Killing sibilance distortion - VPI & Jubilee

Mmakshak,

I agree with your last two sentences. Unfortunately, your other points have been already addressed by Goatwuss.

Goatwuss,
I'd be astonished if any Rega TT played these difficult tracks with real clarity. A P1 certainly won't, so that trip was a waste of time. I expect you know that. :-(

Sadly, there are few dealers left willing to support a commitment to high end analog reproduction. There's too little market for it. People want convenience in their music, not quality. If I listened to singers who can't hit a note (like AK for example) I'd opt for convenience too. There's something to be said for the ability to change tracks quickly! ;-)

The more causes you eliminate, the more likely it becomes that TT speed instability is contributing to the problem. A cartridge change may help. So might a tonearm or phono stage change. But you're becoming so sensitized that I doubt you'll lick this to a degree you'll find satisfactory without improvements in that critical area.

Hi Doug,

Yeah. I called ahead of time and explained my situation, and I kind of assumed that he would have a better table hooked up to try this out. I guess I should have clarified that up front. Either way though, we can now cross a P1/cheap ortofon cart off the list. :-)

"I'd be astonished if any Rega TT played these difficult tracks with real clarity."

Can any P5/P7/P9 owners prove Doug wrong?

"The more causes you eliminate, the more likely it becomes that TT speed instability is contributing to the problem."

I guess the way to test this out would be to pickup an SDS. I have no doubt that you are on to something, but at this point I'm a bit hesitant to put more money into the VPI before confirming that the JMW arm can step up to the plate.

New update -

I have installed the Benz L2 cartridge, and checked all setup parameters twice. VTF is set to 2.0g which is the maximum recommended VTF. I am using the Mint tractor for alignment.

Here is a recording of the Benz cart playing the same track:

Benz

As you can hear, the sibilance distortion is clearly there with the Benz cartridge.

A tougher question - other than the sibilance issues, which cartridge sounds better?

I continue to believe your setup is off. I know the Benz cartridge and the arm and they work well together. It is impossible be more precise from a distance. Is there a setup expert anywhere near you? Have you talked with Harry at VPI?

Good luck.

Wendell

Hi Wendell,

I bought the table new with the Shelter 901 cartridge, and had it professionally setup from my dealer.

There was sibilance distortion, which is why I bought the Benz and the Ortofon carts in the first place.

After I first installed the Benz, I went back to the dealer for them to check setup since I was still getting sibilance distortion. My azimuth was off a bit and they fixed that, but other than that they said setup was spot on.

Did you take a look at the setup pictures above with the Jubilee? I believe they accurately show how I had overhang/zenith/azimuth/VTF setup, but please correct me if it is unclear. The only parameters that I don't have documented by photos are VTA (currently level, but I've tried both tail up and tail down) and anti-skate, which as documented above I've tried various arrangements.

Do you see any glaring setup issues in any of the above photos?

If it is setup related, do you think it is weird that I get the same result with 3 different cartridges, all setup several times over 2 different alignment protractors?

I have actually gone back and forth with Mike, the lead tech at VPI, quite a bit over email. He has graciously recommended that I send him my arm and Jubilee cartridge for him to test. I am going to take him up on this, and see if I can come up with any answers.