Graham and Shelter matching - and other arms/carts


When you get a component that truly lifts your system up and reveals what's going on everywhere else, you learn things about your system that you hadn't realized before. My new Io Sig has shown me that I probably need a better linestage (I posted about this in Amps/Preamps), and it's also taught me something about arm/cart matching.

Now that the Io is in the system, I am hearing an unhappy balance between my Graham 2.2 tonearm and Shelter 901 cartridge. There's a tubby bass resonance that sounds to me like the Shelter cantilever feeding back into the unipivot arm structure. The outriggers on the Graham are supposed to minimize this effect, but perhaps the match just simply isn't made in heaven.

Instead, my Ortofon RS-212 tonearm, matched with Ortofon SPU Classic GM cart, is sounding much more balanced, real and musical.

That leaves me with the question of what to do with my Graham and Shelter. I'd like to have a "modern" arm/cart combo to compare with the classic Ortofon setup (I currently have 3 arms mounted on my table). My third arm is an Origin Live modified RB250, which currently has a Denon 103R mounted on it (probably not the perfect matchup either). The Shelter doesn't sound fantastic in the Rega - it's better in the Graham.

I do like the Shelter sound a lot, so I could buy an arm that's a more appropriate match for it, a Moerch perhaps. But I'd have to sell the Graham to afford that, and I kind of want to keep a unipivot.

Any recommendations for exchanging the Shelter and Denon for carts more appropriate for the Rega and Graham, or vice-versa?
patrickamory

Showing 9 responses by rauliruegas

Dear friend: I use the Shelter with: SME IV, Micro Seiki MAX 282 and Dynavector DV 505. Great with all these tonearms.
Raul.
Dear Patrick: Taking ( like a absolutely true ) what 4yanx told you , I think that before you change your arm or the Shelther you have to ask to your Graham dealer what he think is happen ( maybe your tonearm has an internally problem. Who knows ? ) and to your Shelter dealer the same question. Both of them have to support you.
Best wishes and always enjoy the music.
Raul.
Dickson: Terrible mistake. Instead to say Pi= 6.2832, it would say " 2Pi= 6.2832 ".
Sorry.
Enjoy the music.
Raul.
Hi Dickson: I own the Ikeda 9REX. Wich your's?.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.
Hi Dickson: The Ikeda 9 Rex is not an " easy " cartridge to get the best on it. Till now I try with some tonearms: Ikeda IT 407, SAEC 506/30, SME IV ( it does not works with this one ), Micro Seiki MAX 282 and AudioCraft AC 4400. All these tonearms ( exept SME ) are heavy mass type. I like the match with the AudioCraft, but as you know this is a subjective opinion. This cartridge is perhaps the more sensitive cartridge that I have to VTA/SRA and to VTF ( mayme because is a cartridge with out cantilever ),BTW I'm using between 2.6 and 2.9.. What are you using?.
Regards and always enjoy the music.
Raul.
Dear Dickson: Well, it's good for you. The REX is not an easy cartridge. It is very important to match with the right tonearm ( mass/compliance ). I give to you, here, the formula for check the matching between any phono cartridge and any tonearm: f= 1/2Pi X sqare root:1/mc
where Pi= 6.2832, m=tonearm effective mass and c= cartridge dynamic compliance. The ideal is that f=resonance frecuency will has a value of 10hz, but it's ok between 8hz to 12hz. For the m total value you have to take: tonearm effective mass+cartridge weight+headshell weight+nuts-screws weight,headshell wires weight+....
I would like to know what happen with your REX, with 2.5 in VTF and with out damping ( this is to see about the sibilance ).
We keep in touch.
Enjoy the music.
Raul.
Dear Patrick: I have two of your turntable ( there are some Tweaks to do it ) and I own your Ortofon tonearm. Can I have the operation manual of the RS 212 from you ?.
Please let me know about it.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.
Patrick: About the Acoustic Solid: try 3 Tri-Orbs heavy
isolation foot from Van Slyke Engineering www.vsengr.com
it works splendid. Try the mat from SAEC ss-300, last time I see it in e-bay ( turntables ). This two mods are better than the mods list on enjoythemusic.com. Other thing: I can see on your picture that you are using a belt drive, instead of the belt drive I'm using a thread and this makes a difference.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.
Doug: +++++ " The 901 has inner groove problems even on the best arms, including the top linear trackers. AFAIK the 90X has the same stylus and compliance so it's probably no better in this respect. " +++++

Maybe you have that problems with your 901, I never had that experience: everything was fine. My 90X certanily does not have that problem: all about is to mate with the right gear around.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.