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Clearaudio · Performance DC
$8,000
Not currently in our rooms. For a serious buyer we will often bring a piece in from the manufacturer for a private session — tell us about your system and what you are weighing it against, and we will advise.
Clearaudio · Performance DC
The Performance DC AiR with the Tracer tonearm is a complete three-speed Clearaudio front end with a ceramic magnetic bearing and a decoupled coreless motor.
Package with the Tracer tonearm and Professional Power 12V. Variant names list the Essence MC cartridge; confirm the current cartridge with us before ordering.
Authorized Clearaudio dealer · Delivery and installation by Pearl Audio · Trade-ins welcome
The story
The Performance DC AiR is Clearaudio's three-speed belt-drive turntable for listeners who want a serious analog front end without the footprint of the Innovation. Its AiR coreless DC motor is decoupled from the plinth and drives an aluminum sub-platter by flat belt. Above it sits a 40 mm POM platter with a weighted rim, riding on Clearaudio's patented CMB bearing: an inverted design with a polished ceramic shaft in a sintered bronze bushing and a magnetically supported upper half, so there is no ball or thrust pad to wear. Musical Surroundings includes the Professional Power 12V linear supply.
The Tracer tonearm uses a horizontal sapphire bearing and vertical ball bearings on an angled tungsten axle, a torsionally stiff carbon tube and magnetic anti-skating built into the pivot. Azimuth, headshell and counterweight are all adjustable, and the 1.1 m Super Sixstream cable comes hardwired with RCA plugs. Tracking Angle measured its effective mass at about 10 g, which suits medium-compliance moving coils and most moving magnets.
Tracking Angle spent several months with this table and arm and found speed stability, vibration control and arm resonance all excellent. The standard chassis is compressed wood between two aluminum plates, in four color combinations. It plays 78s, and the Professional Power 12V linear supply is included. Ask us which cartridge suits your phono stage.
All four color combinations are the same price. Specify a silver or black Tracer.
| Drive | Flat belt, decoupled AiR coreless 12 V DC motor |
| Speeds | 33⅓, 45 and 78 rpm, electronic selection |
| Wow and flutter | ±0.05% |
| Platter | 40 mm POM with weighted rim, aluminum sub-platter |
| Bearing | Clearaudio CMB ceramic magnetic bearing, inverted |
| Chassis | Compressed wood between two aluminum plates |
| Tonearm | Clearaudio Tracer, included: 239.12 mm effective length, 222 mm mounting distance, 17.12 mm overhang, 25.00° offset |
| Tonearm bearings | Horizontal sapphire, vertical ball bearings on a tungsten axle |
| Cartridge weight range | 3.5–17 g |
| Tonearm cable | 1.1 m Super Sixstream, RCA, hardwired |
| Power supply | Clearaudio Professional Power 12V, included |
| Dimensions (W × D × H) | 16.5 × 13.0 × 4.9 in (420 × 330 × 125 mm) without tonearm |
| Weight | About 24 lb (11 kg) |
| Warranty | 2 years with registration (Clearaudio); Tracer 3 years |
Clearaudio's turntables, from the Compass to the Statement.
Good cartridge matches include the Concept MC and Talisman V2.1 Gold.
Plan your Clearaudio system with Pearl Audio
Pearl Audio is an authorized Clearaudio dealer. We can help you choose a tonearm and cartridge, set the turntable up in your system, and arrange an audition in our Portland showroom. Call (503) 222-2599 or email sales@pearlaudio.com.
The Pearl Audio experience
A system at this level should be heard, thoughtfully matched, and properly set up. From the first audition to long-term ownership, you work with the same people, in person.
The Performance DC Air Turntable is not in our rooms at present. When it is the right piece for a client we arrange a demonstration unit from the manufacturer and set it up for a private session.
We deliver and install throughout the Portland area, taking care of placement, connections, ventilation and system configuration ourselves.
We support everything we sell for as long as you own it, whether the answer comes by phone, in your home, or through factory service.
Trade-in assistance and qualifying 100% Trade-Up options give you flexibility when your listening priorities or your system change.
