Riaa curve

Dear Raul:
I actually think you explained your position VERY WELL, and I also believe what you say when referring to your testing and listing --- AND I also think that the better tolerance is a better thing to have, --- if it makes commercially viable sense. This is here, where we are at X purposes.

If 0.01% RIAA error HAD TO BE, you could 'trash' just about every phono-pre under sun, except the 3160 --- and this is where I beg to differ.
Simply because a GOOD non-RIAA replay unit like a CD player sounds 1:1 with a 1% error spec. phono-stage.

I think, I would first have to look very seriously at my speakers to be able to appreciate ANY difference.
Call it a question of the right priority?
Yet, I also know that the Burmester 961's have a VERY linear frequency response also, so then it'd be back to my room?
But now I also know that I have very good room lock / good diffraction / no standing waves...
OK, now we need a much bigger listening room first and I would not disagree but my pockets do :-)
And all this so I can truly appreciate a better RIAA spec?

Again, there is NO, ZERO notable difference in tonality between CD and Vinyl recordings OTHER than provided by different cartridges.
The more neutral the cart the closer in tonality to the CD, with the difference in vinyl adding some more LIFE, simply by the analogue's higher resolution of micro details, e.g. hall information, etc.

We all can agree, that the RIAA error does impact tonality but NOT resolution, (given that L/R are ~ <0.75dB out)

Hi Eldartford
I'd love to learn from the pro's perspective about that "RIAA equalization when the LP is cut", please if you would share it.
I think it should add some perspective to the subject on hand i.e. "Riaa curve" and not RIAA curve error tolerance...

A.

Eldartford, my cutting lathe has a set of 'pre-emphasis' modules that are in fact the inverse RIAA curves- if you put their output into a phono preamp, the result should be flat.

It sounds to me that what you are getting at is that not all cutting systems are created equally, not all mics are neutral as well, that sort of thing, and you are absolutely correct.

However, you might be surprised but the cutter manufacturers were actually quite concerned about getting the pre-emphasis correct, to the point of hand-picking components to make it so. The same is true of any high end phono preamp manufacturer; after the hand-picking process we wind up with a substantial stack of unusable EQ components!

Raul is absolutely correct in saying that EQ errors of only 0.1db can be heard and he also gave the correct reason why- its a spectrum, not a single frequency. That makes a huge difference to the human ear.

In the end, this makes it possible to evaluate components used in the recording process, such as mics and recorders. Although 0.1 db seems like its not very much, it **can** be measured quite easily, and the math for generating the EQ networks is well established.

I have seen at least one manufacturer claim that due to other errors, RIAA EQ is not important. IMO such a claim is rubbish and if a manufacturer says that to you, turn around and run as fast as you can!

Hi Atmasphere
good points you make, Raul will have a field day :-)

This also means, there is no way, but NO way, to do this RIAA circuit other then by a most tedious hand selection and soldering in/out process. In the case of your cutting lathe I've no problem, after all it the one that sets the 'standard'.

But as to phono-pres it means 'bespoke' only! --- and well that just about killed 98% of all phono-pres by then.

Food for thought...

I don't know how good the cutting equalization is...that's why I asked. Atmasphere might know.

If you can hear a 0.1 (or 0.01) dB boost over the range above or below the RIAA break frequency (1000 Hz I think) who is to say that the boost is bad? It might even compensate for error of the speaker (although 0.1 dB would not be enough to do that).

Raul...Your efforts to achieve perfection are an excellent example of overdesign. Overdesign is a common fault of engineers...I know: I am one.

Remember the saying...

"In every program there comes a time to shoot the engineers and get on with the job".