Refurbish Fidelity Research Tonearms

@chakster no big secret as far as I'm concerned. I looked up the invoice of Robert Graetke of Analog Tube Audio, which amounts to €559,15 including tax and shipping. This quote was for a complete overhaul of my 64S (#051198), including new pure silver wiring (diameter 0.20 mm). Obviously the bulk of this total was labour cost (6 hours of work). In the process he also refreshed the grease of the dynamic balance spring. However, two years after the fact the VTF dial has become increasingly difficult to operate again. It's a common issue usually contributed to aging, but my experience now suggests a design flaw or else a problem with my sample. Either way I've found that static balancing sounds slightly better, so I stopped using it altogether. By contrast the dial of my 64FX has always been very smooth as well as more accurate.

Great! Thanks for clarification @edgewear

I’m not sure about the above video?
does it look like a finger is rubbing on the first clip?
also, why are comments turned off?
just curious....

If the cover over VTF spring is still attached, use a suction cup to remove it. Also, modern damping grease is available from Nye Lubricants. I used Nyogel 774H5 and am VERY happy with results.

@lewm , "I also think that the advantage of direct wiring from cartridge to phono stage, especially with LOMC cartridges, mainly eliminating connectors in the signal path, outweighs the flexibility in choice of wire made possible by those connectors."

I know someone else that feels exactly the same way. FR arms may be beautifully made but they are archaic. Boat anchor tonearms and low compliance moving coils are a sure recipe for accelerated record and stylus wear. With modern technology, light armatures and rare earth magnets, stiff compliance cartridges should be a thing of the past as well as the heavy arms needed to hold them correctly. As far as audio is concerned I have no desire to relive the past. There is nothing special about it. Technology and wisdom move on. It seems some audiophiles want to spin wax cylinders. Not me. I am for the best sound and I do not care what it takes and I try not to move backwards in that quest. That is what being an audiophile is about, the best sound. The love of music is another issue. 

Given that speakers are low impedance devices especially our ESLs keeping the speaker wire short is at least theoretically beneficial regardless of the amp being used. I have been running my system this way for decades even before balanced inputs became common. I did not like the idea of keeping big class A amps anywhere near low level equipment, just a knee jerk instinct.