2. analog
  3. 1232902020

Vinyl sounds a bit thin and slightly strident.

The analog side of my system looks like this:
Benz Micro Ebony H Cartridge(Broken in). VTF around 1.9g.
No Headshell weight.
VPI Scout/JMW-9 Signature Arm(Wired w/Nordost Valhalla)
Cardas Neutral Ref Phono Balanced.
Audio Research PH-2 Balanced Phono Pre
Cardas Neutral Reference IC's
Audio Research LS-7 Preamp w/Electro-Harmonix Tubes from ARC
Cardas Hexlink 5C
Mark Levinson No.331
Purist Audio Design Aqueous Bi-wire
B&W Nautilus 803S
I recently purchased a used Sony 9000ES SACD player and noticed I could listen for extended periods of time and I just kept wanting to play music because it is a great sounding player and very engaging and realized that I'm having a hard time getting as involved with my vinyl rig and I've concluded that the big contributing factors are a lack of bass weight, mid-bass bloom and the top end is a bit strident.
Has anyone else had a problem such as this? And what device(s) should I tweak or change in order to alleviate these sonic characteristics? I suspect my overhang may be off and a contributing factor due to just using the stock VPI protractor. I want to get a Wally Tractor soon.
Any thoughts?
n803nut

Showing 2 responses by jj2468

jj2468
280 posts
 
I own a Sony 9000es SACD and I've heard many VPI Scout combinations.

The problem lies elsewhere than the Scout, which is capable of much more musical output than the Sony 9000es. 1) Examine your cartridge and tonearm setup. 2) The Benz leans toward the warm side of the scale. You may want to try a denon 103, but I don't think the cartridge is the source of your complaint for the most part. 3) Eliminate those Cardas cables, all of which are veiled. Many folks use those cables to tame strident gear. The golden reference is good, but so is the Speltz anti-cable for a lot less dough. Sell the cardas, buy Speltz, Zu or make your own cables (see Parts Connexion) and buy vinyl with the difference. 4) IMHO the Audio Research gear leans toward the strident side. I've not heard the Levinson, but I prefer tubes, so that tells you my bias.

In any event, the VPI should sound significantly better than the Sony. Good luck, Jeff
jj2468
280 posts
 
Johnss,
Sounds interesting. Could you provide a link to a site that explains your test procedure in more detail?

a) How do you measure the output voltage? By affixing a voltage meter to the rca outs of the preamp?
b) What do you compare the readings to?
c) What test lp do you use and does it provide the necessary benchmarks?
d) Once you have the data, is there a guide on what to do about it?

Thanks, Jeff
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