@rvpiano It is these experiences like the one being shared between ourselves, that creates advocates for certain methods to have a musical encounter.
Buy New - have the Manufacturer receive the Cart at a later date, or have a Third Party Service receive the Cart' at a later date, it is not such a big deal, but it is to some and not to others. We are both in the 'not to others camp'.
It does seem there is not the same stipulation when it comes to having a Cart' cleaned or evaluated for a Styli replacement or a damage, it seems a Third Party Service is an acceptable method for this.
I only want the Cart' to be used as a tool to replay Albums, and it has proven to work exceptionally well or this role.
@lewm As I have made known on this forum in the past, I gave up being insular, "man locked away in room with HiFi System" many many years past.
It has been this change of participation, from a lone enthusiast to a enthusiast, that has been participant in Social Activities / Group Activities in relation to my long term interest in Audio that has been the game changer.
Learning through experiences had is the only way I could discover a complete new direction for setting up my Audio experiences in my home. Not a Sales Ad, Media Review, or Forum Chit Chat, is a substitute for a ’sat in front off’ experience.
Add to the experiences had, the ones that others involved in social gatherings are willing to introduce you to, and things move on tenfold.
Do keep in mind my reference to my rebuilt Cart’ and comparisons is not new and was a revisit over the course of a few years, in conjunction with assessing a progression of a design for a Tonearm.
I do have upcoming experiences to share about TA Designs being evaluated through comparisons and Cart’ rebuilds on donor models to be used by myself and as a result of being invited to be demo’d ones that some friends have donors on standby for rebuild designs that are in the pipeline. I am assisting with purchasing one such donor model for a friend at this moment in time.
Then again I could have been uncommunicative, stayed at home, and educated myself by reading a few reviews and analysing the math about the latest whatever and let such alternate experiences pass me by.
@mulveling The Hana Umami Blue is now on my radar to have a demo’ of along with the Verismo. I have been kindly offered a demi’ of the Verismo by a Gon Member in the UK, who also has an Ortofon Anna and A95. This is an invite I wish to revisit during 2024.
Ortofon through a subsidiary, are Market Leaders in Damper Technology, there is a huge resource for R&D into this area, as they are producing small parts for the medical industry. The Verismo has a Damper material that has been produced through this new market activity.
In my view, there might be a time when Ortofon become far advanced to their competitors when it comes to Damping Materials selection / options because this in house resource and ongoing R&D.