Any feedback on the Graham Phantom

Gentlemen,
Not having owned a 2.2 & not being an engineer as well as not caring a great deal about how a result is achieved I will say this. I have the Phantom with the Nightengale II on a Transrotor La Roccia with the Boulder 2008 phono stage.The quality of sound is quite remarkable to say the least. What can be said in my setup is that the slightest amount of adjustment, either VTA, Azimuth, Tracking Force or Silicon Fluid create major soundstage changes. At this point I cannot find any specific areas of weakness, only time will tell any shortcomings. As an aside my XLR interconnect from the Boulder to a Mac C-100 was a subject of considerable concern. Changing this interconnect created large changes in frequency balance & timing. The best cable so far has been the JPS Superconductor 2. I am a bit concerned over the considerable changes with cables as this has been by far the most sensitive application I have experienced. Thanks to all who have contributed experiences with the Fluid damping etc.. It helped to dial in the phono rig. I cannot say what is better or best, just that the Phantom appears to be a very fine precision instrument.

Sirspeedy, Thank you for the kind words. I am indeed very fortunate to be able to own this wonderful gear. I am using the IC-70 phono cable. This cable uses extremely fine (read thin gauge)silver wire. I would be interested to hear comments on other cables, as the interconnect situation I encountered made me a bit neurotic. In the past silver wire has usually sounded a bit thin (body)& a bit bright. The JPS claims an aluminum alloy, which is less conductive. Maybe it stores energy which makes it very dynamic. (I didn't like the lower priced JPS at all, it had a signature on everything it passed although a pleasant one.) Some professional cables I have used & recommended used West Penn wire which were also aluminum (however with Neutrik Gold XLR's they cost only about $35.00 per meter pair. Hard to go wrong in non critical situations. (I like West Penn 293 which is about 24ga.) Anyway I am going to let this gear break-in a bit before any more changes. Enjoy the Merlot. Good wine is like good audio. Lots of subtlety for different tastes.

Thank you gentlemen, Sirspeedy I agree with your observations. Most of my gear is 10 years old or more & I only change when I can hear something better(different). I waited a few years to decide on this analog gear as I wanted a turntable that had a certain look & a suspension that wasn't sprung. I really don't like tweaking, however some things really work (for no apparent reason). The Graham Phantom was coming out so I waited instead of getting the 2.2. The engineering & adjustment capability seemed like the natural choice for me. As well I figured an integrated cartridge & phono cable made sense. I believe the arm is everything expected as the slightest changes can be heard. The Boulder was not even an idea, I was considering the EAR (324 I believe). It was just one of those sweaty palm things when you say OK let's do it. Obviously it is spectacular, but the price is ridiculous.I was using the Boulder for a few months with a Technics 1200 & 12 year old Dynavector XX-I high output cartridge & it made the Technics sould as good as any of my friends high end rigs. Maybe better in some ways although you knew the weaknesses of the turntable. I have never been a big fan of expensive cables as they are all over priced. I have made my own silver cables & still use some today. Believe me the real costs are at least 10 times lower. Butt, as they stick it to me, some of the expensive cables are really better for whatever reason. Some also really suck. It's the same with wine, there are many great values for every taste, however some of the expensive wines are fabulous & with some you wished you opened 2 Buck Chuck. The few of us who love this hobby know price alone does not guarantee musicality. I am greatful to the few manufacturers who strive for greatness & as such I am happy (& lucky enough) to help support them.

Dear Yagbol2, Anti-skate with my Phantom using the Nightingale cartridge seems about perfect after other parameters are dialed in. The VTA seemed sensitive to proper adjustment as a too low rear height seemed to produce effects you noted. I was also experiencing skipping near the inner portions of the record. After re-adjusting VTA (near level) using 1.9 gram tracking, Magneglide slightly above middle & anti-skate about a third from the innermost point, I was able to eliminate skipping, play a very warped record & balance perfectly on a blank groove using a test record. Of coarse your mileage may vary.

Yagbol2, I have no clue, never owning the 2.2. I have never heard of using a 3.8 gram tracking force. Good luck. Wouldn't that high of a tracking force wear out your records prematurely? Maybe someone else can help.