Phantom Supreme to 4Point-14?

Dear @wrm57  : If you can find out the EPA 100 that's bettr option and up-grade vs the Graham and maybe the Reeds too.

 R.

Thanks @rauliruegas . Should I hold out for the Mk2, made of Boron/Titanium, or is Titanium/Nitride Mk1 nearly as good? I’ve neither seen nor heard either one.

I concur, Thom Mackris is one of the best in the business. He’ll give you an honest opinion, but I still say the answer to your question is cartridge dependent.

Lewm, Thom agrees with you. I just got off the phone with him. Great guy. And like many wise heads in this thread, he gently argued against per-record VTA changes. Then he gave up. :)

@wrm57 , Did Thom have any tonearm suggestions?

Wally tools are overall very good. I use the Skater and Reference. I also have a very modified Wallyscope which is really a lab grade Amscope USB microscope on a highly modified microscope stage. I also use a SmarTractor which, IMHO, is the best protractor for old eyes. It is also killer for mounting tonearms. 

wrm, This is in no way an insult to you. It is a design issue all humans have to one degree or another. When it comes to very minor differences our minds can play tricks on us. This is so true about slight changes in VTA. Changes in VTA affect high frequencies. As the contact point of fine line styluses changes VTA  it disengages from high frequency modulations first. The thinner the contact point the higher the frequency affected. Modern styluses can easily read 50 kHz you would have to tilt them five degrees to have any effect on audible frequencies. You are hearing what you expect to hear unless you are comically off 93 degrees. You have to prove this to your self which is not easy to do. I did it by making digital recordings at different angles so I could make instant AB comparisons with my wife doing the switching. Now, I set my cartridges up under magnification so the VTA is as accurate as you can get it. In many instances the real VTA may be far enough off that a one degree change might make a difference. I suspect this is part of the reason for this insanity. The first thing to do is make sure you have a very accurate way to set VTA. If you have an MSL, Lyra or upper model Ortofon you can assume the angles are right on and you can use a Wally Reference. I cannot speak for other high end cartridges as I have not examined them. I can also say that the Soundsmith Voice and Clearaudio Charsma were built correctly so I suspect their other higher end cartridges are also.  Other than those the only way to be sure is with a microscope. Using just your eyes can be very tricky because the contact line might not be central on the stylus. With the Replicant 100 it is more towards the rear and hard to see. 

In short, give yourself an accurate way of setting VTA then set it and forget it. 

I am not a fan of "S" shaped tonearms. It adds unnecessary mass and inertia to a tonearm. I am extremely minimalist when it comes to tonearms, less is better. I do not want any contacts between the cartridge clips and the RCAs at the phono stage end. No VTA towers or hanging strings, no elaborate head shells.