ZYX Airy2-X-SB on Graham 2.2

There is no need to send me any info. on this,as,since I stated in the previous threads,MY FRIEND,not me,is interested.I DID make this cartridge family a recommendation to him.The rest is up to him.As for my E-mail,this is a real mystery to me,as to why I can't receive info.I'll look into it.Thanks for the, kind, consideration!

Larry,

Point well taken on room acoustics. Unfortunately, the room has a large RPTV between the speakers to accomodate the family's video needs. I cover the TV with blankets when listening which helps. Not perfect but better than a sharp stick in the eye.

Thanks for the advice. Kurt

Sirspeedy,

Mehran has been trying to email you since you were asking about ZYX pricing, and I have his phone number if you would like to give him a call. Email me offline and I'll send it to you, because I can't get your email to work either.

Joe

Sirspeedy,
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You can keep your flag at half-mast until your table is back in your hands and up and running, but you can toss the Red Flag regarding the ZYX pricing.
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In response to your and my back and forth, Mehran posted all of the list and selling prices on his Audiogon AD (just click on the link that Joe/Jphii listed above).
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Kurt, I would suggest that you do your room first with some good advice from someone like Rives Audio, and save for a UNIverse....it is the only way to fly. The room is a must to get settled to allow you to make good future decisions on any type of equipment down the road (just my two cents).
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Rgds,
Larry
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Hey guys, just in case you missed it, Mehran just posted an ad that has pricing all of the ZYX line. Check it out here:

ZYX

Larry.It would be very difficult for me to "Lower My Flag",as it will be at HALF MAST for the next month or so,until my table returns to me.Then the re-dialing in of my set-up.Allow me a little leverage to vent some frustration.After all,you had once said that you were the guy in sunny Florida with the big "smile on you face".Understandably so,but I'm stuck in the cold and cannot spin my vinyl,so,I just thought I'd give you a bit of a hard time.By the way.I have a TRANSFIGURATION TEMPER-V (low output)which is really a stunning performer.Do you have any thoughts on why this cart. gets almost no exposure anymore.At 7gms. it's a great match for my 2.2 and my phono stage has plenty of gain for it.Also,since I'm on a caffeine roll,right now,what are your thoughts on phono tubes.I have some low noise Ediswans,but, have read about the White Label Amperex PQ's as being superior.I have a pal who just bought some Tele cc-a's and they were grainy and bright.He switched to Mullard-Gold pins.For the better.I know this is a matter of personal taste,but,I'm intrigued by some of the stuff I've been reading about the White PQ's.

Larry,

Sounds like I should wait for the UNIverse. Hopefully, it will come with a new listening room?! Then again, I may not be able to afford the UNIverse if I get my listening room. Maybe a Airy2 or Airy3 now is better than a Glider in the new house?

Decisions, decisions.

Kurt

Spencer,

What's your opinion of the Airy3? I was heading down the path of a Airy2 or Airy3 but Larry's comments about the UNIverse have me in a dilemma. Spend now or save for later (Enjoy now or really enjoy later?).

Cheers,

Kurt

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Sirspeedy,
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Lower your flag, Mehran is as honest as they come (more so) and very decent (to a fault) to do business with.
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I got my Universe (the second one made) as a beta test, so I don't know the retail price nor the selling price. Don't let all the mystery bother you. If I knew what either the retail list or his selling price was, I would tell you. Send Mehran a simple email with your questions and I am sure you will get a detailed answer (quickly).
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I hope your table returns soon.
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Rgds,
Larry

Larry,I have a SOTA COSMOS series 3.I have been assured this motor problem will be taken care of to my satisfaction.In the meantime,my Levinson 390s will have to do,but,I do love my record collection.Lots of standard repertoire and some really unique,and different stuff(my speciality)that I've picked up over the years at Princeton Record Exchange,which has had a very poor vinyl inventory lately.As for the ZYX line,the fact that the distributor needs a direct phone call and there is no listed pricing(afterall,you own one,and,don't know the list?)sends up a red flag to me!Back to my COSMOS situation,for a moment.If the performance of the series 3 was not in a different "Universe" from the series 2,I'd probably really be agitated by now.However this table(although well reviewed)is really "SHOCKINGLY"in another league from my series 2,so,I'm anxious to get it back,and go to work on re-dialing in my 2.2 to the table's new "LOWER RESONANT" signature.Thanks for the well intentioned feedback!

Kurt,
If you talk to Mehran, I would ask specifically about the differences in silver vs. copper as well as 2 vs 3. Contrary to what is considered "general perceived wisdom" around here, Mehran instructed me that the silver versions would be warmer, fuller and more relaxed in sound than the copper. this is opposite of what I usually find with cables, but I took his advice and ordered a silver Airy3. Availability and pricing were equal for silver & copper, so that didn't come into play at all.
Everything is relative here...Cheers,
Spencer

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Sirspeedy,
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I don't know what the list price or the selling price is for the UNIverse.
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Drop Mehran a short line and I am sure that he will be happy to fill you in. Do mention that I sent you his way.
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Sorry to hear about your table taking a dive and I hope it is back in your hands quickly. What brand/model do you have?
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Rgds,
Larry
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Kurt,

I haven't picked up a ZYX or Shelter yet, tax season ya' know. But I did spend a little and bought a 103R. I swapped out my Benz glider with the Denon and after ~30 hrs I can tell you that the Benz is now in the drawer. I like the Benz alot, but I think it is easily bettered. This experiment with the 103r has opened my ears to the dynamics of low compliance MC's. My arm is a Basis Vector, but there is a Graham 2.2 sitting in a box next to my TT waiting, and waiting, and waiting for an IC-50 to show up. Anyway, I think you'll like stepping up from the Glider. The combination of a cartridge that provides more detail with tubes seems to work very well. You get attack without the glare.

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Kurt,
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I also have a Graham (2.2) have somewhat similar taste in music and your quote (listed below) sounded like I wrote it.
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["Like the smoothness of vinyl and tubes. Etched hurts my brain, so I probably tend towards warmer. Detail is nice but not at the expense of wincing pain."]
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In my system, the Airy2 was an appreciable upgrade over my Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum and yielded more detail, better attacks and more musicality.
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The Airy3 was a major improvement in the dynamics, level of detail and the attacks over the Airy2. As much as I appreciated the improvement of detail and we fiddled with the loading for the cartridge, we could not get it to the point where I could stand the sound of the Airy3 on my system. (I do think that their are systems and people with different taste that would be quite happy with the Airy3, and there are those people out there).
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The UNIverse yielded even more detail than the Airy3, had incredible warmth/musicality, terrific tight controlled and extended bass that was extremely tuneful, great sound staging and delineation of the performers/instruments. The sound coming from the UNIverse is just complete in everyway for me. A great balance of all the attributes that I want and all of them in spades.
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I just don't think you can go wrong with a UNIverse and I am quite sure that you should wait and save for it over the Airy2 or Airy3. I don't think, based on your comments, that you would like the Airy3, the Airy2 would be significant upgrade for you, but the UNIverse is a huge and dramatic leap over the Airy2.
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Contact Mehran and get an idea of what the cost will be. I don't know what the list price is or what price he is willing to sell for at this point.
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I would also like you to hear Doug Deacon's comments (he and Paul were present for the 2.5 day comparison of the 3 ZYX cartridges on my system). Hopefully, he will weigh in here and add to my notes.
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Rgds,
Larry
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Dear Larry (et al),

Thanks for the recommendation towards waiting for the Universe. Must be something very special! Still trying to weigh the Airy2 and Airy3 options.

Musical tastes run the gamut from 1970's Rock n'roll to Jazz to Classical. Occasionally even a good romp through cross-over country. Older music; Steely Dan, Dire Straits, early Elton John, Boston, Supertramp, Floyd, Zeppelin, U2, Peter Gabriel, Chicago, Eagles, etc. Newer music, Diana Krall, Norah Jones, Shawn Colvin, Sarah McLachlin, (female vocalists tending towards Jazz), John Mayer, etc. Jazz includes both older Bill Evans and Ellington plus newer Gruisen, Ritenour, etc. I have a number of my Dad's old LPs from the 50's and 60's. Not into dixie and not into rap. Classical music tend toward chamber music, piano concertos, some chorale and symphonies. Generally speaking, just listen to the music and enjoy.

Vinyl front end includes a Graham 2.1 with ceramic arm, Michell Gyrodec SE and Glider 2 cart with ASR phonostage. I'm using my HT processor and multichannel amp as I have to share the family room with the family. Our spare room was turned into a kids playroom. I'm hoping to get a 2-channel room again this year, but will replace my old 2-channel gear. Considering a choice of adding a 2 channel preamp with HT passthrough. Silverline Audio speakers across the front.

Like the smoothness of vinyl and tubes. Etched hurts my brain, so I probably tend towards warmer. Detail is nice but not at the expense of wincing pain. It can be fun to hear the clinking of glasses and coughs in the audience. Struggled with digital for many years and tubed digital helped but tend to listen to vinyl when I listen to music at home. Hard attacks and broad dynamics without saturation are important with some music, but I tend toward music for relaxation. I guess that I know it when I hear it. I can't quite say that I'm an audiophile. Lover of music, yes. Audiophile, I don't think so. Granted, my goal to bring the band or performer into my room. I've experienced the reach out and touch the performer a few times and they are the times that I relish the most.

Thanks for the help.

Kurt

Larry,you seem like a GOOD MAN,but,I'm in no position to start making calls on a friend's behalf.I'll pass the info to him.SO,what is the mystery about the list of the UNIV?I have no doubt that it must be special indeed,but am simply curious,and,would like to store the pricing info in my memory bank.By the way.Would you believe my table is still down!I probably won't be able to send it back for another 2 weeks or so.BUMMER!!!In the mean time my friend just unloaded a bunch of DECCA WIDEBANDS to me for,are you ready for this,5 bucks each(these were his doubles,he's obsessed).Now I'm really frustrated,not being able to do anything other than read the liner notes.As for the SORA SOUND site I've been on it before and it does seem a little unspecific.

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Sirspeedy,
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I suggest you contact Mehran at Sorasound at mehranf@sbcglobal.net ( or do a search on Audiogon and he will work something out with you.
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Sorasound is the world wide (and only) distributor of the UNIverse and the sole U.S. importer of the Airy2 and Airy 3 for ZYX. Do tell him that I suggested you contact him. He is a good guy and very responsive.
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I can tell you the UNIverse is far, far better cartridge than my Koetsu Rosewood Signature Platinum ( $ 5,500.00 list). I loved my RSP, but the UNIverse is simply in a totally different (sorry) universe.
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And thanks again for your help with the damping fluid levels on the Graham 2.2
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Rgds,
Larry
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Kurt,
I tried both versions of the AIRY3, and preferred the copper version. The silver can seduce by its ultra detail, but seemed unnatural to me, and brought attention to itself instead of the music. This on a Graham 2.2.
I had also a Benz Ruby2 before this, and it sounded broken compared to the ease, soundstage, trackeability and involvement of the Airy. I use a 100 ohm termination.
Makes the chasm between Digital/Analog even more profound.

Based on the fantastic feedback on the ZYX line that I've read about on this thread,and the fact that you guys seem to know what you are talking about,I have just recommended a friend to look into this line.He originally was interested in a SHELTER.My question is,what is the list price on the ZYX Univ. that I'm hearing so much about?

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Kurt,
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Overall, I would suggest that you wait and save for a UNIverse (for sure).
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Do put a good bit of time and effort on getting the damping fluid right. Sirspeedy and 4yanx are right on the money the improvements that can be wrought out of finding the ideal amount of fluid for your cartridge.
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Please list your system, music preference and sound preferences (warm, dynamic, hard attacks etc.) and that will make it much easier to make a recommendation between the Airy 2 and Airy 3.
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Regards,
et al
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Question to Dougdeacon et al for advice.
Moved back into vinyl after a 20+ year hiatus a couple years ago. I am seriously thinking about upgrading my Benz Glider to a new cart (Is the Benz too smooth?). Before going on, I'd like to thank Sirspeedy for the comments on the Graham tonearm set up. Much to learn about this tonearm and maybe I've overdamped my arm.

Considering ZYX Airy2-X-SB or Airy3-X-SB for my Graham arm. Doug suggests that the Airy2 may be a better match. I assume that he used a copper wired Airy2 to match his tonearm.
1) My Graham has silver wiring, so what kind of difference do you think the internal cartridge wiring will make?
2) Has anyone compared copper vs silver internal cartridge wiring with the Airy2 and Airy3, in terms of compatibility with the Graham arm?
3) Would I be better off keeping my Glider for another 6-12 months to save for a UNIverse?
4) Any further insights and recommendations?

Thanks,

Kurt

Sirspeedy,

I didn't take any offense to your post at all - in fact I enjoy reading them. You always seem to be both helpfull and gracious - something not all people do.

I fully agree with your statements concerning setup with the Graham. All of the adjustments are simple to do but it is extremely difficult to optimize setup due to the fact that all setup parameters are a function of each other,ie, you can't vary one independent of the others. So yes, you were right when you said that you'll probably here about your statement but is the chorus of agreement from these parts. I've lived with this arm since it was in it's 1.5T version and know exactly what your saying.

Dear Doug: Tks for your answer, I can understand it.

*** " ..to post reviews or start a thread describing any parts of your system... " ***

I think that the best description on an audio system is to hear it.

Doug, be my guest at home. You will be welcome any time. This invitation is extensive for each one and all of you people on this forum.

Doug e-mail me with your date proposal.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Sbrown,please, I did not mean to be condescending in any way.I'm trying to be helpful to you.I really think the GRAHAM is one INCREDIBLE product,but,like a really good Rangefinder camera or a finely tuned performance car,it needs to be fully explored to unlock it's secrets.It is very easy to give up on something,and say it can't work within a certain combination,but,I state again that I am highly specious that those who have been unimpressed with the arm's performance never mastered the complexity of it's seemingly easy set-up.I'll probably hear about that comment,but,I'm convinced it's accurate.By the way,Ive been guilty of discarding a few previous products that I could kick myself, now,for giving up on.

Sirspeedy,

I did a little research and found that the damping force is linearly proportional to the viscosity of the fluid and to the square of the area of the damper. That certainly supports your observations. All I was pondering was a way to adjust damping that was less sensitive than what we’re living with now.

Regards,

Scott

Now this is what I consider constructive dialogue. Glad to see you guys getting along.

Hi Raul,

Thank you for the kind words. We did our best to describe everything we learned or heard, as you can tell from the ridiculous length of that review! ;-)

I couldn't easily name all the LPs we listened to from September until Xmas, at least not from memory. Obviously there were hundreds, but I'm afraid I didn't keep a playlist. I should have included more musical examples. That would have made the review less technical.

I guess I could flip through the whole pile of LP's (about 2,000). Anything played with either of the Airys (or now the UNIverse) has a yellow sticky note on the jacket with VTA setting(s). If I'm audited I can always show which cartridges have played any particular record since we got the TriPlanar!

Our collection is 95% classical. I have a very few decent jazz LP's and a handful of rock, pop, folk, etc. If you visit my house and want real party music, you should probably bring some of your own! Mine would be exhausted in an hour or two.

On the classical side, we played nearly every sub-genre I know of: ancient vocal and instrumental music, solo instruments, vocalists with accompaniment, chamber works, small and large orchestras both modern and "authentic", organ, opera, choral, avante garde 20th C. You name it.

If there's any particular recording or genre you want to know about please ask. If I have the record I'd be happy to describe what we hear, or don't hear. This might be one way to compare our systems at a distance, more or less.

Obviously our analog front end is "better than" our electronics. We know that. We're actually about to upgrade the electronics, though we won't be done for many months. You might not enjoy our choice of equalizers, but we demoed them in our system and we do! :-)

We'd love for you to post reviews or start a thread describing any parts of your system. I have a hunch we'd all learn or learn about a great deal.

Regards,
Doug

Dear Doug: A few minutes ago I read your ZYX review. Very well made and very informative. I would like if you can give us all the LPs that you use on that review.

BTW, I can see clearly why we have some differents points of view on the performance or gradation of these cartridges.

The " name " is: very different RESOLUTION on our audio systems ( yes, I know that there are other issues on the subject. ). Maybe I post something about on the review site.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Sbrown,the older fluid is inferior.Adding fluid beyond a certain point,whether blue(SUPERIOR)or clear justs dumbs down,overdamps,the sound.Try VERY small changes in your current fluid level.Pinheads at a time!It took me almost a year to realize that really small amounts affect sound greatly.You must ,slightly, change vta and down force for each change in fluid!

Dear Doug: For all what some people ( including you ) in this forum speak about the UNIverse, I'm sure that this cartridge is really in other level. I can't say nothing about till I can heard it.

Now, the evaluation of top cartridges is really a heavy task where you have to have precise rules and take in count to many issues for doing that job ( an individual job ).

One of those issues is the resolution of the audio system, but in this issue is extremly important not only the resolution but if that system have a full frecuency response. The appreciation of the cartridge sound reproduction differs by a wide margin in a full response system against one that is not. The full resolution at the frecuency extremes do the differences between a good cartridge an an excellent one.

Maybe, here is where belongs the differences between your appreciation and mine.

My answer to Larry is still true, not only for a ZYX but for any one that think that a particular cartridge is the best in the world. Any cartridge that " wants " to have that " title " has to beat, at least, each and all those cartridges that I mentioned to Larry, nothing less.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

I’ve been thinking about this damping issue. I using the high viscosity blue fluid. I forgot to mention that this stuff is also sensitive to changes in temperature. Maybe that’s not a big deal to some of you guys, but here in the Midwest living in an old house with no insulation in the walls, it is.

I was wondering if any of you guys have tried going back to the lighter weight clear fluid that came with pre 2.2 versions of the arm. I’m conjecturing here, but seems that while it would require more of that fluid to obtain optimum damping , it would also be less sensitive to changes in level. Any thoughts?

Some would disagree. For instance, I know two Miyabi 47 owners who prefer the Airy 3. I haven't heard a Miyabi so no opinion of my own to offer. We need a cartridge swap meet!

Of course if the UNIverse is "excellent" then the Airys are only "good". They are certainly in different performance classes, whatever labels we put on them.

I wonder if the Airy 3 you heard was optimally set up? What arm(s) was it on? From my own experience, Cello's, and Jeff_ss's, it's clear that the Airy 3 is extremely demanding of setup. In some ways it's less forgiving than the UNIverse, even though the UNIverse is much more revealing.

Hi Doug: I never say that the ZYX are not good cartridges ( they are )y only say, till today ( I don't heard the UNIverse ), that there are not excellent ones yet. That's all.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Scott,

That's very interesting and very good news about the Airy3 on your Graham. We did all the damping fluid, VTF and VTA tweaking possible in two days on Cello's Graham, but still couldn't tame the edginess. It was either too edgy or instantly overdamped. There was no middle ground, even with damping fluid changes of just a pinhead's worth.

I suspect the amazingly sludgy viscosity of that damping fluid just didn't allow it to settle in the time we had, as SirSpeedy suggested, even though we were as careful possible. It's too bad Graham doesn't provide more expicit instructions for the damping, or at least better emphasize how sensitive and important it is for best performance.

Please keep reporting on your progress. Your overall impressions of your Airy vs. your Benz is consistent with every comparison I've heard, excepting only Raul's somewhat colorful bad-mouthing of course.

Thanks to Larry, Doug, Raul and Sirspeedy. I don't have a lot time because of work lately but I've read all your comments here and in many other threads, and always find them enlightening. Raul you certainly have a way with words but I also respect your knowledge. I'll let you all know how I like the sound of the new setup once I receive it and it settles in. That would be a pre-owned Graham 2.2 and new Airy2x-SB. And I will be sure to follow your post on damping fluid Sirspeedy.

I echo sirspeedy's comments on damping and the Graham. For me at least, it is a slow, time consuming process which is measured in weeks, not days. It takes time for the fluid to settle before the final result can be evaluated. Frustrating for sure, but worth the effort. Who ever first wrote about the critical nature of the damping fluid here on the 'Gon, I owe a debt of gratitude. It changed my perception of the Graham completely. It’s too bad it has taken all these years for this choice bit to get out and become public knowledge.

I ‘m now doing the fiddling part of this process with a Airy 3-X-SB (on a Graham 2.2) which now has enough hours on it to where the top end opened up about a week ago. On that happy event, I changed the loading from 500 ohms to 100 which seems about right. Right now it sounds pretty good and I have been able to tweak out the stridency that showed up when the top end opened up. However, I doubt I’m done with the fiddling.

As it is, the Airy just slaps my Ruby 2 silly. It has the natural instrumental timbre that I crave along with utter transparency across the entire frequency range – or at least as much as you get from Quads. Wow! It captures the sound of both the body and the string of violins, violas and cellos – a feat that fat bottomed girl named Ruby could never manage. The other thing that amazes is how quite the Airy rides in the groove – I can hear so much farther into the music in the soft passages that I ever could with the Ruby.

If you can’t tell, I am thoroughly enjoying the Airy and it has been keeping me up late – a good sign. If the top end continues to open and cause problems, I’ll report back. In the mean time, I’ll keep the platter spinning.

Scott

My own 2 cents.Both Cello and Raul.Both you guys are fun to read and good spirited.Quite knowledgeable too.So get off this banter of defensiveness,as it does none of us any good.As for the Live music comparison,you simply can't compare it to what we get from our audio set-ups,and the original thought(I think H.P.started it)is unrealistic.What WE should ALL be doing, and this is a weakness, IMO, of the owners of the most costly stuff,is to really attempt to hear other well set-up systems.That is a really good guage/comparison for which we can then(if we can truly allow ourselves to be openminded to the fact that someone else may have succeeded in areas where our set-up may be weak)try to hear where our own set up can improve in one or two areas.I've learned alot from friends,just by trying to have an open mind.Not a bad idea,heh?

Dear Cello: Like an expert on ZYX cartridges can you explain this: *** " Do you know that this " weight.. " was not in the original design? wonder why ? or better, ask you why ?. " *** Tks.

BTW, you post: *** " the best cartridge out there at any price..... " ***. about the UNIverse, for you can do this statement you have to compare it against first live music and second with other top cartridges like: Clearaudio Insider, Myabi 47, Lira Titan, Allaerts MC 2 Finish, Dynavector Xv-1, Ikeda REX9, Van denHul Colibri.

If you already do it I would like that you share your experiences on that issue with this forum, but if you don't then your statement have no value at all.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

I have heard fabulous things about the AIRY line.As for the 2.2,when you experiment with damping in the arm's bearing you must re-adjust vta as well as tracking force(FOR EACH PARAMETER CHANGE).At that point if there is still a hardening/brightness then there is a mismatch,BUT,I'll bet that those who found an unacceptable level of performance in this area truly did not have a feel for how INCREDIBLY CRUCIAL the VTA/DOWNFORCE/DAMPING OF BEARING are,and how they all MUST go hand in hand!I've owned a 2.2 for quite some time and am still learning about what I'll call "Micro-Tuning" it.

Cello: You are wrong: I'm not heard the UNIverse. That's all. I will hear it in no more than two weeks.. Wait for it.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

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Jeff,
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Raul has never heard a UNIverse nor, an Airy2, nor an Airy3, so I would totally discount any of his comments. This is another example of him jumping on a thread and writing about something he has no knoweledge of.
.

Dear Jeff: You can do better with: Sumiko Celebration or Dynavector XV-1 and you don't have to worry about: " with or without headshell weight ". Do you know that this " weight.. " was not in the original design? wonder why ? or better, ask you why ?.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

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Jeff,
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Doug and I actually listened together to all 3 cartridges on my system which included the Graham 2.2 with a couple of other friends and we all had pretty much the same opinions of the Airy2, Airy3 and UNIverse. We all felt the UNIverse was by far the best, the Airy2 was smoother and more pleasant than the Airy3, and the Airy3 was quicker, had more energy, more dynamic than the Airy2.
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There are people that are quite happy with their Airy3 in their systems. A lot of the subjectivity of which cartridge is more suitable for you is system, music style (rock, classical, jazz, vocal) preference and sonic preference dependant. My preference has been for great detail without brightness or a hard leading edge (or too energetic to quote Doug). The Air3 was just too much energy for me and the warmth and musicality was overridden by the hard edges and energy (but that is not everyone’s reaction).
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If the UNIverse is anywhere close to what your budget will allow, the fool proof decision is to get the UNIverse. It really brings a ton of upgrade to your system. BUy a UNIverse and you will be done with buying cartridges until the UNIverse wears out and then you will probably just buy another to replace it.
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I have been with 8 different serious audiophiles with great ears for extended listening sessions and they all felt that the UNIverse was one of the best if not the best cartridge that they have heard. It is just magical and transporting in what it can bring to the music. It does it all. I have also spoken with a few others by phone and there is a complete consensus on how great this cartridge is.
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The Graham 2.2 is a great tonearm in many ways and I enjoy mine tremendously, but the match made in heaven is the Schroder Reference and the UNIverse.
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I would be happy to speak with you by phone this weekend. Just email me off line and we can organize to talk either on Saturday or Sunday.
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Rgds,
Larry
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Larry, Doug mentions in his review of the ZYX cartridges that the Graham 2.2 might not be able to control the Airy3 as well as it does the Airy2. Is this what you mean by the "Airy3 was too edgy in my system"? Don't think Doug would mind if I quote him here:

"The Airy3 is more energetic. The maker says he redesigned the magnets to give the Airy3 more “freedom” without sacrificing any of the Airy2's neutrality. He succeeded. The Airy3 on our Tri-Planar let the music kick us in the chest and frighten those poor cats. Bass guitar and drums were as rockin’ as with any cartridge I’ve heard...It was too much for the Graham 2.2, however. Despite all efforts at damping the sound was a bit edgy. As usual, it’s all about synergy. This experience suggests the Airy3 will be most rewarding on very stable arms like the Tri-Planar, Moerch DP-6 or perhaps a top SME."

Based only on what you guys are saying, and I respect your views, in my system which will soon include the Graham 2.2, the choice seems to be Airy2 or UNIVerse. This is if I want the extra punch and detail of the Airy3 without the edginess it might have on a Graham 2.2.

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Jeff,
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First off, Doug did a great job of explaining what I was alluding to with regards the effect of the weight of the SB option.
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Secondly, you could consider the Airy3 if you would like greater dynamics more punch and more detail. The Airy3 was too edgy for me to live with in my system. The UNIverse had all of the detail, speed and dynamics and then some of the Airy3 but without the hard edge and brightness.
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Depending on what you are looking for the Airy3 could be an improvement for you, but it also could be to bright and overwhelming if your system is a bit forward/dynamic and your sonic preference leans toward warm / sweet. Keep in mind that the UNIverse is a dramatic step up over the Airy3
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Rgds,
Larry
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Jeff,
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I had the chance to hear the Airy2, Airy3 and UNIverse on the same weekend in my system which includes a Graham 2.2 and it was with the SB option. Personally, I would go with the SB option. I would be afraid to get the Airy2 without the SB option. I think this one is a no-brainer.
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If I were you, I would spring for the UNIverse if you can handle it from the financial side. As good as the Airy2 is, the UNIverse is just spectacular and would be a HUGE upgrade for you system and you would be set for a long, long time. It might be the best cartridge out there at any price.....
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Rgds,
Larry
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Hi Jeff,

With or without the weight your vertical and lateral resonances would be fine, somewhere between 9.3 and 11.7 Hz. For optimal resonance behavior you could safely go either way. So much for math...

Most other cartridges weigh about what a weighted Airy2 does, 8.6g or so, so the weight shouldn't present any particular challenge for warp tracking.

While I haven't heard an unweighted Airy, I believe you'll get better sound with the weight. The biggest knock on the Airy2 is that on some arms it can be a bit shy on dynamic punch, particularly if VTF or VTA aren't precisely right. The weighted Airy2 I heard on the Graham 2.2 did NOT have this problem, but an unweighted Airy2 might. The effect would be similar to removing Twl's famous HIFI mod from a Rega or OL arm. The cartridge would more easily "wag" the arm on big transients, so energy that should be converted to electrical signal in the motors would instead be wasted as mechanical movement of the tonearm.

In short, I'd want the weight for that arm/cartridge.

Regards,
Doug