Linear tracking turntables, whatever happened?

Pleasure is mine, Harold. Nice to share. And that Salvation's no slouch either.

I am certain that the improvement is a serious one, in my system. But indirectly.

The mod allows me to set the manifold with high precision and stability. Then I can set azimuth correctly, and THAT makes a big difference.

millercarbon
Here in Seattle our marquee high end dealer is Definitive Audio. Their founding location on Roosevelt has the flagship clearaudio turntable, linear tracking arm, and cartridge, feeding a host of similarly ultra-high end components terminating in a pair of Wilsons, sorry I forget the model. I just can't get my brain worked up that hard for stuff that doesn't sound good. And this was the worst most expensive (well over $600k and no that is not a misprint, well over a half a Doctor Evil voice MILLION dollars) pile of audio assault I've ever heard.

Well, here is the picture that represents your Definitive Audio to the world.

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https://www.definitive.com/

See any problems ?

I have found that whenever there are issues with what one is hearing, it usually comes down to at least one of the following areas. 

The Room Setup <<<<<----->>>>> B Type Personality Audio Gear Setup <<<<<----->>>>> One's Hearing Ability.


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The complicated part "IS" that they are all inter-related
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Hopefully everyone understands why you can't have one without the other.

dorkwad

I will chime in with the problem with straight line tracking air bearing arms is definitely the pump and all parts of the air supply leading to the TT.  I had a Maplenoll Ariadne air bearing TT/arm combo for 12 years that was absolutely the best sounding somewhat reasonably priced combo ever built.   The problem is it needed very clean 40 PSI pressure to make the arm bearing work.  The TT would be fine with about 5 PSI.  They had a splitter near the TT that would channel the air to both TT and arm in separate tubes.  There needed to be a governor on that splitter that would divert say 85%of the air to the arm and only 15% to the TT.  If that had been done, who knows just how great the 'Noll might have been.  However, in addition to an extremely loud pump that needed isolation from the room you listen in, I really couldn't run for 4 hours without having overheating problems and either shutting down permanently or rupturing the diaphragm that allows it to pump air.  It also required a filter to clean the air, an air plenum to take the condensing water out of the line caused by the high powered pump--and all these things need a separate aquarium tube to run to each piece from the other.  The setup did not get out of alignment as long as it was leveled and not moved.  GOOD!  The air supply to the TT/arm could be stopped by any of the parts of the air supply delivery crapping out or any of the hose connections popping free from the pressure.  VERY BAD.  Solved that after the first time it happened that way putting on of the small plastic locking straps snugged good over the tube at each connection.

Ya know...
I consider myself an obsessed audiophile (I go through phases).
But the above sounds, even to me, utterly insane.  I can't imagine buying in to a system with that amount of bother attached to it.   Whenever I think I go to far in pursuing this hobby....other audiophiles remind me: there are levels.  ;-)

I admire your dedication dorkwad.

Prof
I did not want to really comment as the dedication is to be admired for sure.
But if air bearing is the only real way to make a linear tracker work at its best then it absolutely is not for myself either!
However that is not to detract from the concept or to those who do have the dedication and conviction to see it through to the end.
Just not my cup of tea though.

I really don't get it.  Air bearing arms are not hard to set up at all (as long as you have a good design that is fully adjustable) and running them is not complicated, either.  There is virtually no maintenance required after the initial setup with the exception of changing the air filter every few years (or sooner depending on how often you use it).  Most people work much harder switching amps, cables, tubes, etc.