London Decca Jubilee revisited - combination with SME 3012R ?

[UEM]

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Just ordinary blue tac between the plastic bracket and the headshell?
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How do you assure that it is mounted parallel ?

Urs

 

[jespera]

Correction: i think the idea is to fill the space btw cartrdge body and headshell with blue tac. Not to stick it between the mounting bracket and headshell.

 

[Audiophile Bill]

Evening folks. All this talk of Decca and I just couldn’t resist getting my nos Blue on the Bergmann and listening to some Olof playing various sonatas. Delicious sound - so vibrant and alive. Energy pouring into the room. Have to say the left hand of the piano had real grip, clarity and texture. I would say more so than my infinitely more expensive Red Sparrow. Sparrow more refined on top with more nuance but I could *easily* live with a Decca as my cart. I am going to get the Decca set up permanently on a vintage idler now - just would be lovely to experience it more often.

 

[Ed.P]

I also use a Blue occasionally.

 

[jespera]

Its a great cartridge. Really havent heard anything like it. Hearing new music on old records.

 

[Audiophile Bill]

Its a great cartridge. Really havent heard anything like it. Hearing new music on old records.

View attachment 66298

Is that a Groovemaster arm?

 

[Audiophile Bill]

And a

Is that a Groovemaster arm?

And a PTP?

 

[Solypsa]

For sure thats a Groovemaster with a Schick headshell....

 

[jespera]

Yes groovemaster 2 with titanium arm wand, schick headshell, and ptp.

Elephant snot and pencil lead from the tiger shop.

 

[Audiophile Bill]

Yes groovemaster 2 with titanium arm wand, schick headshell, and ptp.

Elephant snot and pencil lead from the tiger shop.

Nice

 

[UEM]

Sorry, for my ignorance:

What’s this “Elephant Snot” & “pencil lead form the tiger shop”

Thanks for any “enlightenments”

Urs

 

[jespera]

Sorry, for my ignorance:

What’s this “Elephant Snot” & “pencil lead form the tiger shop”

Thanks for any “enlightenments”

Urs

If you look in the picture in #45 you can see some white stuff between the cartridge body and the headshell.
That's a version of blue tac sold under the name "elephant snot" by a danish chain store called flying tiger
(also present in Italy and UK). It is used here to dampen resonances in the cartridge enclosure.

https://shop.dk.flyingtiger.com/products/elefantsnot-3006415

You'll also notice a horisontal line sticking out from a the top of the cartridge body. That's a piece of pencil
lead, and it is used to check the azimuth.

Hope that helps.

 

[manisandher]

I’m a Wannabe-DECCA-Newcomer and seeking advice...

Hi Urs, I don't have a Jubilee, but have a Reference, and am happy to share my experience.

I've tried the Reference on a number of arms now, including a 12" Ultracraft AC-400 oil-damped unipivot and a 9" SME 3009 (pre-improved). I couldn't really get it to sing on either.

By far the best results I've achieved have been with a new Townshend Excalibur arm, using its front-mounted oil trough:



Using a test record, I can see LF resonances pretty much disappear with the oil trough engaged.

It was a total PITA to set up, due to the tip being so far forward on the cartridge body. But as other people have suggested, it's worth persisting with, as the sound can be truly sublime - dynamics and sheer slam to die for. (And I have zero issues with tracing.)

Good luck!

Mani.

 

[manisandher]

Is this the Decca London Ref? A cart that really splits opinions...I know how I feel about it.

Marc, I tried the Reference on my Transfi T3Pro (when I still had it) and it sounded truly awful - a match made in hell. My experience was that the T3Pro sounded best with high-compliance cartridges (MMs sounded good), which the Reference certainly isn't. If that's the only experience you've had of the Reference, I can only say that you've not heard it at anywhere near its true potential.

Mani.

 

[spiritofmusic]

Ironic really, Vic developed the arm mainly with the London Ref on it. He's since moved onto MM carts.

 

[Lagonda]

If you look in the picture in #45 you can see some white stuff between the cartridge body and the headshell.
That's a version of blue tac sold under the name "elephant snot" by a danish chain store called flying tiger
(also present in Italy and UK). It is used here to dampen resonances in the cartridge enclosure.

https://shop.dk.flyingtiger.com/products/elefantsnot-3006415

You'll also notice a horisontal line sticking out from a the top of the cartridge body. That's a piece of pencil
lead, and it is used to check the azimuth.

Hope that helps.

LOL, da fik du mig sgu til at grine

 

[jespera]

Yes truly esoteric remedies in the pursuit of perfect sound reproduction...

My conclusion on the decca maroon (so far at least) is that it requires very careful alignment. This can only really be done by ear. Specifically, significant negative vta is required. So aligned, the decca rewards with record high detail and hifi level. I hear new music on old tracks. Tone is not bad either but to these ears more in the direction of the clarity and clicks and pops of 78s than the warmth and foregiveness of LPs.

It can be truly great on the best acoustic recordings such as ben webster, bill evans, miles davis. But it lacks physicality on beat driven material. For example bill withers, marvin gaye, neil young.

On such records, to my ears, the decca/groovemaster combination looses out to the fat arsed sweetness of the denon 103 in the prehistoric L70 tonearm.

Both used on the same turntable — the ptp. And in the same groove.

That said, there are probably better deccas like the vintage ones. There are possibly also better arms for it, for example decca’s original unipivot.

Jesper

 

[manisandher]

Ironic really, Vic developed the arm mainly with the London Ref on it. He's since moved onto MM carts.

Yep, and that's why I bought the T3Pro. It was clear immediately that the T3Pro, with its linear air bearing, simply wasn't providing enough (any?) damping for the Reference. But I must have heard some of the Reference's magic come through because it has stayed, whereas the T3Pro has long gone. (Nice arm with the right cartridge though.)

Mani.

 

[UEM]

Thanks guys,

I realise that I'll be on the way to a “snotty (?!?) & tacky" experience….

I do have some of these damping mats to go between cartridge and head shell, which I’ll try.

Regards
Urs

 

[spiritofmusic]

Yep, and that's why I bought the T3Pro. It was clear immediately that the T3Pro, with its linear air bearing, simply wasn't providing enough (any?) damping for the Reference. But I must have heard some of the Reference's magic come through because it has stayed, whereas the T3Pro has long gone. (Nice arm with the right cartridge though.)

Mani.

Yes (to your last comment in brackets).