Tonearm recommendation

Dear syntax: It’s obvious that with your audio system you can cause impact to audiophiles that could think that a 300K-500K system must performs with the higher quality level ever we can dream.

I experienced not one time but four different times audio systems in that price range and at least in one the quality perfromance did not honored that high price.
In the other side I experienced in dozens of audio systems coming from as low 35K that belive it or not beats that megabucks systems and many of them are very near of those high price systems.

Dover, posted something very important: """ system and how well the gear is set up ... """ and I can add that if the system right set up is important it’s more important the right choices on each single link in the audio chain and this means the right knowledge audio/music level.

IMHO, if you use an all metal non damped tonearm in the analog rig it does not matters how and with which audio chain that tonearm is surrounded. The overall quality performance of that system will be poor due to that weak link.

The same is valid on each audio system link. TTs no exception and you like heavy impressive/good looking weight TT as many audiophiles but you forget that if it’s true that heavy platters helps in BD system to mantain in easy way spinning the platter we have to remember that that heavy metal platter ( it does not matters if it’s air bearing design. ) at the very first time it starts to spin that static mass is coverted in dynamic mass and starts to " vibrates " at micro levels but the cartridge is a very sensitive " microphone "/ vibrations detector and even if we don’t know it the cartridge knows about those vibrations generated in that heavy mass platters in any TT.

As this " phenomenon/curiosity " are all what I posted here and elsewhere that makes distortions.

That you like it is fine with me. I learned and you will sooner or latter. Knowledge level and not the money is what counts to have the best the audio system quality performance.

Knowledge level, skills, set up and some kind of money. In that order.

I know for sure the kind of distortions you like it ( your system speaks it self, I don’t need to listen it ) that are worst than mines.

Anyway, I still learned from this thread including your post. As I said, a thread is not a contest in between participants and exist no challenge or challengers but people like me trying to learn. Got it????


Regards and enjoy the music,
R.

Ps:  " I hope you can learn on what Dover posted:

"""" you are correct in your comments about the dynamic balance mechanism ( which is a coiled spring ) used for setting the vertical tracking force.... """, these are tghe kind of distortions you loved, good!. 

Dear dover: """   I like the "distortions" in my system..."""

I think that everyone likes " the distortions in each one system ". Now and trying to be constructive: in this thread and the one spéaking of tonearms longer than 12" I posted almost all my first hand experiences on the kind of distortions generated by those long tonearms or non-damped tonearms, I talked about specific distortions that today I can detect and I can discriminate between those distortions and music information.

The kind of distortions you are accustom or Syntax or Halcro or other gentlemans here I was accustomed for many years and is extremely dificult to " let it goes ".
I had and have success doing that when I learned to detect/discriminate the diferent type of distortions and very critical issue was that I gave enough time ( lñistening. ) to my brain to LISTEN  music with out ( well mantainning at minimum. ) those distortions.
For time I mean months of continuous listening daily sessions and in between making tests with the " old ditortions " till I was sure that those distortions were distortions. This long experiences makes that today I listen to lower distortions and more music information.

If you can't recognise some kind of distotions then you can't do anything about. Btw, it's more easy to do it with SS electronics that with tubes but I don't want to open an additional window for discussion on this topic.

The subject is not: I like my system distortions " but to know how those distortions sounds and if you like your system performance quality level with those detected distortions rthat is another matters.

I think that in this thread Dgarretson posted that he detected the tonearm distortions I'm talking about along the same type of sound through his SS electronics experiences.
The important subject is that " he KNOWS " and he accepted that likes those distortions. I think that he needs to give a longer time to the listenning with out those distortions.

Anyway, as you said mine is only an additional opinion.


Regards and enjoy the music,
R.

Fleib -
Just the bit about the spring mechanism & dynamic balance.
I agree that dynamic balance helps to maintain constant track force on warped records, but if you are not playing warped records then static balance should be fine. In my experience dynamic balance can suck life out of the sound. For me optimum for the FR64S is a mix of both. As I said in my post above I have removed the spring mechanism from some tonearms and there has been an audible improvement ( on non warped records ) to my ears.

As far as the ringing goes - its overrated in my view. I have heard in my system at worst a little sharpness in the upper midrange ( this is what they refer to I presume ) but as I suggested in my post above in my experience this can be eliminated by careful set up - optimising the counterweight mass, headshell selection, cable, arm board material etc, getting VTA, azimuth & tracking force absolutely dialled in.
I see Jonathan Carr uses a wrap on his FR64S arm tube but I do not like damping on tonearms as a general rule as it tends to suck life out of the sound and at worst smear the sound, particularly spongy or soft materials such as rubber, heat shrink, etc.

Raul - instead of talking about distortions - it would be more helpful if you simply described your experiences with Koetsu's which is what the op is using, and what differences in sound you heard between various arms. Which arm do you prefer and how does the sound differ in your preferred arm differ from the FR64 with a Koetsu installed in both.