Discuss The Viv Lab Rigid Arm


I am trying to do my due diligence about this arm. I am just having a hard time getting my head around this idea of zero overhang and no offset. Does this arm really work the way it is reported to do?

neonknight
lewm

12,693 posts

No RIAA correction?

 

Yes, though probably best left out of this thread judging by some of the comments made by others over simply removing offset.. :)

Rgds,

Paul

Dear @ps68 : Well, that already exist and sounds great: CD.

Or have you an idea about to share with us?

 

At the end all internet audio forum threads are to learn something.

R.

Must be a strain gauge cartridge.

It’s not a matter of simply removing offset. The stylus tip must also underhang the spindle. You don’t want one without the other.

Or blatantly refusing to learn something through experiencing as a result of receiving a demonstration. Strongly Suggesting math with a limited Calculus is the precursor to where a experience is to be sought. 

As said each to their own on such a matter. 

Pindac, in your recent very long post, I am not quite sure what you wanted to say, but I take it that you believe the pleasure of good music enjoyed in the company of good friends is the highest goal of our hobby, and who could possibly disgree with that? And I see your point that this is true even if and when cartridge set-up is less than perfect. So maybe this leaves us with the question how much accuracy in cartridge set-up is "good enough". I have long characterized myself as an alignment nihilist; I certainly used and still use one of two good protractors (Feickert and Smartractor), but I gotta admit I did not sweat too much over exactitude. +/-0.5mm was good enough for me, if that. Now this business of zenith blows up all my earlier comfort with approximations. Dave and others have shown that if the stylus in your cartridge was mounted with an error of even 1 degree, and if you are ignorant of that defect or ignore it, then despite all your efforts at exact alignment, you may very well wind up with very large amounts of TAE and zero null points on the surface of the LP. I think that is something we need to care about.

This has me thinking about my ZYX UNIverse cartridge. I bought it because my neighbor had one, and on his system, it blew me away with its imaging and clarity and sense of space. I’ve owned my own sample for several years, and it has never performed up to the standards of my neighbor’s sample. I’ve had it mounted in a 10.5-inch Reed tonearm on a tweaked Technics SP10 Mk3 (Krebs mod and JP Jones chip upgrade in a slate and hardwood plinth). Several months ago, I became aware of the zenith issue. Subsequent examination of my UNIverse using my microscope reveals its stylus was mounted with an extreme error in zenith angle, at least 4-5 degrees. I have to think this may account for the underwhelming performance. I am now thinking of having my UNI re-tipped, not because of stylus wear but in order to fix zenith. Twisting the cartridge in the headshell is one way to compensate for a zenith error, but my sample would need an extreme twist, and that puts aberrant forces on the cantilever which could also compromise performance.

Yes, this has nothing to do with the Viv tonearm.