Creative and cheap DIY turntable/tonearm tweaks

Jyprez. The increase in vertical mass is the problem with adding the sand. So it is distinguishable(in terms of physics) from my tonearm mod, because my mod does not affect vertical mass. I assure you if you load your arm with sand, you will be unhappy with the result. Warp tracking will be hideous.

Yes, I calculated the horizontal mass increase in my tonearm mod. And the distance of the weights is 1.75" outside the center of the pivot on both sides, so there is an increase in inertia from the length of the outriggers, as well as just the pure mass. This mod works, and is calculable, and proven in testing.

As far as credibility goes, you may do as much analysis of it as you like. It is not for sale, so it makes no difference to me whether anybody likes it or not. Several testers as well as myself are enjoying some significant benefits from this mod. Very few others even showed any interest. So no hype is necessary, because anybody that wants it can make it themselves, and if they don't want it, I don't care. I have given up trying to convince people. Now I just post my information, and leave it at that.

Atma-Sphere offers a tonearm wrap for resonance control. Atma-Sphere Arm Wrap

Jyprez, you're correct in your description of compliance, and all would be exactly as you describe if the record was not turning. As soon as the record starts turning it is not perfectly flat and the cartridge is deflected up and down by small amounts all the time. This is where mass becomes very important, since the higher the mass the higher the inertia to the deflections. If the cartridge compliance is designed to be able to withstand the deflections of a low inertia tonearm it will not work at all well when you add sand and massively increase that inertia.

At best you'll change the resonant frequency of the tonearm - cartridge combo, almost certainly to the detriment of the sound quality. At worst you'll ruin the LP, the cartridge, and possibly even the tonearm bearings.

Ah, Ok so you are (both) saying that the cantilever needs to move in the vertical plane as well as horizontal for music reproduction (or is it just because the record is imperfect and potentially warped?)? I had thought that stereo reproduction only depended on horizontal movement and that the record grooves were flat in the vertical plane (except for that expirement back in the 70's with Quadraphonic). Certainly you are right that if a cantilever must go up and down in response to the grooves, more mass would be damaging to the record. If, however, it only moves horizontally, more mass (not more weight, just mass) would not damage the grooves.

Since the groove walls are angled, there is inevitably some stylus movement in the vertical plane. But there are very big vertical movements when a warp in the record is encountered. A large mass will actually leave contact with the record after being "thrown" up in the air by the warp. Then it will come back down at some later point of the record. This is generally not desireable. Typically, designers will make the arm as light-mass in the vertical plane as is practical. This normally also sacrifices horizontal mass, and was the reason for my tonearm mod, which separates and allows different mass in the horizontal and vertical planes. When an arm is not designed to have independent vertical and horizontal masses, then there is an inevitable compromise between light vertical mass for warp tracking, and heavier horizontal mass for cartridge stability. One or the other will suffer from the compromise. I promise that I did my homework.