Vertere DG X turntable & arm
I cannot speak for you of course, but I have the sense that we are living through some dark days. As a natural optimist it pains me to even say so, but there we are. Then suddenly, a product comes along for review which absolutely lifts me and brightens not only my mood but also my listening room. The Vertere DG X turntable did exactly that when it first arrived here a few months ago now, when I was visited by Mike Burn, who is the UK Sales Director for Vertere.
He was passing through Devon and kindly made time on his journey to spend a few hours here with me, and brought with him one of the company’s new turntables, the DG X. I left him to unbox and set it up while I went to prepare refreshments. Upon my return he was putting the final touches to a lovely looking machine with a brilliant white top plate and the familiar flat shape of the Groove Runner arm, which like the DG turntable has also been upgraded with the X suffix in its name. A few years before I had hosted the original DG and Groove Runner here and had been very taken with them, so I was very excited to hear this latest version.
Mike had brought not one but two Groove Runner Xs, one armed with my current cartridge choice, the Dark Sabre moving magnet design, and the other with the brand new Mystic 2 moving coil. Swapping arms on the DG X is a very straightforward task, so we were able to hear both these configurations over the course of the next two hours. I was sufficiently smitten to ask if I could have the same configuration here for a longer and more extensive audition with a view to submitting a review. My only proviso was that if possible it should be the red variant, as this household is particularly partial to that colour and wife approval is always a bonus. Not long afterwards the review system materialised, along with two Groove Runner Xs, pre-loaded with the same two cartridges.
You will see from the pictures that the DG X has real rack presence. It makes a strong visual statement with its beautiful plan view mixing elegant curves as well as straight lines. The platter has good weight to it and with the supplied mat it just looks really good. The flat form of Groove Runner X enhances the impression that one has something special on the rack. There is a lightweight dust cover supplied too, which is very welcome. Output from the DG X is via a pair of RCA sockets which I connected to my Gold Note PH10/PSU phono stage with Vertere’s Verum cable. I used Vertere Redline RCA cables (which I already owned) to connect the phono stage to the amplifier. A Redline power cable was connected to the DG X’s own switch mode power supply which I placed on the floor behind the system rack. The rest of the system was my Primaluna EVO300 Hybrid amplifier and my Harbeth Compact 7 ES-3 XD stand mount loudspeakers, using Tellurium Q’s Ultra Silver II cables.
Remember those dark days I mentioned? To banish them completely the DG X has various light combinations available, and those lights will pierce even the deepest gloom of a listening room if desired. The user can configure them in different ways. For me they shine through the acrylic platter when the turntable is in standby mode but dim as soon as the power is on. Of course if you prefer not to have them on at all there is such a setting, but I love the lights.
Living with the DG X
The DG in this product’s official name stands for Dynamic Groove, and almost as soon after I lowered the Dark Sabre’s stylus onto the first record I set down on the mat it was obvious that this machine was very well named. Breaking away from what our esteemed editor has referred to as my ‘Pink Floyd/ Rolling Stones rabbit hole’, I started with another of my perennial favourites, Dave Alvin’s Eleven Eleven. The opening track will be familiar to anyone who got hooked on the TV series Justified – Harlan County Line is a wonderful piece of bluesy Americana, with a storyline that unfolds in Alvin’s weary baritone. I was pinned to my seat, absolutely immersed in the sound and the drama. We were off to a great start.
Next up we went back several decades to the 1960s (no apologies – I was there and falling in love with music). In 2024 a yellow vinyl edition of an album from 1964 was released on the Parlophone label. The Animals in glorious mono burst from the Harbeths as if Eric Burdon and his illustrious band mates were performing live in our room. Every album, every track that I played in those first days sounded really excellent. I was hooked.
Next came the moment that I had been anticipating ever since Mr Burn’s visit – listening to the new Mystic II cartridge. Switching arms on the DG X is very straightforward, I am no technician but with care I was able to switch the two Groove Runner Xs without any fuss. After a swift check that the tracking weight was correct we were off again.
But before we resume our look back at the music, a brief word about living with this turntable and Groove Runner X arm. Both are an absolute delight. The record is spinning at the proper speed almost as soon as one’s finger leaves the power button near the platter and the lift mechanism on the arm is buttery-smooth. The delicate stylus descends onto the record’s surface with gossamer-winged lightness, and the lift-off and return of the flat section arm to its resting position is simplicity itself. I loved both parts of the record playing ceremony far more than I do with most other designs.
Let us return to the main order of business, which is the sound quality of the DG X/Groove Runner X and the Mystic II. Pick your own superlative – I am going to go with amazing, extraordinary and utterly beguiling. Whether it was denizens of my rabbit-hole (take a bow At Pompeii and Let It Bleed) or brand new recordings such as David Helbock and Julia Hofer on the 2025 release Faces Of Night on the ACT label (highly recommended), the music flowed from the Harbeths with tremendous presence and realism. Classical instruments and choral music also benefited from the DG X magic. It transpires that a Dynamic Groove lies within music from every century and this record player never failed to unlock it and present it to the listener in a way that has made playing vinyl addictive for me once again.
Summary
Let’s start with the aesthetics of the DG X. This may be the entry point to the extraordinary line of Vertere turntables but is unmistakably the work of the same designer. Step forward Touraj Moghaddam, the music-loving engineer who founded the legendary Roksan brand and then moved on to found Vertere and continues to draw on his decades of experience to produce not only turntables and tonearms, but cables, cartridges, motor drives and phono pre-amplifiers. He is also a warm and engaging human being who is never happier than when explaining and expounding on his ideas. He has a huge and eclectic record collection and uses it to listen to everything he builds.
The DG X drew very admiring comments from all who have seen it here – it looks the business, as we say. However, we buy a turntable for its sound more than its looks, and in this the DG X has to be seen as an exemplar of the very best that this amount of money can buy. The construction is above reproach and every tiny detail has been so carefully thought out. Using the DG X is a delight. I genuinely could find nothing to criticise.
The danger for every reviewer is that they will fall in love with a product that they review and I utterly fell in love with DG X. It is so easy to use, it has no foibles, it will not need to be fettled by an expert to keep it playing well, and it looks wonderful atop a system rack. So I sold the record player that has served me very well for the best part of a decade and bought my very own red DG X and I could not be happier.
Not a day passes now without me playing at least a couple of albums. I am plucking them from the various storage shelves around the house, in some cases not having heard them for years, and my days are filled with light and joy once again. Yes, it is an investment, but it is already paying me dividends in absolute listening pleasure and that has already pushed all thoughts of the purchase price out of my head. Can I offer a stronger recommendation than that?