Graham Phantom Tonearm SME Mount Availability


Is the Graham Phantom tonearm currently available with the
SME mount?
gmorris
Don't think so; haven't heard of it. By "SME mount" I assume you are referring to the sliding adjustable mount that was standard on the 1.5 arm (versus the "rigid mount" that was standard on the 2.0 and subsequent Graham arms)? I recall that the 2.0 garnered praise for better sound than its 1.5 predecessor attributed in part to the greater rigidity of the fixed mount.

In the early years of the 1.5, having the adjustable mount made the arm more compatible for replacing other existing arms. As the number of Graham arms increased, Graham could set its own standard, and it chose to go with a single size configuration so that a less complex/expensive and more rigid mount could be used.

I am not aware of any plans by Graham to put a Phantom on an SME mount. Since the Phantom fits with the same placement as the 2.2 arm, there shouldn't be a need for a sliding mount from a marketing point of view. I would guess that a sliding mount could result in a compromise in the sound, which would be counter-productive for the all-out design goal of the Phantom.

Variations that I have heard under consideration are (1) the choice of a longer Phantom arm tube -- presumably for installations where the mount was placed originally for longer arms like the longer VPI JMWs, and (2) a selection of arm boards for turntables like the VPI TNT-HRX, which was initially produced without provision for armboards and arm interchangeability, but which could be redesigned for armboards in new production.

Having said all this, I must admit that I have no insight to Graham's product plans. Putting the Phantom on a sliding mount might not be very difficult, and it should be quite feasible for Graham to offer it. Best to check with Graham. Let us know if there's plans for one.