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The Arm/Cartridge Matching Myth

When I began my journey in high-end audio 36 years ago….no-one ever wrote about arm and cartridge matching nor tonearm resonant frequency…?
Over the last 10 years or so…this topic has become not only ubiquitous, but has mutated beyond its definition, to THE guiding principle of matching cartridge to tonearm….❓❗️😵
The Resonant Frequency can be calculated using a complex formula relating Tonearm Effective Mass to the cartridge’s Compliance….or it can be simply measured using a Test record of various frequency sweeps.
The RECOMMENDED Resonant Frequency of any tonearm/cartridge combination is between 8-12Hz.
But WHY is this the recommended frequency and WHAT does it really mean…?

The raison d’etre of this Resonant Frequency…is to avoid WARPED records inducing ‘resonance’ into the tonearm…..
Say what…❓😵
WARPED records….❓❗️
Yes…..ONLY warped records❗️😎
But doesn’t it have any meaning for NORMAL records…❓
None whatsoever…..😊👍
Let me explain….🎼

A badly warped record induces the tonearm to rise and fall rapidly on the ‘sprung’ cantilever of the cartridge.
Depending on the severity and frequency of this warping…..a subsonic frequency between 2-5Hz is induced so if your tonearm/cartridge Resonant Frequency dips into this frequency range….it will begin resonating and thus miss-track and/or induce hum through your system.🎤
Keeping the lower limits of your tonearm/cartridge Resonant Frequency to 8Hz simply insures against this possibility.🎶

So what about the 12Hz upper limit…❓
This simply insures against the possibility of any ultra low-level frequency information which MAY be on the record, also inducing this same miss-tracking or hum. For instance if your tonearm/cartridge Resonant Frequency was 18Hz and you had an organ record or one containing synthesised bass going down to 16Hz…..your tonearm may miss-track or you MAY develop a hum❓😢

So how many badly WARPED record do you possess…❓
I have three out of a thousand or so……and have NEVER experienced miss-tracking or hum even on these three…❗️😍

Yet these days….everyone (without exception it seems)…even tonearm and cartridge designers….happily follow the dictum of this Arm/Cartridge MATCH as if it affected sound quality…..❓
This Resonant Frequency has ZERO affect on the sound quality of a particular tonearm/cartridge combination and I have proved it hundreds of times with a dozen different arms and over 40 cartridges.

The best match for ANY cartridge ever made….is simply the very best tonearm you can afford…whatever its Effective Mass…😘
halcro
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
12,099 posts
 
Being an amplifier designer and manufacturer.....you would have all the electronic gear available to show us exactly how a cartridge's Frequency Response Plot changes with Arm/Cartridge Resonant Frequency?

Here's your chance to put me out of my misery and prove me WRONG!!!!
I believe I already did. As you saw in the paper I linked (presented to AES, and so was reviewed by the members- it is bona fide IOW) incorrect mechanical resonance can result in excess rumble.


**Again**: this gobbles up amplifier power and results in greater intermodulation on account of the amplifier itself. There is no way around this simple fact as without an amplifier and transducer, you cannot play the LP. Now this to me seems like a fairly simple fact. There are several threads on how to reduce woofers from flopping about when playing LPs on this site. and with a lot of loudspeakers if you play material that is too low, the woofers will not sound right as they flop about. Clearly, it affects the
SOUND
-as you put it.


Now the paper I linked stated that the mechanical resonance do not affect the audio band 20-20KHz. Despite this, it makes clear that artifacts will arise, and for the reasons I stated (and that many here have experienced) eliminating those artifacts by getting the setup right does indeed affect sound quality. So we can draw only a limited number of conclusions!

1) you don't actually play LPs so would have no idea of what I'm talking about

OR

2) you are trolling.

In either case, the premise of this thread is debunked. Knock it off.




mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,570 posts
 
The rumble and low frequency resonance also causes Doppler distortion of every other frequency being produced by the woofer.

Halcro you obviously can not hear or observe the difference between a properly set up turntable and an improperly set up one. I have come to understand Halcro now. He is both blind and deaf. Go figure. 
rauliruegas
13,125 posts
 
Dear @mijostyn : Not only that. Additional has not common sense.

Btw, common sense is main part of any science.  Einstein, Newton, Galileo and the like had high levels of common sense.

I think that after six years the myth proposal is today inside the stupidity land.

R.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
The external mechanical resonances circa 8-12 Hz excite the natural frequencies of the platter, cartridge and tonearm, thereby distorting the electromagnetic signal in wires. It’s the same idea behind suspending cables and isolating amplifiers or CD players, whatever. I.e., vibration not in the audio range affect the sound. RF is not in the audio frequency range, either. Nevertheless ....
rauliruegas
13,125 posts
 
Dear @geoffkait  : Sorry for that post, I was thinking only in the myth.

Yes, you are rigth.

R.
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