Cambridge Audio ALVA ST
Just Add Vinyl
There’s nothing quite like vinyl: the tactile pleasure of removing a record from its sleeve and carefully placing it on a deck is unique. We designed the original Alva TT to honour that tradition, and Alva ST to share that pleasure with more people.
With a pre-fitted cartridge –?so you’ll be playing records in minutes – the belt-drive Alva ST also features switchable Hi-Res Bluetooth streaming and integrated phono stage.
Everyone should be able to enjoy the freedom Alva brings.
“You’ll be proud to have it in your home... It’s a great mid-price turntable”
MAY 2023
King of Convenience
Alva ST is for people who want to listen to records at exceptional quality – without the need to choose or fit extra components. Alva ST keeps it simple with perfectly matched cartridge pre-installed. Alva ST connects to pretty much any audio system too, as it has a switchable integrated phono-stage. It even works wirelessly with Bluetooth speaker systems.
Hi-Res Bluetooth
Built-in Bluetooth aptX HD liberates Alva from the rest of your hi-fi. With the freedom to place an Alva deck on any flat surface, your records take centre-stage. Music can be streamed to any compatible Bluetooth kit, including headphones, at up to 24bit/48kHz Hi-Res quality. Or, you can deactivate it and simply use phono cables – it’s your call.
Integrated Phono Stage
Alva ST has an integrated phono stage (phono pre-amp), derived from our award-winning Alva Duo – to reveal incredible detail from your records. It means you can connect Alva ST to any amp or compatible speaker system. You can deactivate the deck’s phono stage, too – ideal if your amp already has one or to keep upgrade options open.
MM Cartridge Pre-installed
After hours of listening, we selected an Audio Technica Moving Magnet cartridge to be ready fitted on Alva ST. With no fiddly set-up you’ll be playing records in minutes. The elliptical stylus provides a greater contact area with your records’ grooves, producing accurate tracking of information and, of course, great sounding music.
Belt Drive
Alva ST uses the proven belt-drive method, supplemented with electronic motor speed control. After connecting the belt for the first time, you won’t need to look under the platter again. Rotation speed selection is made by 2 neat electronic buttons on the ST’s aluminium top surface – so you can effortlessly switch between playing albums and singles.
Aluminium, Tuned
Alva ST’s platter is aluminium die-cast, finished by CNC to ensure a totally level and smooth surface. The 17mm high aluminium platter is finished with a 5mm rubber mat – a combination proven to reduce unwanted resonance.
All-New Tonearm
After hours of testing, our engineers selected a new high-mass, low-resonance tonearm for Alva TT V2 and Alva ST. By minimising resonant frequencies, and in combination with the cartridge, it helps retrieve the maximum detail from your records. A detachable die-cast aluminium headshell makes swapping cartridges easy – then fine-tuned with greater precision thanks to a new anti-skating dial.
Designed for Life
A record collection can last a lifetime, so why shouldn’t a turntable? We built Alva ST to do just that, with a 1mm aluminium top plate, and a layer of EVA to absorb vibration sitting on top of MDF. It’s cradled in a composite chassis and weighs 9kg. Reassuring solid, and with great sound absorption qualities too.
Timeless Style, from London
Finished with a lunar-grey aluminium top plate and matt black plinth, tapering to our trademark floating wedge base, Alva ST shares our minimalist house style. It’s the perfect match for our best-selling Evo and CX Series hi-fi separates. Designed and engineered in London with the emphasis on classic timeless style.
Dust Never Sleeps
Keep your new Alva turntable’s finely balanced tonearm and aluminium top-plate pristine when you’ve finished spinning discs for the day, with the hinged dust-cover. It’s easy to raise, lower, remove and re-attach – the choice is yours.
THE DETAILS
| TYPE | Belt Drive |
| TURNTABLE SPEEDS | 33.3, 45rpm |
| WOW & FLUTTER | <0.12% |
| TURNTABLE PLATTER | Die Cast Aluminium |
| PLATTER DIAMETER | 305mm |
| PLATTER WEIGHT | 645.3g (930.5g inc. rubber mat) |
| AUDIO OUT | RCA Phono/Line Level (Switchable) |
| BLUETOOTH | SBC/aptX/aptX HD |
| POWER SUPPLY | DC 12V |
| POWER CONSUMPTION | 6W |
| MAX POWER CONSUMPTION | 20W |
| STANDBY POWER CONSUMPTION | <0.3W |
| DIMENSIONS (W X H X D) | 435 x 139 x 366.7mm |
| WEIGHT | 9kg |
| PHONO STAGE GAIN @1KHZ | 42dB |
| PHONO STAGE NOMINAL OUTPUT | 250Vrms |
| PHONO STAGE INPUT NOISE (A-WEIGHTED) | 0.1u Vrms |
| PHONO STAGE RIAA CURVE ACCURACY | *+/- 0.3dB 30Hz-20kHz |
| PHONO STAGE SIGNAL/NOISE RATIO | >90dB |
| PHONO STAGE THD+N 1KHZ | 0.0025% |
| PHONO STAGE INPUT IMPEDANCE | 47kΩ |
| PHONO STAGE INPUT CAPACITANCE | 330pF |
| TONEARM TYPE | Static Balanced Tonearm w/ detachable Headshell |
| TONEARM EFFECTIVE LENGTH | 221.5mm |
| TONEARM OVERHANG | 19mm |
| TONEARM EFFECTIVE MASS | 19.6g |
| TONEARM COMPATIBLE CARTRIDGE WEIGHTS | 4.5-12g |
| CARTRIDGE | Moving Magnet |
| CARTRIDGE FREQUENCY RESPONSE | +/- 0.5dB 30Hz-20kHz |
| CARTRIDGE STYLUS | Elliptical |
| CARTRIDGE CANTILEVER | Alloy Tube |
| CARTRIDGE OUTPUT LEVEL | 1.8~3.6mV @1kHz |
| CARTRIDGE TRACKING FORCE | 2g |
| CARTRIDGE RECOMMENDED LOAD | 47kΩ |
| IN THE BOX | Alva ST Belt-drive turntable, Dustcover, Quick start guide, 2 x hinge assembly, Platter, Counterweight, Slipmat, Removable headshell with moving magnet cartridge, power adaptor with switchable plugs, RCA cable, Ground lead, Ortofon stylus gauge. |