Graham Phantom vs the Graham 2.2

Dear friends: It is almost imposible to compare precisely two or more tonearms performance because there are some inherent parameters on each one, example: internal wiring, effective mass, dinamically or statically balanced, pivot or linear traking, etc..., that has an effect on the final judgement. The Larry's comparison between the 2.2 and the Reference can tell us that the Larry's cartridge mates better with the reference than with the 2.2 or can tell us that the reference is a better tonearm or that Larry likes more the " reference distortions " than the " 2.2 distortions "..

There is no a " perfect tonearm ", pivot or linear one. All of them has advantages and disadvantages and depend with which cartridge we mate it.

My advise is to have very clear our targets on the music reproduction, what we want on the sound reproduction, which are our priorities and we have to organize those priorities by importance ( to us ), we have to graded ( scale ), example:

1- timbre,
2- tonal balance,
3- frecuency response,
4- dynamic balance,
5- inner detail,
6- attack,
7- soundstage,
8- etc,...

First that compare between two tonearms we have to compare each one against our music reproduction priorities and then we can choose the best tonearm/cartridge for us.

I have " live experience " ( in my audio system ) with linear traking tonearms: Dennesen and ET, and I hear the Rockport and Air Tangent ( I never hear the Kuzma ), with all of them you can have a different music sound reproduction experience against any pivot tonearm especially with the soundstage presentation and a kind of transparency that is unique to the linear tonearm, but these don't say that these linear traking tonearms are better than any pivot tonearm. Otherwise these linear traking tonearms are not my cup of tea ( because my music priorities ), they are very good but not exellent at the frecuency extremes, these are not their heavy characteristics. BTW, the Reference is exellent whit the soundstage presentation and ,I agree with Thomas, not very good at the frecuency extremes.

I never hear the Phantom, so I can say nothing about. I hope that this time this tonearm was a terminated design, not like his brother: 1, 1.5, 2, 2.2,....
I don't trust in an unfinished design like Graham and Triplanar ( I'm not saying that these tonearms are bad tonearms. No, I know they are good ones . ). Why I don't trust: well, the designers of those tonearms really don't have the 100% of know-how about all the differents tasks that any tonearm has to do or they don't test perfectly their prototypes before they put on sale. Both put on sale unfinished designs, the Triplanar is on his VII update and the Graham is on his V update ( including the Phantom ).
Take a look to the others tonearms designers like: SME, Breuer, Brhinkman, Audiocraft, Rockport, Moerch, Micro Seiki, SAEC, Dynavector, Ikeda, Satin, Technics, etc.... You never " see " a SME V MK2 or a Moerch DP-6 MK3. That's why all these tonearms are top performers and waiting for the right cartridges according to your music sound reproduction priorities.

So, define your music targets ( graded priorities ) and then make your choose.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Dear Sirspeedy: I already had extensive exposure to linear an pivot tonearms and what I post was my experience.

I'm confifent in what I alredy told to you and to all our Audiogon friends: till to now ( i don't hear the Kuzma, yet. ) there is no perfect tonearm, it does not exist, yet.

I don't know your graded music/sound reproduction priorities, but if exist any tonearm that can fullfill any and each one at 100% I want to know and want to test that tonearm and with what cartridges.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Dear Doug: The changes that the people of SME do on the V were to do their tonearms more accesible, in price to everyone, that's why exist the IV: that has the same one piece contruction but different quality bearing ( ABEC 5 instead ABEC 7 for the V ) and that the IV is statically balanced and with no oil damping. SME don't change the design.

" arms just because the original version has been enhanced? "****** Doug, the SME V was not enhanced ( in his design ) never.

The SME issue is a good one because this company is not only a very serious tonearm designers ( turntables, too ) but they are top rated in the world manufacturers for weapon items and space/aeronautic items and many more.

Can you explain why in more than 20 years that they design the V, they don't do it any up-date to it?.
Well, I think because the V is a truly finished design. It is perfect?, certainly not. There are some things that can do on the V for it will be more user friendly, but for a better performance I don't know.

I think that many tonearms designers have not the 100% know how about all the tasks of the tonearm and how to reach it and I think that not all tonearm designers are so critical and strict on testing their designs before they put on sale.

***** " Raul's beloved Moerch DP-6 (a fine arm by all accounts) has at least two obvious weaknesses: it has breaks in the wire and its... " *****

Doug, everything in this world is a trade-off. One of the heavy advantages of this tonearm is that you can change different effective mass arm wands, I can't imagine ( I would like ) how to do this with out breaks in the wire.

When anyone is in the design of anything, he is in a complex process where he has to think in any single point that affect his project for the best or for the bad. The development of a project ( a serious one ) is a hard task where you have to know all the rules for to have success. This success have to be reflected on the time, like the SME V.

The Breuer, Ikeda, Dynavector and Audiocraft ( I think ) tonearms are still on production with out changes.

I'm not saying that I'm against " changes ", no I'm not. I dislike the unfinished products because I feel that this unfinished design it can't give me the 100% of performance till it will be up-dated again. That's all.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Sirspeedy: Like I told to Doug, all in this life is a trade-off.

Which are yours? Airtangent?. Great!

If at this moment exist a perfect tonearm, I think that anyone would have it, and if that tonearm really exist I'm sure that all others tonearms designers maybe has to decide stop their tonearm production. Till now this is not what it happen.

Now, you really like the Airtangent and this is the important issue because I think that this tonearm goes better with your graded musical priorities, soundstage for example.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Larry: I will wait, too.

Regards and enjoy the music.
raul.

Hi Sirspeedy: ***** "even though I probably never will own one. " ******

If you don't buy the Phantom, maybe you can get the Airtangent. Good luck on it.

BTW, I agree with you about **** " don't think it has to be all that technical .." *****. With tonearms happen things that are very controversial and very dificult to understand, I explain this with an example in my own system:

somebody ask in this forum about the Lustre GST-801 tonearm and I think that Twl give an answer about telling that this is a good ( not exellent ) tonearm ( I can't remember exactly what Twl told ) and I post that this tonearm is a top performer.
I own two of this 801 tonearm but for months or maybe years they were in their boxes ( I only can mount 10 tonearms at the same time ). This Lustre tonearm is the cheapest, by a wide margin, of all tonearms that I have.
That question about the Lustre remember me that I have it and two weeks ago I take one of them and mount in my system, I have everything for do the right job on mounting but I can't find anywhere its effective mass for trying to mate with the right cartridge. So, I mate with my Dynavector XV-1 ( I already try this cartridge with five differents tonearms, including a Dynavector one, and always had a very good performance. The best match was with one of my SAEC tonearms. ) and big surprise the XV-1 never sound so great that with the Lustre GST-801. Why?, it is very dificult to say because the others 5 tonearms are all of them not only more expensive but exellent tonearms and mates very well about their resonance frecuency. Right now I'm mounting my second Lustre and I will try with my Allaerts MC2 Finish cartridge.

The Lustre GST-801 is unique in some design parameters, example: it is a dinamically balanced type but the VTF is apply through a magnetic mecanism ( no moving parts ), it is a J shaped type and the antiskating is a magnetic mecanism too. The build material is steel ( with internal non-oil dampening ) and Doug will be in love with its VTA mecanism and it is silver wired internally.

This tonearm has more than 25 years of design ( never changed and Doug : Koshin Electric, the company that build this tonearm, stay in the market for more than 10 years. ) and in its best time the price was only 500.00 dls and I buy it for 400.00 dls and outperforms today tonearms that have 10 times higher prices ( and I don't change, yet, the " very old " silver internal wiring. ).

Many things in the analog sound reproduction don't have technical explanation, at least for me that I'm not a technical expert.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Doug: **** " From a practical standpoint, anyone considering a Mk VII really doesn't care about any possible weaknesses of the Mk II or Mk IV. All that matters is what arm s/he's going to get today. " ****

I totally agree with you.

Regards and enjoy the music.

Raul.

Dear friends: This is another example of the " black magic " between the tonearm/cartridge combo:

in the past, I buy two tonearms MDC-800 from Sumiko ( The Arm ) that I never mounted. A few months ago I put on sale one of them ( I think for 800.00 dls here in Audiogon ) and in the first ad day I have 15 persons heavy intersted on buying this tonearm ( inclusive, I receive a 1,100.00 offer for it. ), it sold that first day ( unfortunatelly for me ). My idea was two put on sale both but after the people reaction I ask me why everyone wants this tonearm, so I mount for the first time in my system.
I try with the Denon DS-1 and with the Sumiko Celebration ( I can't mate with heavy weight cartridges because I have only the low weight counterweigt on the tonearm ) and both cartridges sound exellent. At that time my Colibri ( the 2.5gr version ) was on the Breuer 8 and sounding really good. I take the Colibri from the Breuer and mate with the MDC-800 and now the sound not only is a very good one but an exeptional one ( My Colibri and my MDC-800 born to be together for ever. ).

The MDC-800 is an exellent tonearm copy from the Breuer in any single parameter but the internal wires, and it hands down the Breuer ( at least with my Colibri ), the Breuer is one of the best tonearms ( for many people is the best ) ever made. BTW, I already sold the Breuer and take this money to buy another tonearm and cartridge.

Regards and enjoy the music.

Raul.