Developing A List Of Tonearm Candidates For A SOTA Turntable

@audio_rd_uk, thanks for following up on the 12-in Agile. Your rig looks sharp in the vid. So it seems you found the 12 to be slightly more relaxed and less dynamic that the 9.5, which is not unusual. I have 12 and 9 Graham Phantoms (III and Supreme, respectively) on the same turntable and that pretty much describes the difference in their sonic profiles. BTW, I recently adopted the OL Strata mat on this turntable. It's excellent, and I say that as someone with an embarrassing number of mats in the closet.

When the TT > Tonearm > Cart' are seemingly performing out in front of other permutations trialed or wed to. The introduction of using Platter Mats in a variety of types can then become another method to help really hone the end sound to ones preference.

I do this with a large selection of owned Mats and have found my go to mats. It s also quite a reveal how adding different spindle weights in conjunction with a Mat can enhance the qualities the Mat has shown as being able to add discernible improvements.

This line of discussion regarding offset and VTA is at times amusing, and at others tiring at best. I was listening to vinyl last night, and what i find is the SOTA with Agile arm is not only the best table and arm combination I have, it is satisfying in ways that other tables never have been. I had been through a journey of exploration over the last 15 years and have owned the SP10, DP75, Brinkman Bardo, Well Tempered Reference, Amazon Referenz, Galibier Serac, VPI Prime, and a number of arms. I am sure there are a few tables I missed in there, it is early in the morning here. 

@neonknight  This is what it's all about. We can (and do) go down philosophical back-holes pertaining to mechanical & electrical component design, but the "conclusions" often have little bearing on the pleasure we derive from a system. High-end vinyl playback is rife with patterns of solving the wrong problem, or a problem that doesn't really matter. It's human nature.

For sure, your SOTA does a great job addressing things that actually matter, with a minimal of the fantasy elements. Sounds like your new arm is a super match for it too. Congrats on your newfound pleasure machine!

@mulveling and ​​​​@neonknight I agree on VTA. As above I am in the ’club of’ find an optimal for what (thickness) you play most, set L/R balance for that VTA (I ultimately use a l/r balance record for that to also take into account anti-skate influence) and then enjoy.  After 42 years working in R&D I only pursue and fix real problems.

@wrm57 OL were at Ascot on Friday and as you can see at 3:11 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djDomUrQkEs using the Sovereign-S (which like the Voyager effectively has a ’strata’ matt built in) and Agile arm through their Discovery stage and a sugden amp into DeVore’s this year and a multi speaker sub-they modified with hypex amps. Sugden aside I am still not sure the rest of that set up allows the full capability of the deck through. We will be comparing through my two systems in 3-4 weeks. Though setting up in demo rooms is always a bit of a trial especially when they have as much glass as in the Ascot rooms.

After 42 years working in R&D I only pursue and fix real problems.

Are you saying that incorrect VTA is not a real problem.

If you believe that I would suggest your optimum cartridge would be something with a conical or spherical stylus.