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can anyone recommend a person in LA area to pay to install a tricky Koetsu cartridge

Hi,

Assuming social distancing and stay at home order not violated, can anyone recommend a person in Los Angeles area that can be hired to install a Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum cartridge which I understand is a bit harder than most cartridges to install. I have a person or two but they are not currently available.


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bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,788 posts
 

Give Brian Berdan at Audio Elements in Pasadena a call. He was trained in the art and science of turntable/arm/cartridge set-up by his pa, the legendary Brooks Berdan, and is now himself an expert.

Do you still have the cartridge alignment protractor supplied with the Helius Omega? It’s design incorporates a unique offset bearing design which renders a standard protractor unsuitable for the arm. If not, see if you can acquire one from the U.S.A. Helius distributor, Dan Meinwald at Sound Advice in Long Beach.

Great table, great arm!

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mulveling's avatar
mulveling
1,890 posts
 
Yes I agree with other guys you want to eventually learn DIY on this, but doing it your first time on a $$$$ RSP is not something I’d agree with!

The (minor) additional challenges an RSP might pose are 3:
1. Older models will not have threaded mounting holes, requiring both a bolt and a nut to secure, rather than a single screw. Newer ones (last several years) should be threaded
2. The body is big and boxy which can obscure cantilever alignment lines on your protractor - and also makes azimuth and VTA / SRA harder to spot.
3. The low compliance will pose problematic for some tonearms - light carbon fiber arms and pure unipivots may not be the best idea etc. It will make even harder to "dial in" and may not be all that good even once dialed in.

If I were OP, I’d at least get a Denon 301 (also a low compliance Japanese MC cart) to practice with for a while (maybe on another table/arm) before trying his hand at the RSP. Paying a pro to enjoy the RSP in the meantime is a very good investment.
edcyn
1,876 posts
 
I actually bought and had Brooks Berdan install my Koetsu Black.  I actually had the guy at Optimal Enchantment (was it Randall Cooley?) install my Lyra Delos.  It's a good thing the Lyra still sounds great.  Yes I have all the tools but I now live in the sticks and I ain't looking forward to the day I have to do it myself.
three_easy_payments's avatar
three_easy_payments
2,097 posts
 
I know Scot Markwell in LA used to do setup work extremely well.  Not sure if he still does or focuses exclusively on the distributor biz.  Elite A/V Distribution.
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