*It seems like the match for the Garrard 301 is "The Tri-Planar" , has anyone swithch from The Tri-planar to something else that was interesting and if so, your comments please.
I think the Ikeda IT-407CR1 is a great arm for the Garrard 301/401. It's very high effective mass is ideal for the heavy, low compliance cartridges one usually pairs with the Garrards. Disclaimer: importer for Ikeda-www.beautyofsound.com
Dear Maccalan, There is an wide choice from Reed L (www.turntables.lt) of 10" and 12" tonearms: Reed 3Q,Reed 2P,Reed 2A. All with different armtube wood. Ask Mike where you can get them in the USA.
The Schick arm is by far the favorite choice amongst my customers for the OMA slate plinths for the 301 and 401.
I've had a very wide variety of arms requested for the OMA plinths for the 301, including Schroeder's, Da Vinci, and TriPlanar, but the Schick is definitely the most requested.
Disclaimer- I sell the Schick in North America, and make slate plinths for the Garrards.
Back in the days when the 301 was in production , the SME 3012 seemed to be the arm chosen by audiophiles. With the actual resurgence of interest towards the 301 we must consider the huge evolution of tonearms and cartridges,and the new tonearms like the Phantom or Triplanar or even linear trackers give the great vintage turntables a new and fresh recognition. I think that Thomas Shick tests his tonearms with a vintage 301. It is certainly a great deck and deserves the best tonearms. I think that tonearms have made a huge step ahead in the recent years , but we can compare with great vintage as Ortofon or Fidelity Research, but price is close actually... I would consider Linear tonearms like the Terminator...
For the money and sound I recommend the Ortofon 309. I forget which version but I compared it to the Phantom in a very high resolution system. The Orotofon sounded great!. Why waste money when you can get a great arm for less. If you are changing cartridge often then more features come into play, but for set & forget the Ortofon sounded great. Note: I don't own one & will not buy one, but if I had to do it all over I would have.
What about the Stax 12" arms of yore? Is that one any good on a Garrard? I seem to recall that Stax tonearms got good reviews back in the day, but I don't recollect whether that included their 12" offering. I think of it as comparable to the Ortofon, if not the SME.
I'm using a Triplanar on my Lenco these days with great pleasure, but I have not tried any alternatives.
I can give a little info. Whether it's of use???? ..... I have been using a a Tri-Planer with my Garrard (along with a ZYX Universe) with very good results. The turntable is not as quiet as I would like it to be, but it does have a certain magic that makes it a winner for me. Someday I hope to get a new platter/bearing set-up which I hope quiets things down to modern/belt-drive levels (SHindo maybe?).
When I first got started the Garrard project I experimented with a JMW 10. As you might expect the 'Planer sounds much better in all ways. It's true about the amazing bass and rhythmic flow..... Just a really cool TT IMHO.
BTW, I am curious about some of the 12" arms too......
Hi, Thomas Schick's tonearm would be a good choice, but bear in mind that it is heavy, so those cartridges which like a heavy tonearm should be used with it. Thomas is one of the good guys, so I am a bit biased toward his. However, Joseph Esmilla has been experimenting with a heavy brass insert into the wood plinth of old idlers with positive results. The tonearm would be mounted onto the brass. Imagine a pod, but an integrated one, and you have the basic idea. That build method will allow for the use of a wide variety of tonearms without the concern of influence generated by the drive mechanism...just some thoughts.
I use Ortofon RMG 309 after trying SME3012 I think, that the Ortofon is making it more of the dream deck...I have Shindo plinth, plater, bearing and arm board on it.The bass is super!
i will be very interested in any answers as i have just purchased a Garrard 301. since the Garrard 301 is supposed to do fantastic bass; i would expect that a more neutral arm such as the Tri-Planar would be preferrable to.....say....some SME's or the Graham Phantom. i think cartridges would be even more critical. i'm told my Koetsu RSP would be too much of a good thing if installed on the 301.
a related question; does the Garrard like 12" arms more than other tt's?
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