Telarc 1812 revisited

JCarr
Hi Jonathan
Yes I have the original Kitamura generation Final Audio Labs VTT1 with the SPZ plinth like this:
http://www.hifido.co.jp/KWfinal/G0301/E/0-10/C09-43580-46106-00/
Mine has the VSM-2 Oscillator Preamp/separate motor/VM-7 copper mat and VDS-17 Stabiliser. I use an Onix OA401 power amplifier & MIT wiring loom for the drive.

I acquired the Final from the estate of Warwick Mickell who was the Japanese foreign correspondent for The Absolute Sound back in the 70's/80's. Warwick passed away some years ago. This is the same TT Warwick reviewed in TAS June 83.

I purchased the complete front end which included the Dynavector DV501 and Dynavector Nova13D cartridge. Warwick's reference system at the time included the NYAL NCP2/ HTMPS preamp & OTL1's driving Stax F81/Onkyo SL1. Dynavector has been very helpful and has rebuilt the Nova 13D twice for me over the years. I keep the DV501 for posterity.

I use primarily the Eminent Technology ET2 (modded) or Naim Aro but latterly the FR64S for the convenience of changing cartridges.
My preferred cartridges are the Ikeda & Decca Garrott, but they are too brutal for everyday use. Daily runner is a Koetsu Black.

I did correspond with a gentleman back in the 80's in the US who had a Final, possibly the one HP reviewed. Kitamura was most upset that HP used an air suspension on this deck. I have the original compressed stone plinth. The later iteration that you refer to as sold by Top Class Audio appears to have a far less substantial bearing. I also see the Audionote/Kondo Ginga seems to derive from the same family. Do you know who builds these ?

Where did you acquire yours ?

Regards..

PS A tip for you. The only maintenance I have had to do over the years is clean and lube the main inverted platter bearing and motor bearings. I use Motul V300 Power which is a double ester motor oil that is both highly unctious and slippery. It will hold a film between seized motor parts. You might want to look at this. This oil improved transparency and lowered the noise floor.

Hi Raul:

>I'm " absolutely sure that the Titan i or the Atlas or the Ortofon Anna or any other today cartridge would/could ( ? ) performs at way better quality if the cartridge tracking abilities ( by design ) were better were improved.

Been there, done that. It is quite easy to improve the tracking performance, for example by designing a wire suspension with a longer-than-normal free length. This has the side-effect of lessening the intensity of the loads on the tonearm, which can seem to be a benefit if the tonearm has a resonance-prone mechanical structure, and can improve the tracking of a tonearm with lower-grade bearings or imperfectly adjusted/unevenly worn bearings.

But doing so means that the suspension's fulcrum point will shift position, depending on what the frequency being reproduced is. This won't necessarily sound bad, and some cartridges are designed like this. But it certainly isn't accurate.

OTOH, you are free to prefer whatever you like.

>In the other side the Telarc 1812 is a very good tool to be sure about the VTA/SRA

For the Telarc 1812, yes. But since this value may or may not be applicable to the other LPs in your collection, "to be sure" may not be the best words to use.

>and LOMC load impedance set up

Ah, interesting. Can you teach me about LOMC load impedance setup? Why do you load a cartridge, what causes the need to load a cartridge, how do you determine when a load is too high for a given cartridge, how do you determine when a load is too low, what do you hear when the loading is right, what do you hear when the loading is wrong, that sort of hint would be welcome.

>The main audio system enemy are: distortions in all its forms.

Agreed, but what you are suggesting is just as likely to cause distortion as reduce it (and this is not the first time that you have done so). Trading one form of distortion for another, or increasing distortions in the name of reducing them is not my idea of progress.

kind regards, jonathan

Dear friends: For those of you that has no idea about the historic Telarc Tchaikovsky 1812 recording I share with you some information:

Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra conducted by: Erich Kunzel.

Recording venues: Music Hall Cincinnati, Emery Memorial Carrillon tower in Mariemont, Ohio and the court-yard area ( for the live/true cannons ) on the campus of the Balswin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio.

Producer: Robert Woods

Sound Enggineer: Jack Renner

Mastering engineering: Stan Ricker.

Recording date: September 6 and 8 in 1978.

Recording: fully DIGITAL using Sounstream system.

Microphones ( Orchestra ): three Shoeps/Studer SKM-50U .

Microphones ( Cannons. ): Brüel&Kjaer.

Console: Studer model 169.

Monitoring sessions: bi-amp ADS speakers driven by Threshold amplifier.

Distributed by: Audio-Technica.

The Orchestra was augmented by 12-piece brass band.

The electronic and mechanical keyboards were manned by four players ( normally needs only one. )

It were used three autentic and different 19th century cannons, owned and manned by the Fifth Virgina Regiment. The lower recorded frequency coming from the cannons is: 6 hz.

Regrads and enjoy the music,
R.

Dear J.Carr: +++++ " But doing so means that the suspension's fulcrum point will shift position, depending on what the frequency being reproduced is. This won't necessarily sound bad, and some cartridges are designed like this. But it certainly isn't accurate. " +++++

you are the " boss " here. In all the cartridges I name here ( that can track the 1812 ), including the Akiva, I just not been aware of any sign of unaccuracy during the different playback sessions.

Which kind of unaccuracies could I find out down there?

++++ " For the Telarc 1812, yes.... " ++++

well, if we are extremely strict I agree with you: nothing is diffrent with the Telarc that with any other LP on the VTA/SRA set up but my meaning was not for that strict criterium but about that triangle/tambourine passage that when is really " right " you can easy confirm it trhough other LP's ( in the whole evaluation system process. ).

Certainly you don't need that I teach about loading a cartridge that's well know for any audiophile. What maybe you need is to read again my post on reference to that and then test in your system because you own the Telarc recording.

++++ " Trading one form of distortion for another " +++

yes, and almost always exist trade offs in audio ( as Dougdeacon posted. ) that's why I always say that is in your own overall knowledge level and skills to choose the trade-offs that makes the less harm to the audio signal and to do this we need carfully training to identify each kind of distortion sounds, with out this self training no one can do it.

Regards and enjoy the music,
R.

++++ " The electronic and mechanical keyboards...... " ++++

this is refred to the Carrillon play.

Btw, the 1812 Carrillon passages is another way to know about not only the cartridge set up quality level but the audio system resolution levels.

Regards and enjoy the music,
R.