Lets see,Rega RB300 with Goldring Eroica L (long since discontinued in favour of the LX). My first MC and I loved it but I changed the deck from a Manticore mantra to a Townshend Rock mk2 and bent the cantilever fairly soon after. Next up was a Dynavector 17D2 and another (two version both superceded) and then a 17D3 (also superceded), over 20 years all but the last using the Townshend front end damping so not very transferable to other arms. The RB300 was replaced with a Naim Aro, still with a 17D3 but I stopped using the damping trough as I prefered the sound without it on this arm. I never knew the actual tracking weight with the Aro as I couldn’t measure it at the record surface but there was a distinct sweet spot where dynamics took a leap, both micro and macro. Set in the sweet spot I never found it lacking in bass and it was certainly fast. Next up was a Transfiguration Proteus, because I wanted to try something furter up scale and all the reviews were good, they were right too though the sweet spot was even more marked. This cartridge did everything i liked about the 17D3 and added more of it as well as a welcome increase in body. The next change was to the arm and deck, the Townshend was retired temporarily in favour of an Artemis SA-1 and a Schroeder Reference, the latter with an effective mass of 13g. This arm can get a lot more out of the Proteus than the Aro ever did but not straight away, there was a lot of learning to do and 2 years later I’m still finding improvements, just as the Proteus is nearing its end and the company has passed its own so no genuine rebuild for this one. On a wild whim I’ve ordered an ortophon SPU Royal N and a brass mounting plate to increase the effective mass by a few grams but that’s an adventure yet to come, It may need yet more mass but I’ll find out.
Meanwhile I’ve revived the Rock and Aro, now with a London Decca maroon but the mono version and this works very well for the old mono pressings I play with it, or it did until it started humming. This deck is now in a second system in an appartment I visit only occationally and the hum comes and goes, I may yet be able to cure it.I suspect most of this will be of use to very few if any.
