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Clavis Soundsmith retip

I had this old broken Clavis cartridge stored away for over ten years and decided to send it off to SS for the ruby cantilever/stylis replacement.

I was told that the turn-around time was 12 weeks from the time of delivery. I took into consideration that SS had to deal with the Rocky Mountain show and the CES, and called at the end of 13 weeks. I was informed that the cartridge was ready. Got it in 3 days, UPS ground.

I have an original Well Tempered table and arm which is a real B**** to set up properly, but once its dialed in, its wonderful, one of the best out there. With the help of a friend, the cartridge was set up in about an hour and we were ready to go with the first listen.

On first impression, the midrange was very good right out of the box. The highs were tizzy and uncomfortable to listen to. The bass was lean. Now, this is a direct parallel to how the Clavis was when it was new. The original Clavis took 50 hours to break in. I didn't expect the re-tip to be any different.

The SS retip is VERY sensitive to tracking force. If you've read this forum, you know that SS suggests a tracking force between 1.2 and 1.8 ... Well, if you get the SS retip, invest in a digital tracking force guage. My gauge measures in tenths of a gram. The cartrige is so sensitive to tracking force that I wish I had a guage that measured in hundredths of a gram.

I started out at 1.8 grams and got a lot of distortion as if the cartridge was dirty or mistracking. I gradually reduced the force until the mistracking stopped, finally settling on 1.3 for best results.

The presentation remained tizzy in the highs and weak in the bass ... until ten hours time was reached. At that point, everything came into focus, and I can say ... the SS ruby cantiliver and retip is simply amazing.

The Clavis is basically an early version of a Lyra Skala, so stock, the Clavis is no slouch in transparency and musicality. The re-tip takes it to a new level. Quite honestly, I have never heard such clarity of voice, or separation of instruments in my system.

I'm a tonality freak. If an instrument doesn't sound tonally correct, then I don't want any part of it. I can happly say, with the re-tip, a cello sounds like a cello and a trumpet sounds like a trumpet. Piano is to die for! The highs are extended and sweet and bass has depth and punch. Bowed basses are amazing as are the lower registers of the cellos.

Just for reference,I'm using an ARC REF-3 and an ARC-PH7.

Bottom line: If you have a broken cartridge, why buy a new one? Just send it in and buy the re-tip with the ruby cantilever with confidence.

Thank you Sound Smith for bringing my beloved Clavis back to life at a VERY reasonable price.
128x128oregonpapa
oregonpapa's avatar
oregonpapa OP
4,867 posts
 
Jcarr ...

Thank you kindly for your excellent response to my post. You are a gentleman, and I would like to say that if it weren't for folks like you, folks like me wouldn't be enjoying the blessings of great reproduced music in our homes.

Sorry that I misrepresented the relationship between the Clavis and Skala. I was going by what I was told by a friend. My ignorance on display, I'm afraid.

With spending only $350 for the Soundsmith retip, I'm left with the option getting good sound from a usable Clavis for the time being, and also one of buying the Skala in the near future, which I will do. I've heard the Skala in several systems and for my tastes, it fits the bill for sure.

As you mentioned, these are tough times for most of us these days and I was getting tired of listening to my spare, worn out, AT109. (Ugg!)

Take care ...
mmakshak
589 posts
 
Jcarr, thank you very much for giving us some insight into cartridges. Most of the time we get opinions and misinformation. Please continue with your contributions.
vpi's avatar
vpi
223 posts
 
Very gratified to read your post as I just sent my Clavis to Soundsmith for new cantilever. I always thought my Clavis was stunning and if the rebuild is even as good as the original I will be thrilled. Even if I must wait 12 weeks (LOL).
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Just a word in support of Jcarr. He's been involved on this and other audio forums for longer than I can remember and his contributions are invariably worthwhile. I've never owned a Lyra, yet he's occasionally taken time to correct misunderstandings in my posts and educate me. Never once did I find that offensive.

Jcarr's correction of one post of mine had a fundamental influence on how I maintain cartridges. As my practices (the Magic Eraser) have been widely adopted by hundreds if not thousands of vinylphiles, it's fair to say that Jcarr deserves some credit for improving the performance of thousands of catridges, most of which are not Lyras. For that and virtually everything else he posts he receives precisely nothing but some well-deserved goodwill.

I learned something from his post on this topic, regarding why some cartridges need less VTF over time. That was fascinating. Thank you Jonathon, not for the first time.
jcarr
382 posts
 
Dear VPI:

As mentioned in an earlier post (2010-01-10), we designed the Clavis' triple-damper architecture and elastomer formulations specifically to counteract a resonance / energy storage issue that was a low-level characteristic of the Clavis' cantilever material. If the cantilever is replaced with a different material, the third damper will become superfluous. The third damper will impart an excessive degree of damping, and its extra mass will be a hindrance rather than a benefit.

FWIW, the cantilever material in question was a fiber-reinforced metal in which the metal matrix was duralumin, and the fibers were silicon carbide whiskers. The Clavis' stylus profile was an Ogura PA (minor radius 3um, major radius 30um) carved from a nude diamond shank measuring 0.06mm wide x 0.06mm deep by 0.5mm high, with a moving mass of around 0.08mg.

I recommend that you ask Soundsmith to match the above spec as closely as possible.

hth, jonathan carr

PS. The kind words are much appreciated, Doug!
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