Discuss The Viv Lab Rigid Arm

Dear @lewm  : "  main goal was lowest possible friction. Hence the pivot floating on an oil bath. "

So,what you are experienced with is that the arm wand is " truly free " to make sudden horizontal/vertical movements with even lower true unipivot friction and with out the unipivot side effects?  That is that the tonearm hast the fast controled response ( to any other tonearm you own or experienced.) to what the cartridge modulation rides ask for during playback?

In the other side that oil floating bearing with " no instability " works as whole tonearm damping other than the O rings and that kind of damping by my first hand experiences  Audiogon Discussion Forum  has the capacity and could " kills " almost any resonance/distortion developed by cartridge/tonearmTT that open sound presentation to a new/different " flavor " of what you are listening That " kills " resonances/distortions could means a clean and pristine sound color.

I don't know if the tonearm could permit it but should be interesting to mount the cartridge with Löfgren A/B or nearer to it and listen it.

Using damping in the " right "/adequated way can makes " magic " especially in this tonearm/cartridge application. Resonances/distortions are the enemy to beat it and damping is one way in tha direction.

R.

R.

My suggestion for the intention to be using a underhung Geometry in comparison to a usual geometry, for a same Tonearm > TT> Cart', has been to also see if a prompt could be made to learn if this can be achieved using the 'Viv'.

I'll keep looking in to see how the trialling with the 'Viv' evolves.  

Overhang geometry requires a headshell offset angle, else you get very extreme TAE and no null point anywhere.

@lewm  : Do you tested the tonearm with out O rings ?

So, for your last post means that there is no way to turn the cartridge in the tonearm headshell. Sometimes and depending of the headshell the cartridge can turn just a little but permits it but not with the VIV.

R.

Correct.  If you use the headshell supplied with the tonearm, it would not be possible to twist the cartridge with respect to the long axis of the headshell, unless you somehow modify the headshell.  However, the tonearm accepts all standard headshells, so it might be possible to use a conventional headshell and twist the cartridge at an angle so as to effect a "conventional" geometry, with the stylus overhanging the spindle.  Also, there exist a very few headshells that incorporate the offset angle into the headshell mount, meant for mounting on a straight pipe arm wand.  I think Garrard made a tonearm like that.  Such a headshell could also be used.

As to your first question, no, I have not removed the O-ring dampers from the arm wand.