Allnic Puritas vs. Koetsu Stone Body

I don't understand your line of reasoning. You seem to be saying that Koetsu's are both overpriced and over-rated, and yet you may purchase one of their very expensive options, regardless. On the other hand, you seem to be reluctant to accept the possibility that the alternative Allnic Puritas could possibly have merit, because of its lesser cost.

I have a Koetsu Urushi and like it very much, but I would not go higher in the Koetsu model line if I were to upgrade, because I think the law of diminishing returns sets in rapidly as price rises logarithmically. In this case, I will only say that the Reed tonearm is very very good and probably comparable in price to the OL Enterprise. I have heard the Allnic Puritas at shows and liked it very much. You cannot go wrong with either tonearm mated to the Allnic. On the other hand, I won't dismiss the Koetsu Coralstone DS, just because it may cost a bundle and will no doubt be ridiculed by some others who inhabit this website. I have never heard it. In fact, you have heard its near relative, so you alone should decide whether the Coralstone version of the DS might please you. Just keep in mind that cost is not the final arbiter of excellence.

All I can say is I heard the Allnic Puritas in a 12-inch Reed on Vetterone's The Beat direct-drive turntable, far into the late evening at the RMAF two years ago. We were comparing it to the SoundSmith Sussuro, riding in a second Reed tonearm. The sound quality was very high in both cases. I am sure Hammertone is a fine company, but they are in business to sell what they sell. Do you think their lack of enthusiasm for the Reed could have anything to do with whether or not they are dealers? (I do.)

All good points. I am sure David has done much more work on this subject than I.

I would only comment that the etiology of "sibilance" is one of the most vexing among problems that occur in vinyl audio reproduction. (Meaning, there are many causes.) One of the last elements in the equation that I would indict is the tonearm, per se. VTA, VTF, azimuth adjustment, the cartridge, the LP, the phono stage, all would come ahead of some intrinsic deficiency of the tonearm design as a cause of sibilance, so long as we limit the discussion to really well designed and well built ones.

Dear Lotus, I am not sure what you don't agree with. If you mean to say that you don't agree that the Reed 3P when mated with the Puritas can often result in sibilance, then I of course yield to your superior experience with that combo, of which I have none. If there are real experiential data to support your contention regarding the mating of this particular tonearm with this particular cartridge, a pattern that has repeated itself, so be it.

If you disagree that there are many causes of sibilance, many or most having nothing to do with the choice of tonearm, so long as the tonearm is a "good" one, which was the real point of my post, then that is another matter but not one of earth-shattering importance. We can still occupy the same universe.