Whart, it was supposed to ship the 13th, four days ago. The dealer was busy and took longer to get the original boxes and pack it up.
I hope the Kuzma and the new Koetsu Jade Platinum both show up this coming week. Assuming the new Koetsu Jade and my existing Jade are very close in performance, auditioning between it and the Walker should be informative. |
Albert- did you get the XL/Airline and have a chance to listen to it yet? |
Hi Dgad,
What cartridge did you use w. the Davinci arm?
Well in both TA were mounted the Takeda Miyabi. Used two Klyne Phonopre the DPS TT had the Schroeder DPS ,the new Belt-Drive and the new Power supply.
Regards Karl-Heinz |
Mike,
A word of advise. The Dynavector needs a long time to break in. Just let it play for at least 100 hours. I would almost say don't listen as you will be dissappointed. After about maybe 200 hours all of a sudden it will just "snap" into place.
Good luck. |
Rug: The difference between my set up of the arm and the set up done by Bill Parrish once my TT stand arrived was the difference between excellent and out of this world.
Arm absolutely level and then and only then, balanced.- There is a trick to doing this that goes way beyond simply using a spirit level for the platform. If truly levelled, Bill flicked the arm and it 'bounced' in place, not moving left or right- not recommending that you try that without reading the instructions, but- again, getting an experienced set up guy could make a profound difference in your final
performance.
VTA- differences are not subtle. Is the arm 'zero'd' so you can adjust VTA properly? (I don't usually harp on VTA, but with this arm, small adjustments are not only easy to make, but absolutely critical to its full performance). |
I received the Kuzma Airline and finally had the time to set it up. Everything went smoothly. No hickups what so ever. Playing Lp's for almost 8 hrs and having a blast. Very very good, to my ears anyway. I can hardly wait to start learning the ways of vinyl. I bought a Denon 103 for the short term and it sounds amazing. My Dynavector XV-1s shows up next week and I am really looking forward to this.
Will buy the loricraft cleaner and then decide on the phono stage.
Thanks for the great advice from all of you.
Mike |
Dear Rugyboogie: J.Allaerts@pandora.be
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul. |
Hello,
sorry for my bad english,i hope you understand. I will tell something about the Frankfurt Show 2 month ago.
The setup of this four combinations was for a workshop. The people can hear four different tonearm, cartridge and phonostage combinations. It was not set up for a competition. After hearing 2 songs one classic and one jazz, we have a discussion about this. It was very interesting to hear different fealings from the people. It is true, that most of the people incl. me, prefer the SQ, XV1S, Tron combination. This combination has a very good dynamic with deep bass and structure. Relaxed mid and high range with many details. Sometimes you want to catch the music in the air.
There are so many ways to listen to the music and i think you have to find the right one for you. |
I am hearing great things about Shindo preamps which include a built in phono stage. I have never listened to it but a few people I know have been giving their preamps specifically very high compliments. In truth a premap with a built in phono stage will save you money on interconnects and the like. |
How much is your upper limit for a phono stage? My suggestion would be Aesthetix Io Sig, but it's expensive. |
I will have a ATE-2 air tight with lots of cap/resistor upgrades in the signal and power supply for sale soon. Very fair price.
foxkeith@earthlink.net if interested. |
Received the 73 lbs box for the Kuzma Airline. Nice packaging, the fit and finish is really first rate. I will be using a cheapy cartridge until my new cartridge shows up. I do not want to wreck the new Dynavector XV-1s.
Does some one know who to contact for the Allerts? I have E-mailed audadv@earthlink.net almost a week ago but no response.
At present I am using a ASR basic phono stage. This is on loan to me by my ASR dealer, Thx Ken. Right now I am in the market for a better phono stage. Looking like crazy, reading everything that I can get my hands/eyes on.
So far the Pass, ASR , Lab 47, Air Tight , Manley, Lamm and Tron seem to be favored by many and really peak my interest. I like having two inputs on the phono stage for the tonearms so that the next arm can be played with a minimum amount of cable changes.
Opinions. |
Ebarker2,
I read you review of the Tron Seven. It was very appealing. I owned a Groove that I thought was excellent except for the inability to adjust it for different cartridges. I am also curious about the new VTL phono stage. It will be without a SUT.
I just got an email from Thomas about his latest "great" cartridge combination. It is one of many so realize there are many great combinations. I don't want to quote him directly without his permission but he mentioned that sound is a personal thing & that what he often likes or dislikes might be different from others. He also mentioned that it is system dependant. Thomas does not like sound where bass is sacrificed in the least for midrange or treble. He also refrences "live sound" as his goal.
PS, one of his phono stages aside from the Tron Seven is the Pass Xono. |
Hi Frank, I fear I might have put words in Thomas' mouth, but i wish I'd been to Frankfurt to hear the 4 arms. I gather there was another interesting turntable demo with blind people doing the listening honors.
Dgad, I had the Tron Seven in for a couple of weeks and its an excellent phonostage. I could hear no problems to do with step ups, far from it. In my set up with several cartridges it had a very full bodied, big sound and seductive. Not quite the detail of the TEAD Groove Plus, but fuller and very involving. Another one to look out for is the new Viva, with seperate 300b valve power supply. I heard that recently and was v. impressed. |
Having spoken w. Thomas Woschnick several times about the differences in tonearms I can state that he will mention what he likes & dislikes. He won't come out & say what is better. I chose the Schroder based on certain design aspects that made it a best choice for me. I already own a 12 inch arm so I opted away from the Davinci which isn't inexpensive. He did mention the Schroder can be difficult to setup if you don't know what you are doing. To that extent he felt if it wasn't setup correctly other arms would outperform it. I am lucky to be purchasing an SQ which from what I have read should have resolved many of the setup problems. In addition I should have some help from Thomas seting it up. All I can say is I remember when I had my SME V w. my Condor perfectly setup & how I have never been able to get there again. At that time it had the most incredible bass. Now I am too focused on the Dynavector & listening to music to perfect the Condor setup.
Thomas is advocating the Tron Seven phono stage. He has mentioned it to be truly special with the XV-1s. He also mentioned other phono stages to benefit the Eminent (which initially prior to break in of the XV-1s I loved above all others) while the Tron was better with the XV-1s. This only goes on to show that it is all about total system synergy as advocated here.
As for the Tron, I am tempted by this phono stage but am confused by many design principles in various phono stages. I have heard great things about Shindo & am also very concerned about using any form of step-up transformer. I have heard some members here know more about this but that should be saved for another thread. |
Frank, yes, I got a mail from Mr. Woschnick about the Set Ups, I will copy it here for info:
Triplanar + My Sonic Lab + Xono
Schröder SQ + XV1S + Tron Seven
Da Vinci + XX2 + Whest Audio P20
Jelco Vivid 2 + DL 103R + Klyne 6 Phono
all the best
Thomas |
Dear Thomas,
I may be wrong, but the cartridge in the Triplanar was a MySonicLab, which isn't cheaper, but more expensive than the Dyna XV-1s(certainly true when you compare the "street" prices).
The DaVinci was used with a Dyna XX-2, less expensive than the XV-1s, but mechanically and sound-balance wise a better match than the XV-1s(IMHO).
The Tron Seven was an unknown entity even to me(though I've known Graham Tricker's excellent work for many years)and it too isn't more expensive than the Klyne or the Pass XONO which were the other partnering phonostages(all depending upon the export markets in question).
Only the Jelco arm with a Denon DL103 plus the Whest phonostage can be considered of "lesser" quality(but not bad by any means...) and cost.
Again, these were Mr. Woschniks choices, not mine.... ;-)
All the best,
Frank |
Thomas,
What happened to your TW Acustics Raven???? |
Yes, but in this Set Up the best and most expensive Cartridge and electronics was connected to the Schroeder Arm and all other Arms had no comparable cartridges and phono stages. It was only possible to say, this or that is better or not in general. |
Hello Edward,
The table was demoed with 4 arms in Frankfurt(not Munich), about 2 months ago. Each of them had a different cartridge and was running into a different phonostage. Only once did he compare arm cart combinations using the same phonostage. Anyone drawing definite conclusions about the quality of a single component(arm, cart or phonostage) in the chain must have Palladium ears AND beat Sherlock Holmes in deductive reasoning ;-)
The sets were chosen by Mr. Woschnik based on his previous experiences and listening bias to each make for a particularly synergistic combo.
Cheerio,
Frank |
Actually, I did, at the Heathrow show. He said he preferred the Schroeder, and I believe he also said that was the general consensus at Munich when the table was played with 4 arms (not sure what cartridges). |
Hi guys,
Maybe it's a good idea to ask Thomas Woschnik, the designer of the TW acustic tables himself, what he thinks of the difference between the various arms(TriPlanar, DaVinci, Schröder) he uses.
You can reach him under:
Twacustic@aol.com
Cheerio,
Frank Schröder |
Karl-Heinz,
What cartridge did you use w. the Davinci arm? I would love to know how it will compare to the Schroder and the Airtangent on the TW Acustic. It is rare to hear you sound so excited about an arm. It truly must be special. In what ways did it excel. |
.
David,
.
That may end up being my review....
.
Rgds,
Larry
. |
How long before I should look back here for that review? |
Hi Dgad I got the 12 Inch Davinci Arm, from Thomas Woschnick and mounted it on the Raven Ac.
Man this is really a perfect Arm. You should contact Thomas, as this Arm is really a hit.
Well compared to a Schroeder on a DPS Player, this Arm out performs this combination.
Regards Karl-Heinz
|
.
Dgad,
.
I think you will be quite pleased with your Reference. Do let us know here how you like it once it is broken and dialed in.
.
Rgds,
Larry
. |
.
Sirspeedy,
.
Then order a Magnum of Schroder Reference and you can drink yourself silly.
.
Rgds,
Larry
. |
BTW-Sir Larry,I have been remiss about calling/E-mailing you as I know you are a busy guy,as am I.How about giving me a "shock" and calling me when you have a chance?Lots to discuss!
Best! |
Larry,
Now you got me salivating. That might not be a review, but it was very convincing. I have 2 more months to wait. |
Cello,do you know when you go to a wine tasting,and they give you some great stuff,in little itty bitty glasses,or cups?Well your response about the venerable REF that you are currently lucky enough to own "smacks" of that! -:)
Best!--BTW,say a big hello to Pat! |
.
Sirspeedy,
.
I am more than a bit busy to write a full review....suffice it to say that the Schroder Reference was far beyond my expectations and hopes (and those were quite high). The first listen was an open mouthed turn to your friend with a look of "Is this possible" experience.
.
The list of significant improvements are: detail, tunefulness of bass, control of bass, sound stage, placement of instruments, blackness of background, leading edge attacks, decay, and musicality. I truly did not think a tonearm could make this much of a difference (and again, I expected a lot).
.
That should hold you for a while....or just contact Frank Schroder and put your order in so that in a year's time (give or take a bit) you will be in a position to give everyone else a review.
.
Rgds,
Larry
. |
Just listened to the Caliburn turntable ( when I remeber the name, the one for 90k ), it was connected with Allaerts MC 1 B, Wavac Mono amps to a very huge Kharma. When I first listened I was amazed, after the first - unknown - record I asked for 2 titles I know very well and I was totally dissapointed:
High frequency information was dull and slow. I think, it wasn't the match itself, in my opinion it was the phono stage ( don't know what it was ). I think, you can invest in the most expensive, when the match with the phono stage is not really up to the max, it is still unsatisfying. I've been there with two friends, all have very good - and I mean VERY good - Analog systems ( Boulder, Klyne, Kuzma, Basis, Air Line, ML32, Aestetix Callisto Sign. Zyx, Transfiguration etc.etc.), we all had the same impression. |
Dear Sirspeedy> You are right, I don-t have the opportunity to hear it on my system but, like you say, legacy!!
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul. |
Raul,you recommend the Orpheus.Surely you are doing so based on heresey,only,since it has not been out for long.I cannot even get info from the dealer I bought my Temper-V from.If I'm wrong about your listening experience with this cartridge,then I appologize,yet I find it hard to believe you have heard it for any length of time.
You criticised me for mentioning that I felt the Univ was a superb cartridge,after "only" hearing one for a six hour session(which is STILL long enough for me),so can I assume you have much more listening experience with the "still somewhat underexposed" Orpheus?Inquiring minds want to know!! -:)
Cello,what gives?Either you are in hibernation,or you are a wealth of info,as of late.What's the story?Also,how long do we wait for the REF review?Even Doug did not torture us for long,before writing the fine review of the UNIV! -:)
BTW-BOTH my comments are in a humorous tone!
Best! |
Rugyboogie:
Be sure to let us know how you get on with your choice. I am looking hard at one of these myself, so your reflections would be appreciated. My Stogi Reference pivoting arm is such a nice performer, I'm thinking the Kuzma could well be my first air-bearing purchase. |
Dear Rugyboogie: Congratulations!!!!!!!! Great choice.
The XV-1, Titan i, Transfiguration Orpheus, Van denHul Colibri, Ikeda Rex9 are great contenders but if I be you the Allaerts MC2 Finish or Formula 1 will be the best one.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul. |
.
Rugy,
.
If the budget allows, the UNIverse would be a terrific upgrade over the Airy 2 or 3.
.
Rgds,
Larry
. |
Well I pulled the trigger today and bought the Kuzma Airbearing today and will take delivery of the unit in 1 week from today.
Now how about cartridge choices?
Koetsu, Airy, Shelter, Dynavector,Allerts what others should I consider? |
Brian,
At my home it will be on a custom built tig welded aluminum stand filled with silica and whatever top plate (granite, maple, composite) that works best.
At the other location it will sit directly beside the other Walker TT, on top of the Rix Rax top of the line with spiked wooden top platform. |
Well, my finite elemente HEAVY DUTY stand arrived today, finally! So, the table gets set up tomorrow on the dedicated stand by someone expert in these tables. I am looking forward to that. More soon, with new pics, showing the rearranged system. |
Dear Sirspeedy: Like Albert posted: there are several variables to the why's on your diferent AT tonearm opinions.
Not only about the differences on the audio systems or the differences on the room's, but more important the differences between the Albert sound perception on his ears/brain against you or your friend own perceptions.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul. |
Albert, I'll rephrase the question. What kind of base, rack, stand, or platform will the Kuzma XL with Airline tonearm be placed upon for the listening comparison? Additionally, will they be broken in or relatively new out of the box? Tonearm wiring and connectors can take a while.
Brian |
.
Albert,
.
I was trying to ask if you have compared the Graham 2.2 against the Basis Vector and what differences you heard (not just the bass),
.
Thanks/Rgds,
Larry
. |
Brian, (Essentialaudio) the foundation will be the STABI XL TURNTABLE for the Kuzma Airline arm. Plan right now is test with Koetsu Jade Platinum Signature that is supposed to arrive Wednesday (this week).
I don't think the table and arm are shipped yet, so we will have time to run the Jade in the Walker and get some break in.
Cello, perhaps my comparison of bass performance between the Phantom and the Air Tangent led you to the conclusion that I had tried the Phantom against the Graham. I have not.
Sirspeedy, no offence taken and I hope you don't think I am attacking your friends system either. My comments are an honest appraisal of my experience with the AirTanget 10B, obtained by a high end manufacturer, directly from the factory in Sweden.
I spent at least two months with it, working every trick I knew. Understand too, I came from owning a Versa Dynamics and several other linear track arms, so the Air Tangent was not unfamiliar to me in concept, design or complexity of set up.
The fact it did not work for me and did for your friend could be for a dozen reasons. Different arm wands were used during different periods of manufacture of the Air Tangent and there were at least three air control boxes (mine had the push-pull knob and dial), and of course the cartridge must be a good match for the arm.
For all these reasons your friend could have had a completely different model with different air control box and pump and had a cartridge that matched that rig perfectly. However for me to ignore (and not discuss) my experiences with this arm is just as wrong as your not defending your friends good experience with it.
People can read both reports and approach the possibility of ownership with a good solid audition and see if their experience is like either of us report or something completely different.
Forums are just a place to share experience, does not remove the need to test.
|
Whart: You are in for a treat when you get it set up on a proper stand. As for leveling the arm bearing tube, one trick is to position the arm halfway across the playing surface with the cueing lever up (and the pump on, of course) and tap down lightly on the top center of the counterweight, say with your fingernail, so as to cause the arm to rock up and down a little to see if it moves. If the arm doesn't drift to one side or the other it's level.
Brian |
Well, I finally got mine set up today. Combination of schedule, and bad logistics. The Finite Elemente floor stand, on which the XL turntable belongs, was lost in transit, and another just sent. I'm tracking its progress like Chloe on 24.
Meantime, my pump (no, not that one) had a problem that I knew had to be a silly thing, but I only just figured it out- the dealer delivered the pump already set up, and one of the fittings was out of place, preventing a complete seal. Moved it into place and bingo, air pressure.
The arm is very straightforward to set up, at least on the big Kuzma table. You do have to read the directions carefully, though, since-you'll say, "I'll be damned if I know the distance of the arm pillar to the platter," you do a couple other things that make sense, go back re-read the directions, and there, as if it were hidden the first time 'round, is the magic measurement, in English, not Slovenian.
The only hearstopping moment is trying to balance the arm- the thing just has so little friction that it gives new meaning to the word "increment." I pulled out an old Technics piezo stylus pressure gauge that I bought new, in 1973 or thereabouts, and got the pressure I wanted- figured just shy of 1.8 on the Titan(i) and then fiddled with arm height, VTA,etc. The tangency or whatever you call it, was dead-on, according to the simple protractor that comes with the arm.
Now, mind you, I don't consider myself even competent when it comes to turntable set-ups, but I got this rig up and running pretty quickly, and it is making music-
compared to the Triplanar VII, I wouldn't worry about losing any bass- this thing is foundational, goes down, down, down- (now that may also be a function of the XL, which is really a beast compared to the Stabi Reference that it replaced, but it isn't "BIG" bass, its deeeeep, with proportion and tonality).
I'm still playing with this thing, VTA settings are a snap on the fly, cueing is easy, nice big lever, easily managed and no skew when the arm ascends or descends, and can't wait to hear it once it has been set up on a proper table, by a master. (Right now, it is sitting on a very heavy 10 foot Chinese mahogany prayer table, on top of an Alvin Lloyd Shelf with his 160lb plus dampers between the prayer table and the shelf- not exactly as god or Alvin Lloyd intended but it's temporary).
As to the 'quiet' of a linear arm compared to a pivoted one, I played with a few in my day (had an ET2 for a little while years ago) and was never a complete believer, given all the attention they needed, but I could hear a difference.
With this arm (combined with XL table, since both are new variables), the silence between the notes is clearly noticeable in a way that wasn't before. It is like everything is brought out in greater relief from the background- imagine one of those three dimensional sculptures by Michelangelo that was never finished- the figures are emerging from the stone, but are never free of it, and their backs meld into something clearly not alive- in that case, a huge block of stone. Here, the figures have emerged, if not entirely, than in much greater dimension- the result is a sense of palpability that the other arm-table combo seemed simply incapable of rendering. Mind you, these are first impressions, and I think the table/arm combo will sound better once it is set up properly.
(The pump is in another room, on a different electrical line- I don't think I could live with it in the same room). |
I am very interested in the responses here, as I own a Kuzma Stogi Reference arm (a really fine arm in its own right) and have considered moving up the chain to the air arm. Hoping that Whart and other actual users will respond with their impressions.
Larry, I preferred the 2.2 over the Vector after trying both on several different tables and with quite a few cartridges. I thought the Vector sounded better only on one of two Basis tables. As suc, I bought the Graham. But, as always, YMMV. |
Albert, how will the Kuzma XL with Airline arm be supported?
Brian |
Some time ago, my friend and me did make a comparison between the Phantom Arm and the Kuzma Airline, both fitted with identical Zyx UNIverse and both connected at two identical warm Klyne 7 Phonostages. It was a very interesting experience and btw. good as the 2.2 is, the Phantom is a total different animal. One of the real great Arms out there. And I agree with Albert, the Kuzma Air Line + Ref. Table is a good combination. |
