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Post by dsjr on Jul 13, 2018 16:01:08 GMT
I haven't yet tried one, but the AT-F7 is reportedly more refined than the slightly raw (away from an RB300 style arm) F5 model. I just feel the pound's drop ten years or so ago was only an excuse to increase prices further. Many UK makers popular in the far east drastically increased prices at this time, so the prices abroad didn't look significantly different, but in the UK, we suffered as many items from GT audio/distribution, E.A.R.and even Harbeth, shot up in price in the home market, some items all but doubling in price (E.A.R from memory)...
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Post by dsjr on Jul 14, 2018 10:42:01 GMT
Being a relatively poor country now, I don't think we notice this in the UK, but I'm reliably informed that in the far east, the price tag is everything and the way to 'upgrade' a product is to actually increase the selling price, even if nothing else is done. The Japanese apparently have obligations once a deal on a product is struck, so a minor exterior change meaning little may well be enough to justify a price increase, but it may well be more than that. I was told that a 'good' phono stage costs $12000 in Honk Kong, no matter what, so if say, a Tron 7 is actually far better, itself a few grand, it won't have the much needed cachet or status adding factors that are needed too. 'Value for money' apparently is disregarded compared to here. If it's expensive - and looks it - , it conveys greater status upon the owner, where here, I suspect we'd look upon the chap (usually a male) as bonkers for shelling out so much on so little  |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2018 13:11:19 GMT
With Pink Turntables I just used the Perspex platter and Tried an achromat which was ok, nothing more. My Current system TW Raven works fine in the sense that I place 180/220 gram records on the copper surface and use the thin supplied mat on standard records. This works on the basis that my tonearm setting works with either requirement.
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Post by dsjr on Sept 5, 2018 14:51:13 GMT
VTA is arbitrary at best, as if you go too far down that route, you'll find every pressing will be different... We had loads of agony playing withe the on-the-fly adjustment on a Rock/Excalibur I remember and it just becomes an anal exercise I reckon. Just bear in mind that many cartridges from the far East seem to still have slightly too steep a rake angle, meaning the arm may actually be too high when set dead level... Some models with spiky highs may respond a touch of the arm is taken down even by just a mm or two. Obviously, if you're happy with the sound, obviously leave well alone...
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2018 16:09:44 GMT
I set my arm a Reed 12" and Lyra titan i to work on a standard record and found by accident that If I removed the very thin mat and played my thicker records directly on the copper top platter surface I had the ideal solution. I have been setting up arms and cartridges for a few weeks! ( wheres the smilies) and have exactly the sound I was originally seeking but thanks. The Raven AC stays consistantly in tune compared to say a Pink Triangle Anniversary which I used to run.
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Bigman80
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Post by Bigman80 on Sept 5, 2018 18:07:15 GMT
I’ve heard SMEs sounding wonderful and average. They seem to be quite fussy about the deck you pair them with. Best was an Oracle Alexandria IV. Worst was a Xerxes.
I used to think they were far too expensive but other arms have risen a whole lot more over time.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2018 19:31:16 GMT
Oliver (Bigman 80) has a Tenuto, which he got a deal on. Too rich for my blood, but in the context of an SP10, not unheard of. Whenever I see things like that, I always wonder if you could get the same thing made by a fabricator for a lot less. One day I may enquire, if I have a deck good enough to warrant it, Bit late to the party!!! Yes the Tenuto is *ahem* around the £3-400 mark But I have to say, on the SP10, it was an excellent investment. I'm not flush by any means but it really does make the difference. Tried it on a mates Lenco and did the same for him, he's after one too. It's not Foo, it's a definitive difference and one I am happy to have on the TT. Not sure what others would think and to be honest, may not be suitable on most TTs. At 2kg it's a bit on the heavy side I'd have thought |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 5, 2018 20:07:53 GMT
The Tenuto looks similar to the platter finish on my TW Raven AC.
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Post by dsjr on Sept 6, 2018 12:03:55 GMT
And hear's me chuckling 'cos a Spacemat would do much the same for twenty quid!
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Bigman80
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Post by Bigman80 on Sept 6, 2018 14:38:56 GMT
And hear's me chuckling 'cos a Spacemat would do much the same for twenty quid! That’s a great price, Dave, what’s it made of? Foam? I swear by Origin Live mats. I think they are some form of impregnated felt bit it’s hard to tell. It’s seen off everything else by a country mile, no harm trying something else though and twenty quid is cheap. |
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Post by dsjr on Sept 6, 2018 14:43:52 GMT
It's a VERY dense foam like material, but not like shoe -insole stuff. Squash it and it stays that way for ages before gradually re-forming. Tested by rapping knuckles on a playing record and listening to what comes out of the stylus. The graphite platter used on dearer NAS decks almost completely removes noises of a tapped record without the need of added mass or clamps and on cheaper decks, the Spacemat does pretty well, especially if the deck is a lively sounding one, or a Rega or Linn with felt/wool types... It wasn't so hot on a Cirkus LP12 of the early noughties though and of course I don't know the latest sub-chassis versions.
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Post by karma67 on Sept 8, 2018 13:12:32 GMT
And hear's me chuckling 'cos a Spacemat would do much the same for twenty quid! yeah but it wont look as good!
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Post by Deleted on Sept 12, 2018 21:42:23 GMT
And hear's me chuckling 'cos a Spacemat would do much the same for twenty quid! Not in my experience. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 13, 2018 7:29:13 GMT
And hear's me chuckling 'cos a Spacemat would do much the same for twenty quid! Not in my experience. Well maybe it would and maybe it wouldn't. But at £400 im having a wee chuckle too.😂 |
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Bigman80
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Post by Bigman80 on Sept 13, 2018 7:51:38 GMT
I’m surprised it hasn’t been copied. I take Oliver at his word that it does the business an the right deck though.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 13, 2018 19:40:49 GMT
Well maybe it would and maybe it wouldn't. But at £400 im having a wee chuckle too.😂 I didn't pay £400 for mine, or near that. |
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Bigman80
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Post by Bigman80 on Sept 15, 2018 21:25:15 GMT
I actually got to experiment with the Sound Dead Steel SDS isoplatmat today. The effect it had on the sound was completely negative. It actually did sound “dead”. It sapped all the openness and life from the recording and made it sound overdamped. It may have different results on a different deck, but I really disliked it on the Sony.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 16, 2018 0:39:01 GMT
I actually got to experiment with the Sound Dead Steel SDS isoplatmat today. The effect it had on the sound was completely negative. It actually did sound “dead”. It sapped all the openness and life from the recording and made it sound overdamped. It may have different results on a different deck, but I really disliked it on the Sony. A mate has one of those, loves it. I heard it and had the same reaction as you. Same happens to mine with the standard rubber platter mat. I bought a leather one a while before the Tenuto. It's the best budget one I have found. Tried cork, acrylic, leather, felt, foam, the leather beat them all until I tried the Tenuto. I also could have borrowed the AT vacuum one but never picked it up from my mates house when I left after a visit. |
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Bigman80
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Post by Bigman80 on Sept 16, 2018 8:02:48 GMT
I don’t seem to get non with rubber mats either. Even the filled one on the PS-6750, which gets raved about is just as crap as any other rubber mat. SDS May have its used but turntabe platter mats isn’t one of them afaic.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 12, 2019 21:19:44 GMT
I use the Ringmat system on my WTL Versalex. Obvious improvement in focus. Much better than stock mat and Auditorium A23 which both sound a bit muddy and blurred in comparison. Fractionally better than no mat at all. I used an Achromat on a Rega. I think it tamed the ringing of the glass platter. Much better than the awful felt that Rega supply. An improvement but only treating the symptoms. I have a Versalex too. Which one of the Ringmat's do you use? I still use the original one but I've been tempted with the Auditorium 23... |
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Post by savvypaul on Jun 13, 2019 7:04:15 GMT
I use the Ringmat system on my WTL Versalex. Obvious improvement in focus. Much better than stock mat and Auditorium A23 which both sound a bit muddy and blurred in comparison. Fractionally better than no mat at all. I used an Achromat on a Rega. I think it tamed the ringing of the glass platter. Much better than the awful felt that Rega supply. An improvement but only treating the symptoms. I have a Versalex too. Which one of the Ringmat's do you use? I still use the original one but I've been tempted with the Auditorium 23... Gold Spot I think it is called. I also have the full ring mat system - thin rubber base, vta inserts, statmats. I got it all secondhand for about £75 but I think it's about 3 times that new. I've since sold the Versalex to go down the idler route but still use the ringmat. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 13, 2019 11:40:42 GMT
I have a Versalex too. Which one of the Ringmat's do you use? I still use the original one but I've been tempted with the Auditorium 23... Gold Spot I think it is called. I also have the full ring mat system - thin rubber base, vta inserts, statmats. I got it all secondhand for about £75 but I think it's about 3 times that new. I've since sold the Versalex to go down the idler route but still use the ringmat. Many thanks for the info, much appreciated.
Have you still got the Auditorium 23 mat or have you since sold it? Which deck have you got now?
Cheers Rob
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