I recently went to two high line audio homes in NYC.One a rich hobbyist with too much money.Never keeping anything long enough to learn how to set it up properly.300,000.00 worth of,literally, the worst sound I've ever heard.I've met one of that type, and the one I met is also greedy and refuses to accept responsibility for his own (often poor) choices. He's also a manipulative back-stabber. Larry has recently been given the "opportunity" to meet him, an opportunity he should miss IMO.
Doug,as for your comments about the "lack of resolution" in the Graham's VTA adjustment,compared to the Wheaton.I owned a Wheaton for 4 years.You do realize the Graham's scale is set for much smaller adjustments(as in more precise).FWIW, here's what I remember.
TriPlanar VII
One revolution = .7mm in height change
40 point dial = .0175mm per point
The dial is large enough to accurately interpolate 5 positions per point, so .0035mm per interpolation
Graham 2.2 (numbers from memory, please correct me if wrong)
One revolution = 1.0mm in height change
24 point dial = .041666mm per division
The dial is smaller but one can accurately interpolate 2
positions per point, so .0208333mmm per interpolation
Without interpolations
.041666/.0175 = 2.38
With interpolations
.0208333/.0035 = 5.95
Therefore, the TriPlanar VII's height adjustment has at least 2.38x the resolution of the Graham 2.2's, and nearly 6x the resolution if you give the TriPlanar credit for its larger, easier-to-read scale. My ears and Paul's subjectively confirm this, the Graham dial requires noticeably smaller movements to hit the sweet spot.
ZYX UNIverse
I can only echo Larry's enthusiasm, though I've only heard it directly against the cartridges on his list. Larry, didn't you hear others in that audio club meet you travelled to last month?
Of the four serious audiophiles who've heard mine two have already bought one, the third is saving his pennies, the fourth is crying because he may never be able to afford one.
The three buyers include Larry and a mutual friend who has the quickest ears and lowest tolerance for colored components of anyone I know. He listened to our UNIverse for 5 or 6 hours and commented that it did nothing wrong. That didn't sound like much, but his friend almost choked on his coffee. In 15 years this guy has apparently never heard a component for more than a few minutes without noticing a flaw. Three weeks later, after hearing a UNIverse in another system, he broke down and bought one. He's mentioned it once or twice on VA. Search for UNIverse! or UNIverse!! and you'll find him. Pretty amusing, since he's the most sceptical audiophile I've met.
His friend is the one saving his pennies. He's a broadcast engineer and custom builds or mods amps and preamps, some of the best, most neutral sounding gear I've heard at any price.
These two guys are the polar opposite of your typical, brand-happy, star-struck audiophile. They know what they hear and they understand why they hear it and how to make it better. They both fell in love with the UNIverse.
I'll be posting a review in a week or so. Short version: close your eyes and you'll see live musicians in your listening room.