Riaa curve

Ultimately, the accuracy of the inverse RIAA equalization on a phono preamp is only meaningful to the point it is equal to the accuracy of the equalization used on the cutter in the production process.

Look at it this way. I can't add "about 2" plus 2.00000 and expect an answer of 4.00000. The "about 2" in the left hand side of the equation limits my answer to "about 4."

If one looks back to the "golden age" of LP production - the 1960s - which produced in particular jazz and classical recordings that are still revered to this day, I seriously doubt that much of the production equipment was much more accurate than 1 dB.

One has to be careful to not chase one specification to the exclusion of others. That happened in the 1970s when amp designers went after ultra low distortion numbers. They overused feedback which gave good looking static test numbers but gave audibly poor results with dynamic music.

Yes, a flat frequency response is a worthy goal. But then so are lots of other characteristics. The goal is not how each one tests by itself in a static environment but rather how they operate in unison when playing music.

Dear Mlsstl: +++++ " Yes, a flat frequency response is a worthy goal. But then so are lots of other characteristics. " +++++

absolutely right, I agree.

+++++ " The goal is not how each one tests by itself in a static environment but rather how they operate in unison when playing music. " +++++

I agree here too.

Both statements are ( between other things. ) an almost a " routine " in the eletronic design whe the designer really cares to improve the quality performance of what already are in the market. IMHO almost no one designer works as if his " unit " lives or will live in a stand alone " stage "/aisle/ static, everyone know the multiple relationship that exist through the whole audio chain and the synergy that is a must to have to otain/achieve a top quality performance.

That's why anyone: customers and designers have to take care that in each link on the audio chain not only exist synergy but that in each link we lose the less on the signal and add the less too trying to preserve the source signal integrity with minimum degradation. IMHO tight RIAA accuracy help to meet those goals.

Regards and enjoy the music,
Raul.

I might have a different viewpoint here- I feel that it is not a good idea to excercise synergistic effects. Instead, I prefer that each component operate out of its own strengths, that you are not compensating for a brightness in one component by using a dullness in another. IOW there are no synergies, just strengths.

That may be the same as Raul was saying, not sure, but I thought it might be useful to clarify this. People ask us if our equipment is 'voiced' to work together, and it certainly is not, other than our amps and preamps are balanced and all-tube: that's the extent of it.

So this is why we take care with the RIAA- we have no idea what amp or cartridge will be used with our preamp; whatever coloration that might appear as a result will not something that is occurring because we were sloppy about EQ or didn't care. The response will be flat whether its phono or CD. If a cutter from the 60s had a problem, its not an excuse on our part to be negligent, all that results is now you have an instrument with the resolution to really know what is on the various LPs!

Dear Ralph: Yes, I'm refering to that kid and real synergy and not the one that is commun on the reviewers: " if your speakers are to bright don't use this cartridge that is overbright ", this kind of synergy is not a real synergy but a sum of " errors ".

Regards and enjoy the music,
Raul.