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RB300 tweaking problem

I have an RB300 mounted on a Townshend Rock Mk. III. This turntable incorporates a damping trough at the cartridge. To use this trough, a outrigger assembly is mounted at the headshell. The RB300 came from Townshend. It came with the tungsten CW w/ an additional weight epoxied to it to offset the added mass of the outrigger. The diameter of the hole on the additional weight is larger than the shaft. Its weight is being supported by the tungsten cw.

I am using the latest Shelter 501.

I thought I would try one of the cw upgrades. I went with the Mitchell. The problem that I am having is that in order to load the cartridge at 1.8 grams, the center of the main weight is a full 2" behind the pivot.

Any suggestions here? Should I add more mass to the Mitchell? If so, how?

Thanks for any help.
smctigue
tafka_steve
115 posts
 
Honestly, I can barely detect the sonic difference (slightly cleaner transient/dynamic peaks with the Heavyweight). I think the front-end damping paddle/trough of Townshend's arms removes arm resonance colorations (certainly the tonearm/cartridge resonant peak is nullified) and this is why the difference is so minor.
smctigue OP
9 posts
 
Agreed. I felt the same way about the Mitchell.

Where are you getting your damping fluid? I've emailed Townshend a few times with no luck.
tafka_steve
115 posts
 
I bought an extra vial of damping fluid from Townshend back in 2001. He should still have some, as he is still making turntables that use the damping trough (according to HFNRR). If you have no luck with him, I can probably supply you with some.

FYI, the Townshend has been in my second (bedroom) system for 4 years. I went nuts and bought a Walker Proscenium with a Dynavector XV-1 to replace it in my primary system. And yes, it was worth it.
smctigue OP
9 posts
 
Thanks, maybe I'll have better luck calling Townshend.
nghiep's avatar
nghiep
79 posts
 
Is there a noticeable sonic differences with the cartridge damping trought? Thanks
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