Dear @halcro / @bluewolf and friends: I think your post did not contribute to help each one of us grow up in the home music/audio enjoyment. I will try to explain this statement.
AUDIO DAMPING ( CRITICAL IMPORTANCE in SOUND DEGRADATION ):
- for years tube and SS manufacturers and after market ones ( some way or the other ) were trying to damp its designs: non resonants tube circuit bases, wraps around tubes, damping tube socks, chasis/boxes with damping construction to avoid internal vibrations/resonances and the like. These manufacturers choosed the best damp footers for their products.
- TT manufacturers are not an exception when all of them give very especial attention to damp the TT motor, plinth, platter, arm board, footers, TT plattforms. Subject here is to " avoid " vibrations, resonances noise levels and the like ( internally and from exterior. ).
- Almost every single audiophile, reviewer, voicing product manufacturers always give very special attention to room interaction and how to damp it to " avoid " all kind of added distortions to the home systems.
- I’m sure that you as any other audiophile are using a platter mat after market or the manufacturer recomendation. ) or a clamp to damp it.
- Speaker manufacturers give special attention not only to the boxes build materials but to the boxes shapes in order to avoid: resonances, vibrations, standing waves, noise high levels. Even they choose to damp the speaker crossover position and some of them choosed that the speaker crossover been external by design.
- Cable manufacturers give too attention to damp their cable designs trhough the cable internal shapes and whole build materiasl used with.
- Cartridge manufacturers put estrict special attention to damps their designs and that’s why they select different cartridge body materials ( some blended. ) and cartridge shapes and kind of cartridge damping through the cartridge suspension as cantilever build materials and cantilever shape and length even the cartridge stylus kind of.
- Tonearms are not the exception but where in the last years manufacturers really take care about damping. Today exist no single well regarded tonearm manufacturer where his design is a NON DAMPED one. All are well damped ones: Triplanar, Talea, OL, SME even the humble Rega or the Cobra or the VPI. Just name it and all are damped.
- Racks/system plattforms where the designers are focus on DAMPING!!!!
- Today exist more after market items for damping that any other audio product. Must be a very good reasons for this fact!!!!!!!!!
No one needs ( but you, as said in your post. ) a scientific ways to prove the damping needs at any single link in the overall home audio systems to try add the lower kind of: resonances, vibrations, noise levels and the like that goes against the MUSIC because all those only makes heavy MUSIC DEGRADATION. The beloved undamped FR tonearm is out of question here because is totally wrong for today music/sound true and real enjoyment: it’s a huge mistake to still using it other that we like HIGH DISTORTED MUSIC/SOUND, same for MS TTs.
In the old times things were a little different but even in those times we can see that in areas as tonearms manufacturers gave very special attention to damping as are the Technics EPA 100/250 tonearms designs or the great Lustre GST-801 that even today are unbeteable in this regards. Micro Seiki MAX tonearms are very well damped too but even MS choosed for non very well damped TT and FR choosed for a non damped design, these two examples are examples of what is totally wrong in today audio items needs.
Till here all what I said are facts not " imagination " or is’t that any one reading it still think that all those latest time audio item designers/manufacturers ALL of THEM ARE WRONG ?????? because all of them are looking the best ways to DAMP their products ( including your friend. )
WHOM here still can think that the best phono stage is an all tube design instead SS or SUTs.
I think that all kind of audio discussions/dialogues as in any other life area exist because each one of us involved have different ingnorance levels, this is what makes " things " really interesting because is the way to grow up for each one of us.
""" And almost everything he thought was ’bad’.....I found to be revealing and satisfying.
So I urge you bluewolf, to do as my hero, George Costanza once famously did.......
Do the OPPOSITE of everything Raul says to do..."""
only to put some " ligth " about. In one way or the other all of us are " audio followers " from something else or some one ideas and you as me are too a follower:
- you followed my advise about the MM/MI alternative that you touted even today.
- you followed my everyone advise to use powered subwoofers in our systems.
- you followed my advise to use removable headshell tonearm designs.
- you followed my advise to use/test DD TT designs.
- you followed my evryone advise to use " naked " TT, no plinth.
I have to say that one way or the other what you followed was discussed in this forum by me way before I knew of your existence or that any one in the forum really took it seriously on each one of those subjects and many others.
I can’t see that what you made was the opposite of what are or were my advises on music/audio subjects.
""" even invented a NEW tonearm geometry ... """"
well the only human been all we know that " invented " what you named " new tonearm geometry " was in 1938 Löfgren where Baerwald latter or Stevenson and others all were just FOLLOWERS. Löfgreen A and Baerwald are exactly the same.
Stevenson invented nothing he as other people including several audiophiles as me only made or changed the input main parameters in the Löfgren original white papers/equations.
You do not know it because don’t understand in deep the Löfgren papers real meaning and that’s what your touted friend did it:
If we change the IEC standard most inner groove distance input used, this is that instead of 60.325 mm we take as input 54 mm, on calculations then we have those uni-din null points. There is no single NEW invention ( as you said. ), you even can have your personal " invention " changing input values. You can choose the values you want it and use any internet calculator ( vynil engine ones. ) and that’s it: your " invention ". Got it?
I can go on and on on what you posted but I think is ok for now.
Regards and enjoy the music,
R.
Btw, thank’s @lewm
