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  1. J

    What's the correct MC cartridge loading?

    Here is a more detailed thread about this same topic, from almost 10 years ago. https://www.whatsbestforum.com/threads/cartridge-loading-a-misnomer.15077/ Also, please take note of Yamaha's HA-2 from 1979 https://audio-heritage.jp/YAMAHA/etc/ha-2.html and HA-3 from 1982...
  2. J

    Esoteric Grandioso T1 turntable arrives; G1X Master Clock coming.

    Some historical reasons as to why Esoteric (Teac) would use partial magnetic levitations, and who they may have been inspired by. https://www.diyaudio.com/community/threads/interesting-turntables.263822/post-4102525...
  3. J

    Koetsu

    Part 2 of the Medialux Koetsu story. https://medialux.blog/2019/07/08/4-koetsu-compared-japanese-art-part-ii/
  4. J

    Graham Phantom Elite

    The 4 Point is not a unipivot, but a knife-edge design that has been reduced to two contact points per axis (horizontal and vertical) by removing the central section of the knife edges. Such a design can have similar horizontal and vertical stability as gimbals, with only a little more friction...
  5. J

    Lyra Erodion SUT

    Hi Squasher: We don't dictate to our distributors which Lyra product they should carry, or not - such business decisions are left to the discretion of each distributor. If you contact our distributor in the US, Audioquest, I am sure that you will receive an answer. kind regards, jonathan
  6. J

    Lyra Erodion SUT

    Hi Gian: The Erodion's rear panel is equipped with a grounding switch, and instructions on the purpose of each grounding switch position should be inside the user's manual. Experimenting with the switch may provide a little more sonic transparency. Also, instead of connecting the ground leads...
  7. J

    Lyra Erodion SUT

    Hi Tom: The red Erodion already has an internal load on the secondaries of around 35kohm, if I recall correctly. Therefore, if the MM phono stage has an input termination of 47kohm, the parallel value is 20060 ohms. And if we divide 18312 by the square of the Erodion's 20x primary-secondary...
  8. J

    Lyra Erodion SUT

    Tango, in my opinion your first priority should be to extract more of the performance that the AirTight SUT is potentially capable of. I suggest starting by placing the AirTight as close to your JPA66 as possible, to determine how short of an interconnect cable you need. Next you can obtain a...
  9. J

    Lyra Erodion SUT

    While the Erodion name has been around for a long time, both the contents and appearance have changed over the years. The "red" Erodion introduced a wider-bandwidth stepup unit, along with revisions to the grounding and output loading. From this red version onwards, the Erodion shifted away...
  10. J

    Unable to achieve setup perfection with the Ikeda 407

    Due to the nature of the elastomer materials used in cartridge dampers, temperature and humidity can have a decided effect on performance, including tracking. You may wish to contact your cartridge manufacturers to get their recommendations for optimal operating conditions. In my experience...
  11. J

    Atlas SL arrived

    Hi David: As you have surmised, the tonearm is a mongrel of various parts pieced together . Note that all excess parts that could resonate and color the sound have been stripped off. Only the essentials remain. It's too bad that we couldn't meet up, but Stig's moving at the beginning of 2018...
  12. J

    Atlas SL arrived

    That many MC phono cartridges have low source impedances? Although the following is a biomedical link, the same principles described here apply to audio. https://www.biosemi.com/faq/shielding%20vs%20active%20electrodes.htm Further, some degree of noise cancellation will be conferred by...
  13. J

    Atlas SL arrived

    Hi kleinbje: All of us should maintain ourselves in this hobby at a level that is both sustainable and comfortable. Considering that you already have a cartridge that you are extremely satisfied with, would you really be comfortable making a change, just because something newer has managed to...
  14. J

    Atlas SL arrived

    Hi Tang. It may be better if I add two photos to show such a setup. Not beautiful, but gets the job done (smile). The black Erodion. Once it arrives, please describe how you get along with it. I am honored! Thank you .
  15. J

    Atlas SL arrived

    Hi Shane: It is too bad that your phono stage doesn't allow you to go higher than 1kohm. As the electrical load on the cartridge becomes lighter, the sound becomes more delicate and airier, soundstage expands, yet dynamics also increase. It is definitely worthwhile trying (phono stage...
  16. J

    Atlas SL arrived

    These days we are using the SAT, which has a captive tonearm cable. But for any tonearm that uses the universal headshell system (including the FRs), the headshell contacts and wiring are a decided weak point. The sound quality can be improved by providing each headshell with a dedicated...
  17. J

    Atlas SL arrived

    Shane, I acknowledge that you may have simply preferred the Nordost. That said, did you try increasing the phono stage input resistor value when you used the PhonoPipe? The extremely low capacitance cable structure (32pF for 1.2m) was designed primarily to facilitate the use of less loading on...
  18. J

    Best phono stage?

    Please keep in mind that the numbers that I give in the Lyra cartridge user's manuals are for phono amplifiers that are not necessarily unconditionally stable. For each capacitance value, I believe that the tables give three numbers, which have each been chosen so that the amount of peaking will...
  19. J

    Which Cartridge would you choose?

    Many audiophiles automatically assume that the Atlas is superior to the Etna because it costs more, but to my ears the two cartridges have different strengths and personalities, and overall run neck-and-neck. The Atlas sounds bigger and more dynamic than the Etna, and has greater power in the...
  20. J

    Cartridge Loading- A Misnomer

    Dear Ack: Many, many thanks for converting the pdfs into images and posting them. This is correct. To speak of cartridge loading without taking into consideration the capacitance of the cable being used is meaningless. The design of the phono stage will likely have the biggest effect on...
  21. J

    Cartridge Loading- A Misnomer

    I have conducted similar investigations as Jim Hagerman, but using more complex cartridge and cable models that are derived from real-world measurements. Based on these investigations, I authored a document package that was originally created as a white paper to support Lyra's PhonoPipe, a...
  22. J

    Cartridge Loading- A Misnomer

    Hi Myles: Most likely, all low-impedance MC cartridges will cause ultrasonic resonances when played through the capacitance of a phono interconnect, and burning off the resonant energy is the primary benefit of the "cartridge loading resistor" at the phono stage input. But since the Air Tight...
  23. J

    Cartridge Loading- A Misnomer

    Dear Bruce: In my previous reply (particularly the last two paragraphs) I provided the rationale for my position that, when using low-impedance MC cartridges, terminating the input of a voltage amplification phono stage (which most likely describes your Pass Labs) with lower value resistors...
  24. J

    Cartridge Loading- A Misnomer

    Hi Bruce: I must be dense today, I don't understand what you mean by "require the sound character". Could you add some explanation? My comments are based on an objective understanding (measurements, calculations, and simulations) of what a low-impedance cartridge generator is, what an...
  25. J

    Sme 30/2

    Peter: Complete and total agreement with everything that you wrote. If you ever get the chance to have good musicians play live in your living room (or that of a friend), that is also a hugely educational experience (smile). Regarding loading of low-impedance MC cartridges, in general I...
  26. J

    Sme 30/2

    Do you find yourself enjoying the final performances more, or the various rehearsals? From a listening perspective, I find myself learning a lot from the rehearsals, with my ears as far inside the orchestra pit as my neck will allow (smile). The earlier rehearsals are equally instructive...
  27. J

    Schroder lT installed, pics a few comments...

    In addition to the warp-induced shifts in VTA (inarguably greater with shorter tonearms), a record warp will also cause a change in effective tonearm length that alters the perpendicularity of the stylus to the groove. John Bicht's Versa Dynamics turntables, which had the shortest tonearms that...
  28. J

    ZYX Universe II Review

    Nice review, Myles! cheers, jonathan
  29. J

    Sme 30/2

    I was visiting at the Vienna State Opera Archives this past November. I believe that you were mentioned during one of the more audio-oriented conversations (smile). cheers, jonathan
  30. J

    Transfiguration Proteus

    Hi Neil: Both 'double-ring' magnets and cylindrical magnets have their pros and cons - the picture is not nearly as clear-cut as you try to make it seem. For example, with dual disc magnets fore and aft, the cantilever needs to reach through the front magnet to touch the groove, so it needs...

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