Detachable Head shell or Not?

I think it depends on how effective one is at setting up a cartridge. Comparing cartridges is best done with two arms so you can AB the cartridges playing the same record. As Lew suggests theoretically the best arm with have no unnecessary connections and joints. If you have to have a removable head shell I think the Kuzma system is the best and you can order the arm direct wired. Schroder's cartridge "plate" can be easily indexed so the cartridge can be positioned correctly without having to pull out a jig. I do not like head shells ala SME. There is always some laxity at the connection affecting azimuth. Is there an audible difference? I sort of doubt it, but I won't use an SME style head shell under any circumstance. As far as switching cartridges for different music goes, I find that I always use the cartridge I like best for all music excepting 78's. IMHO the money spent on multiple cartridges is better spent elsewhere. 

I have a tonearm with a detachable headshell and a number of cartridges mounted in headshells.

I would not want a tonearm with a fixed headshell.

It really depends on what you want to do. If you don't ever plan to change a cartridge, except to replace when worn out it doesn't matter. If you like to listen to a number of different cartridges you want a detachable headshell tonearm.

Both of my main turntables have detachable headshells - a Technics SL 1200 MK2 and a Sota Sapphire with a Jelco 750D.  I have a number of cartridges and like being able to change things up.  If you are happy with just one cartridge, then a fixed headshell may be the way to go. 

I tend to look at things like this from a practical standpoint rather than getting into the minutiae of whether those "extra contact points" are going to degrade the sound or not.  Both of my tables sound great.  I've heard better of course, but I'm happy with what I have and how they function in my system with the other gear (cartridges) that I own.

Thank you everyone here for sharing their positive experience, convenience and happiness with removable head shell arms.

One other thing - tonearm cables.  Many years ago I tried several tonearm cables and have been using the Stealth Hyperphono for over a decade.  A couple others were good and less cost, most notably the Silver Audio Silver Breeze, but the Hyperphono made me aware of what I had been missing; the differences were not subtle. From the many cable evaluations I have done over the years, I have found the tonearm cable to be the second most senstive cable in the system after the line stage to amp IC.

I see many arms today with cabling all the way from cartridge clips to the RCA/XLR connectors.  If I was to order a new arm, I would want to talk to the dealer and/or designer about termination to a 5-pin DIN to allow for the use of the Hyperphono. 

Over a year ago, I had such a communication with a tonearm manufacturer.  He was certain that his Cardas cable all the way from pins to RCA's was the way to go but he did offer the DIN option if I wanted it.  I appreciate that kind of customer service.  I have no doubt that the Hyperphono would outperform the Cardas even with the DIN in the loop.  The pandemic delayed that tonearm purchase but I still see this product as second arm option.  It also supports removable head shells.  However, his arm design only deals with the head shell's mechanical coupling; the wiring is still from the pins to the RCA's.

Again, thank you all for the input here.

John

John,

The correct answer to your question requires that you first know yourself.  A person whose priority is collecting records first and being an audiophile second is likely to prefer detachable headshells.  Conversely a person who is principally concerned with getting the utmost performance from their cartridge is going to lean the other way.  There is a difference in sound quality.  I use both depending on the record being played.  Audiophile records are best served on my VPI HW40 with SoundSmith Experion.  All others work just fine on my SL1200 GAE used with a variety of cartridges, often mono..