What cart. for the Reed 3P?

Dover, thank you for your detailed reply!

Dear the kong:  The " ideal " frequency resonance range of 8hz-12hz is for some gentlemans not the ideal range for example: G.Merril ( of Merrill TT and AR ones. ) had an explanation that the range should be 15hz-18hz and other took 8hz-10hz.

Anyway, when we make the calculations for our tonearm/cartridge combination that calculation gives us the theoretical resonance frequency that normally is out of reality because almost all tonearm manufacturers gives the tonearm effective mass figure with out taking in count the tonearm counterweight position with that cartridge and normally too we don't take in count the weight of the hardware to mount the cartridge but exist an additional factor to take in count and that's the real cartridge compliance, this is under playback and through the time. Those factors moves the real resonance frequency on our tonearm/cartridge combinations and your Vibraplane can't helps here.

That kind of TT damping and other kind of TT damping ways can't helps to additional ssues happening down the LP/stylus/TT:

- if we have active subwoofers in our system we know that in the LP recording comes very low bass frequency lower than 10hz. Example: some London/Decca old recordings made it/recorded in the Royal Opera house comes with intermitent very low bass non musical/no music content sounds that happens came from the London subway that pass under or nearest that Hall.
In some of the RCA reissues by Chesky recordings happens the same for the same reason.

But the subway sound goes lower and affect that cartridge/tonearm resonanse frequency that affect what we are hearing because as music information " distortions " generates harmonics too.

- exist more subsonics signals in the LPs that we can imagine and are affecting and degrading what we are listening.

- something that TT damping can't helps is the " distortions/vibrations " coming from the platter/bearing ( even in air bearing designs. ) because any body/platter in movement generate ( because that movement/dynamic mass. ) vibrations/micro-vibrations transmitted throught the platter spindle and platter surface to the LP and disturb the cartridge ridding.

all those and others are focus to exite that cartridge/tonearm resonance frequency during playback and the problem is that we can't see it ( almost all happens at microscopic levels. ) even we are unaware of its damage to the musical signal.

Obviously that we must work to damp perfectly at each of those system links and those distortions sources and one way to start is try to stay between that resonance frequency range.

We can't avoid those degrading musical signal sources but at least try to have it at minimum elsewhere.

The real " magic " ( if any ) for a better quality level audio system performance is exactly that: every kind and elsewhere distortions keep it at minimum but this is more easy to say it than to do it because the first issue is to identify in precisily way where are those distortions sources.

Yes, the analog experience  is a lovely one but full of imperfections as no other music home reproduction medium.

Regards and enjoy the music,
R.

Any thoughts on pairing a Reed arm with an SME 15 or 20 table. Well designed, organic sounding arm, that mates well with a wide variety of carts. Then pair the Reed with the SME, a proven design, with a long, successful track record. A solid company, with many happy customers.

Thoughts on pairing the Reed with the SME turntable(s):  Just do it.  The interaction of a tonearm with a turntable is much less significant than the complex interactions among the mat, the tonearm, and the cartridge, each with the other two.  In jiggly sprung turntables like the Linn or maybe the Oracle, then you have to worry about tonearm weight per se, only because very high or very low weight will upset the suspension.