Jedinite24:
No problem; the bigger challenge is getting me to shut up about it. :)
I can't answer the first question because I'd already been using a Sumiko headshell for a year with a Denon DL-160, and the improvement over the Technics headshell was enough that I ordered the LPGear ZuPreme version along with the AT150MLX. In general, IME the Sumiko or ZuPreme headshell is the *first* thing anybody should upgrade on an SL12x0 turntable. These headshells are much more rigid and inert, with higher quality cartridge leads. You get more transparency, lower noise floor, flatter frequency response, etc. etc.
When wrapping the tape, my goal is to dampen the ringing, not to add weight, so I wound the wrap so it just overlaps (by 1-3 mm or so for each wind. The tape is very light so it doesn't add much effective mass. It also stretches slightly and then shrinks back when winding, so it firmly grips the tonearm on its own (increasing its damping) without any adhesive to muck up the arm. My wrap has stayed intact for about 6-1/2 years without adjustment or re-wrapping.
I just counted, and the tonearm wrap has 18 or 19 revolutions starting at the knurled headshell collar down the arm to just shy of the tonearm rest.
No problem; the bigger challenge is getting me to shut up about it. :)
I can't answer the first question because I'd already been using a Sumiko headshell for a year with a Denon DL-160, and the improvement over the Technics headshell was enough that I ordered the LPGear ZuPreme version along with the AT150MLX. In general, IME the Sumiko or ZuPreme headshell is the *first* thing anybody should upgrade on an SL12x0 turntable. These headshells are much more rigid and inert, with higher quality cartridge leads. You get more transparency, lower noise floor, flatter frequency response, etc. etc.
When wrapping the tape, my goal is to dampen the ringing, not to add weight, so I wound the wrap so it just overlaps (by 1-3 mm or so for each wind. The tape is very light so it doesn't add much effective mass. It also stretches slightly and then shrinks back when winding, so it firmly grips the tonearm on its own (increasing its damping) without any adhesive to muck up the arm. My wrap has stayed intact for about 6-1/2 years without adjustment or re-wrapping.
I just counted, and the tonearm wrap has 18 or 19 revolutions starting at the knurled headshell collar down the arm to just shy of the tonearm rest.