The Article
EVO: A Carbon Debut Turntable From Pro-Ject
12th February 2021
The latest in the ever-growing Debut series of turntables, Paul Rigby reviews this new design from the Austrian company
The Pro-Ject Debut series first appeared on the scene back in 1999. Via the distributor Henley Audio, there are, right now, three Debut turntables for sale – at least in the UK my home territory: the Debut Carbon DC at £299, the Debut Carbon RecordMaster Hi-Res at £649, a lifestyle design that focuses on its built-in analogue to digital convertor and this, the Debut EVO, the latest release from the Austrian turntable makers. It’s the most intriguing build I’ve seen in the line for some time.
The Carbon Debut EVO features a one-piece carbon fibre tonearm. This is the 8.6” carbon-fibre variety with sapphire bearings.
There’s a steel platter which triggered a minor alarm when I first unpacked it because I feared the thing would ring like a bell when knocked with an available knuckle.
Not so, in fact. There’s some heavy-duty damping attached underneath the platter (which sits on a sub platter) in the form of a Thermo-Plastic Elastomer (TPE) damping ring. Knocking the platter with this in place drastically reduces any music-threatening vibration.
TPE is also applied to the three, height-adjustable feet which are connected to suspension elements from the recently released X1, turntable.
SPEED SELECTION
The electronic speed selection arrives in the form of a rocker switch which is hidden from view underneath the front-left portion of the plinth to keep the lines clean and aid aesthetics.
The 33.33 and 45rpm selections are supplemented by 78rpm if you change the belt (supplied).
A venerable Ortofon 2M Red cartridge (worth around £95) is included as standard.
There are nine finish options with this one, three in hand-painted high gloss covering red, white and black plus five varieties of hand-painted matte pastel colours spanning green, black, blue, yellow and white plus a walnut veneer.
A hinged dust cover is supplied too.
Unpacking and construction was straight-forward. Just take it slow, follow the illustrated, colour instructions (first time I’ve seen Pro-Ject offer that approach to its instructions and it’s a welcome inclusion) and you’ll be fine.
I was happy to see that Pro-Ject has bundled a separate set of Connect-IT E phono cables from its own range. I have reviewed these separately and like them a lot. It’s nice to see that the turntable can handle upgradable cabling too.
Spanning 415 x 113 x 320mm, the whole kit and caboodle weighs in at 6kg
SOUND QUALITY
I began with the 1975 album from The King Singers. Keep on Changing (EMI), mixing complex vocal harmonies, a soft rock tempo plus a host of instruments including guitars, drums, secondary percussion and a backing orchestra.
I wanted to test a lower-priced, yet top quality turntable to address those who might be looking to upgrade. So I’m talking to owners of low-cost Fluance, Lenco and Audio-Technica designs. Around the £250 or lower mark, the best sounding turntable of the bunch is the Rega RP1 so I began with that.
If you’re looking to upgrade, is the EVO a viable option? Does the EVO improve overall sound and, if so, by how much?
In short, the RP1 described all of the detail. It was all there. Nothing was left out. Imagine a country scene on a spring day. The RP1 showed you a photograph of the area. With the EVO, you were there. You could hear the rustle of the grass and the wind on your face. With the EVO, it added new sonic dimensions of realism.
So the RP1 tells you about the deep, resonant drum at the start of the track. The EVO tells you about its weight, the reverb that emanates from it and the bounce from the drum skin on the top. The RP1 tells you about a riffle of bells used as secondary percussion. The EVO introduced a shimmer to the bell effect, a lightness, a delicacy and again, that echo-based reverb that provided space.
Overall, the EVO was far more focused while the bank of strings offered weight, they were no longer just a tone they seemed to have body now. The precision allowed more detail to infuse the soundstage while the pace of the music picked up because that focus removed any tiny elements of drag.
So, the EVO looks good as an upgrade from a low-cost turntable. Let’s up the ante shall we? Let’s see how the EVO handles bass and drive from a more expensive turntable, this time with a quality elliptical-stylus of the VM95E attached to Audio-Technica’s LP5x. I prefer the LP5x’s overall performance to the competing Fluance RT83, even though there’s a lot to like from the Fluance. So Fluence owners can take note from these comments here too.
BALANCED RESPONSE
The LP5x was all about muscle on this test. It provided bass weight, there was real punch here and a sense of impact while the mids and treble were admirable and supplied a good partnership with the lower frequencies but they couldn’t compete with the EVO.
The EVO offered a good sense of bass but the EVO also offered a better balanced bass response that worked with the mids instead of slightly dominating them. As for the mids themselves? The EVO had a better take of midrange detail offering the ear an extended dynamic reach. The LP5x rolled off at a point in the upper mids while the EVO just kept on going.
The result was a tonal realism that you just don’t hear on lower cost turntables. A tonal realism that allowed you to better appreciate the art of the music instead of only an attractive musical noise.
Next up was the EVO’s greatest challenge, the Rega RP3. This turntable should, by rights, be better than the Pro-Ject EVO in all areas. It’s around £100 more expensive. So how did the EVO cope?
The RP3 offered tremendous confidence in its overall presentation while the lower frequencies, as a whole, were a thing of beauty. The percussion wasn’t just tonally correct but organic in how it described each thwack of the drum. Vocals were focused while the upper mids had a real sense of precision. The effect was also to keep the music moving. The pace was steady and unfailing here. There was never any sense of drag. The song was sprightly and moved with a real bounce.
Even so, the EVO not only held its own but managed to land a few blows against the RP3. Which was a complete surprise, I must add. That is, the soundstage from the EVO was more open and airy with a great sense of fragility and delicacy in the treble. Mids offered extended reverb tails while, despite the extra confidence and better quality lower frequencies from the RP3, I actually found that the EVO produced a better balance overall.
I then moved onto something more dynamic and selected Rootmasters (Nina Walsh and Alex Paterson of The Orb). This is a 10” release, Push Once and the track Elephant Puddle.
The track was dominated by a cavernous sub bass which the Pro-Ject EVO tracked very well indeed. It also kept control of the effect to stop it swamping the mids. The upper frequency detail remained wholly intact, offering a host of information and keeping a sense of discipline across the soundstage.
The often aggressive frequencies were noted by the EVO. Guitar was in your face, percussion was dominant and vocals were distorted and cutting yet the EVO easily kept the entire track in control and added a balance that enabled the music to retain its inherent rhythm. In short, it rocked. And rocked efficiently but also with plenty of emotion.
CONCLUSION
The Pro-Ject Carbon EVO deserves to dominate the sub-£500 market.
As for competing with more expensive and challenging designs like the Rega RP3? If you want to save yourself £100 then you will lose certain highlights yes but because of the EVO’s balanced presentation, many users won’t miss them.
If you’re on a longer-range upgrade path, the EVO provides you with options. Is your ultimate upgrading aim a turntable around £1,000-£1,500? Are you saving slowly to reach that budget? Then the EVO might provide the better link in the upgrade chain. This will save you money early on but it will also provide a relatively long-term sonic solution until you can save the cash for that upgrade buy. With the EVO, there are no obvious sonic holes. There’s nothing amiss. In fact, you can see that Pro-Ject has spent its build budget wisely, focusing on all areas of the frequency spectrum, equally.
The Pro-Ject Carbon EVO is a winner. Buy with confidence.
PRO-JECT CARBON DEBUT EVO TURNTABLE
Price: £449
Tel: 01235 511166
Website: www.henleyaudio.co.uk
BUY HERE:
USA – https://amzn.to/3EN3sp7
EUROPE – https://amzn.to/3jGXNrE
GOOD: balanced presentation, airy midrange, dynamic reach, detailed bass, price
BAD: nothing
RATING: 9
[Don’t forget to check out my new Patreon Page at www.patreon.com/audiophileman, for exclusive postings, giveaways and more!]
REFERENCE
Rega RP1 turntable
Rega RP3 turntable
Spendor S3/5R speakers
Tellurium Q cabling
Blue Horizon Professional Rack System
Harmonic Resolution Systems Noise Reduction Components
Glad to know that. I had the wish that this really was his indication, as I also wanted to use it directly with my headphones to listen to my records at night. Thanks again, Paul. You are the best.
Hey Paul! Your website has been super helpful, so thank you so much! I am pulling my hair out though, and need your help! I have a low humming coming from my active speakers (Audioengine A5 ) which only happens at high volumes (it does not happen when I’m using bluetooth direct from my phone).
Set-up: project carbon turntable > Rega pre-amp > active speakers
I bought my turntable from Sevenoaks sounds. They told me to try a new pre-amp. I did & no improvement.
They told me that this is likely with active speakers, and that I should buy passive speakers & a separate amplifier?
I’ve just spent loads of money setting this all up, and struggling to find the source of this humming so I’m going a bit mad!
If you could help that would be great! Thanks
See your Twitter feed for this one, Gary.
Hi Paul, been deeply engrossed in your website today as I’m looking to get my first turntable (though not looking exactly for entry-level ones). Thanks for sharing so much knowledge!
I’m considering the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO, Rega Planar 1, and Fluance RT85 (at least in the last hour). Any thoughts on which way you’d go if you were buying today?
Amazon US shows the EVO with a Sumiko Rainier Phono Cartridge, while you reviewed it with the Ortofon 2M Red. Is that a plus or a minus?
Thanks!
Hi Diego – many thanks for checking out the site. As for your proposed turntable purchase? That depends on your budget. Are you calling from the USA? I guess the Planar 1 is priced at a similar (ish) figure to the EVO over there. The Planar 1 is only worth around ¬£275 – US buyers pay more because you/they pay for Rega’s shipping costs. The 85 is a fine turntable but slightly compromised because of its auto-stop features et al which compromises sound a tad. The EVO is my choice for its basic sound presentation but also because it can be easily upgraded. See my piece on the very subject here: https://theaudiophileman.com/pro-ject-evo-upgrades-8-to-choose-from/
Finally, in the UK, the default cart is the 2M Red. Hence, the reason why I reviewed that cart on the EVO.
Hi Paul, thanks for your reply and Happy Holidays to you! I am writing from Santa Cruz, California, indeed.
Yeah, price doesn’t affect my choice all that much: the Rega Planar 1 is showing at $525, the Fluance RT85 at $499 and the EVO at $599. Looks like the Rega is overpriced due to it being a harder-to-find UK brand, as you mention. And your strong recommendation of the EVO has me ready to click that “buy” button.
(I also read your post about the upgrades, thanks for that. Makes even more of sense to go with the EVO.)
My question about the cart was, should I be concerned about the Sumiko? Is it worse than the Ortofon to the point that that alone would change your recommendation?
Lastly, do you have an affiliate link to buy the EVO in the US that I could use?
Many thanks.
Hi Diego – sure, and thank you : https://amzn.to/3qvSS0E
The Sumiko is a fine design but I reckon you can do better. Both the Sumiko and 2M Red are default carts when you buy the EVO in their related territories but the Goldring E3 is a better performer than both for the price. Saying that, it depends on your budget. If you have the cash then it might be better to save for a high-end upgrade such as an Ortofon 2M Blue or, better still, a Goldring 1042.
Hi Paul, thank you for all your reviews and break downs of turn tables, phono amps, and such. I have a question about two set ups I’m stuck between. My goal is to build a system that will play music with more fidelity and clarity via vinyl than a digital song streamed to my speaker system. Through much thought, the setups I’m between are as follows: 1) [~$650 total] The AT-LP5x by Audio Technica with only the addition of the Pro-ject Phono Box MM and 2) [~$800 total] The Project Debut Carbon Evo which is stock in the U.S. with a Sumiko Ranier cartridge, with the addition of the iFi Audio Zen phono amp. I found the Zen phono amp may pair well with the Sumiko Ranier cartridge but it does add some decent cost.
I was gifted a briefcase turn table a few years ago and have been slowly getting into vinyl since then. I’ve been fortunate enough to inherit a decent sound system with speakers, base, and an amplifier. I’m not sure if I’m over doing it with option 2 above. Do you believe option 1 would achieve the goal of playing music with more fidelity and clarity via vinyl than a digital song streamed to my speaker system? At the moment streamed music is superior sounding to any vinyl I play from the same sound system. Any guidance you can provide will be appreciated.
Hi Joseph, let’s get one thing out of the way first. Despite what you might hear elsewhere, there is no such thing as ‘overdoing it’ in HiFi. No such thing. There’s no diminishing returns or anything like that. Only bottlenecks in your system that prevents everything else working to full capacity, which then offers that illusion. For example? I tested a ¬£10k cartridge on my ¬£15k turntable a year or two ago and realised that my turntable was suddenly a bottleneck. My ¬£15k wasn’t good enough for the ¬£10k cartridge. It was a humbling experience.
So get the very best you can afford.
On the other hand, and this is equally important, the moment you declare yourself happy with the quality of music you’re hearing? You’re done. You don’t *have* to spend a lot if you’re happy with what you have.
On that basis? While both options are excellent, the EVO is the best option of the two.
Oh and if streamed music sounds better than your vinyl set up? Then there’s a bottleneck in your vinyl set up that’s stopping the good stuff coming through.
Never forget, HiFi is a team game, you’re only as good as your weakest link. Put square wheels on a Ferrari and its ain’t going very fast.
Thank you Paul, I believe you’ve helped me make up my mind. I’ll be going with Option 2 as described above; however, I may tweak which phono amp I choose for the EVO as needed. Best Regards!
Hi Paul. First of all, thank you for making this world of Hi-Fi understandable and fun to dive into! I have been wanting a record player for a while but finally researching everything. I’m the type of person who likes to lay everything out and then go for it once I know my steps so I was hoping to run a couple scenarios by you with some fill in the blank questions. Based upon your spectacular reviews and Q&A of both the rega planar 1 and EVO, I have decided to go with the EVO as I can upgrade it as time goes on. My questions lie in my end goal setup. The speakers I would love to have are the Klipsch RP-8000FII floor speakers. Can these hook up to the EVO? Are they worth it for the EVO? I would like to add subwoofers (Monoprice Monolith 12‚Äù THX Ultra) but then again, I am not sure if this will enhance or subtract from a TT experience. As those 2 end goals options are quite pricey I will get cheaper options in the meantime but my biggest question comes with pre-amps and amps. Are there options I can get that are compatible with whatever cheaper options I get and still use them for my end goal setup? I am not sure if this is even answerable if you don’t know what that cheaper option is but I would like to only purchase amp and pre-amps once if possible! As an added question, do you know if I can use all this equipment for both a TT setup and for a TV setup (which is why I am looking at floor speakers and subwoofers)? I apologize for the lengthy question but I figure all at once rather than multiple separate! Thank you so much.
Thanks for that, Tim. The EVO is a fine choice.
Can you tell me why you chose the Klipsch and why you decided to also buy in a subwoofer? Was the decision purely AV centred? Is AV your priority? Is it more important than a stereo chain? Actually, I see the subwoofer word is pluralised there so – two?
What is your amp budget and, in fact, apart from the EVO, take that out of the equation for a sec, what is the budget for the rest of the HiFi chain?
As for AV? If it was me? I would separate the two. That is, I would build an AV system and a separate stereo system.
I know many people combine their HiFi system and AV system as one compact chain and sure, if space is a dominant issue, go for that but, if you are able and space is available, I would strongly advise keeping the two apart. Why? To maximise sound quality and to direct the best tools for the job towards two different tasks.
Hi Paul, thank you for your quick response! To answer your questions: I wanted the Klipsch speakers because I’ve always envisioned having 2 big speakers aside my TT. I like the look and I would want it to be loud enough to hear throughout the house and I’ve heard nothing but positives from those speakers, but again I don’t know if floor speakers just don’t match well with a TT. Subwoofers, yes eventually 2 would be ideal as from the research I did, 2 was better than 1 (but I could be wrong!) and I wanted them as I thought they would enhance my TT listening experience and be nice with AV setup as well. I initially wanted a combo TT and AV setup simply for cost as I would prefer only to buy 1 set of everything. Neither AV or HiFi is my direct priority, I would like to just maximize my bang for my buck and if that can be done by combining, then why not try. I guess my question would be, would having a dual setup like that drastically degrade my experience on both the AV and TT side? If I still get premium sound quality and (for lack of a better term) I still receive lets say 90% of possible sound from both, I think I can sacrifice that for convenience and cost. I hope that makes sense! As for pre-amp and amp, I would like to have a budget of $500 for each. For total chain (minus EVO, Klipsch speakers and subwoofers) I would be comfortable with around $2,000 budget for everything. Thank you again! Sorry for the many questions all together, I had more than I thought!
I don’t want to rain on your parade, Tim so you go for it with your AV plans. You seem to have considered all the angles in terms of your priorities and your sonic requirements, research, etc. The EVO would be a nice addition. A separate stereo system would be better but I totally understand your reasoning in terms of value, space, etc.