SME 20/2 SME V or Triplanar VII?

Dear Ed: I assume that the price of an audio device is almost no price object to you.

I one of my posts here I speak about the great match ( synergy ) between the SME 20/V with the Sumiko Celebration cartridge ( you can read about on the Stereophile reviews of the 20 and the 30 SME TTs ). The Celebration, in this scene, compete with the Dynavector/ZYX cartridges for a fraction of price, it is that good.
I use it in the SME tonearm with out the stainless steel nuts on the headshel and running the tonearm in a static balanced way instead of the own V dynamically balanced way. Why don't try it?, it is " unexpensive ": 1,500.00 at retail and 1K second hand, you always could sale it if you don't like it.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Dear Flyingred: +++++ " The SME V does sound stodgy in the bass when mounted on turntables of other makes (especially non-suspended designs). " +++++

I agree, because I hear it in my RX-5000 and others one but there is one exception about: Acoustic Signature TTs, when I mounted in my AS TT every thing is fine: no stodgy bass!!!

Regards and enjoy the music.
raul.

Thanks Raul. Could you explain what you mean by static balance rather than dynamic balance? I know the difference in wheel balancing in the auto world, but I'm not sure what you mean with respect to tonearms.

Ed

Dear Ed: Static balance: you set the VTF using only the counterweight leaving the VTF V device out of work in this manner you by-pass this mechanism that tend to resonate and that put distortions/colorations in the sound reproduction.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Raul, re using only static balance: Are you saying that with an SME V, for instance, you should set the spring balance dial to zero, and then set the VTF using only the counterweight? That's very interesting. Does the spring really cause so much resonance around the bearing? Can you hear it, or is that simply a theory? Using the counterweight alone to set VTF would be quite tedious, but not impossible, I suppose.

While on this subject, I wanted to mention here that supposedly, the SME IV.V is designed more with MC cartridges in mind. It has ONLY counterweight VTF adjustment, and the internal tonearm wiring uses coated ribbons (a la Magnan) which supposedly allow even smoother bearing operation and better electrical performance than the silver litz van den Hul wiring.