headshell underside. Secure drill with clay or
putty so that it doesn't slip (but can still move if pushed up vertically).
182
−
Mount Kleos SL to headshell so that the protruding drill shaft fits into the
1.02mm hole in the Kleos SL body. Do this slowly and carefully, since you
could scratch the Kleos SL body if you push or drag when it is not aligned
with drill shaft. Once Kleos SL is flush with the headshell underside, install
and tighten the two 2.6mm mounting screws. Feel free to also use a sepa-
rate template to verify that cantilever is perpendicular to LP groove at null
points (normally 66.0 and 120.9 mm from the LP center). Finally, remove
drill shaft. This procedure should align stylus to
1mm drill bit
Alignment hole in headshell
for 1mm or #60 drill bit
Drill bit dull end, let
protrude by 5〜6mm
1.02mm hole
in Kleos body
Carefully align
and fit 1.02mm
hole in Kleos
body over
protruding dull
end of drill bit
) and green (RG ) as well as white (L
＋ −
MADE IN JAPAN
R L
RG LG
⇦ (Remove)
/
＋
Drill bit sharp end
2.6mm pitch 0.45 screws
Remove drill bit after cartridge
is aligned and screws tightened
) and blue
＋
RED: R ＋
●
GREEN: RG −
●
WHITE: L ＋
●
BLUE: LG −
●
0.3mm accuracy.
−