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Kleos Sibilance

Hello Folks,

I posted this in a Delos thread but I thought I'd better start it's own thread.

I have a new Kleos in a JMW 9 Signature on a Scoutmaster. I am getting sibilance on vocals beyond what I have heard with either a Shelter 501 II or a VPI Ortofon on the same table. My dealer put the Kleos on the wand I had the VPI cart on. I have gone to 1.8g and did not solve it and I have checked the alignment. I brought the rear of the arm down as well. It may be less pronounced but it is still there. Otherwise the Kleos is quite nice. It has 3 or 4 hours on it now. I do not hear misstracking on high level passages, just sibilance and sometimes some grunge on male vocals. It is not on all vocals but it is fairly common.
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robob OP
197 posts
 
"Maybe I should try a Rega RB300 and see if the problem goes away. I guess it is a pretty good value."

Ixnay on the Rega. No VTA adjustment unless you buy the Mitchell mod. I believe the Rega's to be common not great.

What is the weight of your Benz? VPI has headshell weights. Call 'em and ask them to send you one. There is also somebody selling something called the Isolator, which is essentially a headshell weight with dampening. Might be worth a try.

As I said earlier, VPI wants HEAVY cartridges.

Good Luck,
Robert
goatwuss
877 posts
 
Tzh21y - I agree with Rob on the RB300. It's an excellent arm for the price, but I don't think that you'll find it up to the task of completely eliminating sibilance distortion.

If you want to try Rega, I would suggest giving the RB1000 as it supposedly has much higher bearing quality and tolerances.
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curio
305 posts
 
I have had for some time the Michell Tecnoarm with Benz LP and I have found the combo magical .. obviously for the price of the Tecnoarm.
If you are interested I'm selling the Michell Tecnoarm that's in perfect condition as a new one.
tzh21y
1,654 posts
 
He mentioned the rega as it is pretty much a drop in and it is also widely accepted as a standard decent arm. He thought it might give me an idea on what is going on. I have the headshell weight and although it helped, the cartridge did not sound very good with it, to my ears at least. I have also tried the the antiskate and it did not sound as good as without. I have the Mint LP and my cartridge is definitely aligned as good as it will get. The frustrating thing is that it is sort of a teaser, the JMW tonearm allows me to get a taste of what the Benz is capable of, but will not allow the Benz to really shine. Does anyone know of a drop in replacement for the JMW 9. I am open to suggestions or is it just a matter of starting over.
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robob OP
197 posts
 
"Does anyone know of a drop in replacement for the JMW 9. I am open to suggestions or is it just a matter of starting over."

There are none. VPI does not use any standard mounting hole. Like me, you must start over.

Sorry 'bout that,
Robert
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