Dear @edgewear: IGNORANCE is part of each one of us audiophiles, no one is totally free of some levels of ignorance in audio subjects. That way I’m ignorant in several audio subjects where perhaps your ignorance level is lower and mine is higher. Always is that way with any one in audio and that includes reviewers, manufacturers and retailers/distributors.
Btw, I’m not dogmatic, things are that in some subjects your ignorance levels are higher than mines and you think ( there ) you are rigth when en reality are wrong. Sometimes that happens with me too ( the other way around ) depending on what subject we are talking about.
How can we lower our ignorance levels in some audio subjects? plain and simple: learning about but for this we have to have a positive and open attitude and not that kind of negativity you showed here about and I have to tell you that I understand your attitude because you think you are rigth even if not and this is the problem: your problem that impedes to learn.
"""
you can easily hear the difference between the fairly light weight wooden plinth of the BL-91 and the ’heavy metal’ approach of the RX-1500 (and likewise the RX-5000).
Contrary to what others have said here, I definitely prefer the ’heavy metal’ approach of the RX-1500, which is why I have an interest in the even heavier RX-5000. """
well you prefer the heavy weigth approach because you don’t understand yet the terrible disadvantages in a non damped all metal heavy weigth approach and this has a name: ignorance, that’s all and your statements about are wrong.
Everything the same the main quality level performance differences in TTs is how well is damped the TTs: chasis, foots, platter, arm boards and the like and re member that it does not matters how much heavy be a metal TT platter during play motion it generates vibrations it self that your ears can’t detect but the LOMC cartridges can and shows it.
Your example of the BL-91 against your 1500 is way fulty s comparison nd is not good foundtion for your sttement. Think about and ask your self why is faulty.
The best of MS TTs are its looking but not its overall quality performance. In the other side the MAX 237/282 tonearms are really a reference product an a true challenge to any today tonearm designs.
" What’s the point of your endorsement of a $40k turntable for people interested in a RX-5000 or one of its clones? """
Well the main point is that the original 5000 is ( by origen. ) a faulty design as the 1500 for all what I pointed out and that exist clones of it is not a good news for any audiophile but only to those that are ignorant of those facts.
"""
High end audio is all about ’luxury trophies for the rich’ these days, just like designer bags for the girls and wrist watches for the boys. The more expensive, the better the trophy. """
maybe for some whealthy gentlemans but for whealthy true audiophiles not because their audio ignorance levels is way lower and they know what and why to buy audio items, they don’t buy because is expensive but because true quality level performance. You can be sure that this kind of whealthy true audiophiles never spend a dime for a massive heavy weigth all metal TTs no matters if the price is 100k or 300K. They have very good knowledge levels.
""" but when you add a CU-180 copper mat ..... """,
do you really think that adding mass/weigth trhough that mat problem is solved, no only that the rpoblem suffer some changes and increment in other ways what the cartridge can " hear "/pick-up.
""" Mr. Ikeda designed tonearms and cartridges decades ago that still put many of the current high priced ’luxury trophies’ to shame. """
maybe with his cartridge designs but ceratinly not with his undamped tonearms designs.
Think for a moment: if TT damping characteristic is so critical an important for a tonearm is way more critical/important due that the cartridge is atached to it.
@edgewear, look that I’m not talking of what we like it or not but only simple facts why somethings are wrong.
What you or me like it has no importance in what I’m talking/sharing here.
Ignore what our ignorance levels says only makes us more ignorants and with no hope of learning to grow up.
As @lewm posted:
""" Part of the fun of this hobby is making these sorts of choices for onesself. """
he, me or Halcro learned through of that.
@tomwh , how did you learn all audio subjects?, by osmosis?.
Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.
