The Tosca™ LE
The flagship version of our models, the Tosca™ LE (Limited Edition) was introduced at T.H.E. Show 2023. This Limited Edition comes with a completely new bearing assembly. The counterweights have been upgraded: they are now composed of an inner ring in sapphire, and an outer ring of the same—very rare—metal as the bearing assembly. As usual, the utmost attention has been devoted not only to the design of each single part, but to the materials used as well. Metals were chosen for their specific tonal and mechanical qualities; the armwand is made of a complex construction of damped carbon fiber; part of the bearing assembly and armwand neck are in a composite material also based on carbon fiber, and the headshell is in nickel-plated magnesium.
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As with the Tosca™, the bearing assembly is contained in a unique mechanism designed to reduce vibration, so that it is ideally isolated from mechanical disturbances coming from the outside. Another innovation can be seen in the system used for the VTA/SRA adjustments. After freeing the bearing assembly on the VTA columns, it is a simple matter of turning a screw that activates a mini-jack placed under the bearing assembly. Convenient engraved markings on the VTA column ensure reproducibility of any setting.
Like all our models, the Tosca™ offers all the adjustments needed to explore its full potential: VTA is adjusted with a mechanism placed under the bearing assembly that doesn't require a hole to be bored in the armboard/plinth. For the first time on our models, the azimuth can be very easily adjusted directly at the headshell, which means that any rotation of the system is done in same the plane as the stylus. Anti-skating is of course available, and can be defeated with a simple operation.
Tosca™ LE Specifications
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Effective length: 258.5 mm (10.18”)
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Pivot-spindle distance: 242.6mm (Loefgren A geometry)
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Overhang: 15.92 mm
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Offset angle: 21.2 degrees
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Weight of the whole assembly: 1.7 lbs (0.770 kg)
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Bearing: fixed bearing
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VTA: adjustable
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Azimuth: adjustable at the headshell
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Adjustable anti-skating (can be defeated)
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Mounting on the plinth/armboard is done with 2 x 10-24 (or M4) screws (for metal armboards) or 2x #8 wood screws (for wood armboards)
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Cartridge mount: 1/2” (12.7mm)
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DIN connector for phono cable inside the tonearm base
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Jig to set the pivot-to-spindle distance provided; no need for a ruler, the jig places the tonearm exactly in the right position
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VTF with coupled counterweights: 96 gr, 2 x 64 gr. Counterweights are of a special alloy of much higher density than stainless steel. The Tosca™ is a medium mass tonearm, and the combination of counterweights provided with it allows use of most cartridges currently available.
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If you want to make sure that the Tosca™ LE will fit on your turntable, you can download a mounting template here (scroll to “Tosca™ Mounting Templates”)
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The Tosca™ is medium-mass tonearm that will easily adapt to most cartridges currently available
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Hand assembled in the US
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Please visit our website for our list of dealers and distributors
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MSRP: Tosca LE: $34,000 (without phono cable)
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We offer a range of DIN-RCA (or DIN-XLR) phono cables developed specifically for the Tosca™, with copper or silver wires.
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Phono cables:
Level 1 (copper wires):
$2,100 in DIN-RCA, 4’ configuration
$2,450 in DIN-XLR, 4’ configuration
Level 2 (copper wires):
$4,400 in DIN-RCA, 4’ or 5' configuration
$4,700 in DIN-XLR, 4’ or 5' configuration
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Level 3 (silver wires):
$4,700 in DIN-RCA, 4’ or 5' configuration
$5,000 in DIN-XLR, 4’ or 5' configuration
Like all our models, the Tosca™ LE offers all the adjustments needed to explore its full potential: VTA is adjusted with a mechanism placed under the bearing assembly that doesn't require a hole to be bored in the armboard/plinth. Azimuth can be very easily adjusted directly at the headshell, which means that any rotation of the system is done in same the plane as the stylus. Anti-skating is of course available, and can be defeated with a simple operation.
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The Tosca™ has a DIN connector built inside the back of the tonearm base—a system that greatly minimizes the transmission of vibrations to the cable. This allows you to choose between several of the phono cables that we offer separately (DIN-RCA or DIN-XLR), and that were developed specially for the Tosca™ and the Tosca™ LE.
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Please note that our invoice will state full price paid, regardless of where it is sent. Durand Tonearms will not misrepresent your tonearm’s value for customs purposes. Please do not ask us to do so.
DURAND TONEARMS LLC
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