#at440 mla

[audio-luddite]

More listening.

That is the point no?

I had some time with the wife away.  I spun up a few albums.

One of the “you always listen to the same things” albums is “Famous Blue Raincoat”.  Jennifer Warnes singing Leonard Cohen songs.  It is a biggy in the world of audiophiles.  It is also excellent music.  Such a rare combination.

I have two copies of this.  Both sound very fine, but one has a tick on side two, so I got another.  Both are normal original production not the fancy 180 gram reissues.

It is amazing from lots of angles.  Great songs, great performance, great recording.  I have played it dozens or even a hundred times.  No real idea.  Just accept that I know this one.  It is almost certain that all but a few of those plays were using the Signets TK7. The vast majority with were my current electronics, and lots were with my crazy invisible speakers.  I know what this sounds like on my stuff.

And it was different last night.

The differences were not that subtle.  First thing was the mix seemed altered.  Instruments were more or less prominent in specific places. JWs voice was more realistic, and I had never before noticed her breathing.  I could clearly hear every inhalation.  I could separate each background singer and identify when JW was backing herself up. More detail was coming off the plastic.  I was entranced and puzzled.  I always have to know why, knowing I can’t find out, so I end up guessing.

It was different, but was it better? That is a solid I do not know. The change in the mix was bothering me, but I really liked the extra detail in the voice.  My guess is that the cartridge has a slightly different frequency response. Is that the cartridge, or the mount, or the phase of the moon?

This was the AT7v in the generic head shell with a 1 gram lead weight shim.  All those things affect sound.  Most of my listens to this album were with the Signets on a Grace 707 with a carbon fiber shim to suppress vibration. I cannot try the Grace as it is boxed up in the crawlspace.  The TK7 is now in a pretty solid alloy fully adjustable head shell quite different from the Grace 707.

Everything affects everything.

I started to think of those guys doing reviews. All my recent purchases have been reviewed, and I read them. Often they list their equipment, and I have never seen those lists without some compromise or quirk in the chain. Or even a crazy extreme thing that makes you question the judgement or even sanity of a golden ear. One guy had a turntable that costs 6 figures! It is easy to tell the best if you only read the price tag.

I guess where I am at is I can get everything off an album.  The specifics may be different, but if there is a sound there it cannot hide.  I have favorites.  I have things I am familiar and comfortable with.  And I am curious.

Right now I have four cartridges mounted and ready to ride. All are good and recommended in some way. 

One is a price performance thing.  That is the Vessel A3Se at $100.  It is really nice, but it is not as nice as the other three.  I regret buying it.  That is only because I had two that were better by a big margin.  By Better I mean more information off the LP and more complete sound.  I restrain myself in describing the differences in negative terms towards the Vessel.

Two are no longer made so I had a legitimate question about keeping my system operational.  They are the Signets TK7 I am always going on about, and the AT440 Mla.  The first is a honey, but the proper stylus is no longer available.  The second has a mixed reputation and parts are still available for now. They have very similar sound, that I like.

I would like a current production unit if only because it is supported.  Hence the AT7v.  Not too expensive and you know pretty damn good.  The tribe suspects it is a derivative of the Signets in some fashion.  But JW tells me it is different in significant ways.

I bought a Grado Green which I found pretty damn good, but it is now married to another turntable.  That was part of the current production exploration.  I will probably buy one more Grado.  I am tempted by the Timbre Opus 3. It is funky with a wood body. Grado is a very good company, and I really like contrarians like them.  Who needs Moving Coils?  Nobody!

I might sell the Signets to pay for the Grado.  I have two other ATs that sound very much like it.  Maybe someone else would like to try it?  It replaced a Shure V15 iii and was much better if you need a common reference.

[audio-luddite]

Rolled a pickup.

Last night the missus was away so I turned up the volume a bit.

As I was finishing side D of TOTO 40 loops album I had a thought.  The very last song “Africa” had a marimba playing. Its a famous song with lyrics that really are pleasant nonsense as admitted by the band.  The recording is really good.

The Vessel A3SE pulled out all the instruments, but there was something about the marimba. There was something about the “space” being flat and all. I had another cartridge (pickup) sitting right there.

It took about 30 seconds to swap them out and check the tracking force with the cute digital gauge.  So in went the AT 440 Mla.  What would happen?

I just rolled in another pickup.  The Phaser lets me do that.

The 440 was really hot in the Grace 707 and the Sony.  It came alive in the Harman Kardon and here in the Phaser was a bit hot again.  Starting with Emmylou Harris to check the hotness with the hot band, it was a bit bright. (She called her band the HOT Band. Look it up) It sounded familiar very much the AT sound.

I think that the low capacitance of the HK tonearm really helped.  But it was not as bad as before.  Short stubby arms help I guess but maybe the Phaser cables have much higher capacitance?. It may also actually be breaking in.  Probably we are getting close to that 50 hours thing. 

So reacquainted with the 440 I did TOTO side D, last track “Africa.”  It was quite different. The Vessel is $100 USD.  The 440 Mla is $390 USD.  So for about 4 times the price what are the differences?

Well for one the left and right separation of the tracks was more distinct.  Actually it was somewhat rearranged. The Marimba was fairly much to the right side with the vessel and with the 440 it was center right.  As the Phaser is a SLT TT it has nothing to do with skating.  Both carts are on the Ebony wood headshells I got, that I have to shim to get straight so the degree of azimuth may still be off.  It could be that, or something else, but the mixed positions of the various instruments was, I would say better with the 440.

The Marimba was more clear, BUT the tone was less woody.  It is a wood instrument you know.  The guitars were very good as was the bass.  Singers too were just a bit better for no hard reason.

These albums are not the kind that have really deep detail.  Sometimes you hear a singer inhaling or a very subtle microphone pop.  Nothing like that in here. That is not allowed even in Soft Rock.

I put Cowboy Junkies “postcard blues” on for that toe tap bass line and the harmonica and all that subtle detail. Slightly less bass in that, but still very clear, and actually you can place the reverb in the room space.  Trinity Church is a BIG room.  The harmonica was similar.  Great metallic presence and reverb in the room. Margo is a human and she breathes.

The 440 has better space.  On these records it has more defined detail.

I have a FFT real-time analyzer application on my tablet.  It is not a calibrated device, but I look at it. It will show differences.  It showed a different response in the music as similar tracks played.  The 440 was more linear across the spectrum. It appeared to go deeper into the bass.  The Vessel had a slight drop off in the higher midrange and rising again about 2500hz.  The extreme treble also dropped a bit.  Now this is one relative to another hardly an objective test.  It is only a relative result.  But that is what comparisons are.

I would say it is probably the stylus.  The 440 has a high end Microline diamond the Vessel has a medium end elliptical.  For $450 I could by the best Vessel Stylus which may then match the 440.  Who knows? The A3SE is a cheap unit.  It is not 1/4 as good as the 440. Maybe half as good?

I cannot spend days and hours to compare things in excruciating detail.  I just wanted to roll in something else to see what happens.  I should roll in the Signets.  It is the boss cartridge in this house.  I have years of listening experience with it.  It is more money again if you can find one.  The tribe says the closest AT available at LP Gear is the AT 150MLX at almost $800 USD.

Finally I wonder what happened to country music.  Emmylou Harris is country music royalty.  But her music is very bluesy.  Cowboy junkies is the same thing. It is more Blues than anything else, but still country.  Country Music was blues once.  Feeling bad with a twang.  Now its beer and pickup trucks, pretty girls and hats, rock music with a twang.

Things change.  Fashions change. People change.  I like we have documents of what it once was.

[audio-luddite]

More Phaser TT

It is now the boss TT.  I have not assembled the new stereo stand as I need to figure out what to do with this desk and the surprising amount of stuff it has accumulated.  BUT I moved the HK ST5 out of the way and the Phaser just fits in the same area with millimeters to spare.

More backstory.  The Pioneer TT (PL-L1000s) was never sold in North America.  It was flogged everywhere else.  The models you see on this continent are all from US servicemen buying them overseas.  The manuals specifically call them US military models with switches to change the voltage.

Phase linear ordered some with their name printed on it and flogged them on this side of the water as their own.  It is well known the Phaser is IDENTICAL to the respective Pioneers.

The version I have is the second generation.  The motherboard is simpler with a lower part count.  Mechanically the same but the tonearm is carbon fiber!  Hey that was bleeding edge in 1982.  One feature I just noticed is there is a metal weight (ballast) in one corner of the chassis.  That is so the feet all carry the same load.  The HK is definitely heavy on the left side.  So right and SO basic.

Seriously someone should re-engineer the HK ST5 and fix all the chassis flaws.  It is otherwise a damn good machine.  Just not as good as the Pioneer / Phaser.

I listened to more stuff last night.  I may swap the AT7 and the 440Mla just to compare.  The AT7 may be breaking in still, I only have a couple hours on it.  So am I comparing the TT or the Cartridges. Yes both to my confusion.  It is fun though.  I have never had a TT with a swappable head shell.  Way better for playing with stuff.  I need more head shells.

I listened to Paul Simon Graceland.  Brilliant album on 180 gram vinyl.  Multi-tracked to hell, but there is gold in there.  There is a new texture to Mr Simon’s voice.  Ladysmith Black Mamboza is real and big and clear.  The language they sing in has vocal clicks which feel and sound like they are coming from a human’s mouth.  It was like there was a person in front of me clicking their tongue. 

I had to interrupt my fun to help the wife with Itunes digital rat’s maze of a user interface.  Once back I spun up the old Dark Side of the Moon Chestnut.  I have two copies.  One is original 1970s version.  The second is high end 180 gram boutique vinyl.  I played side one of the old one.  Starting with the heartbeat. clocks, woman’s scream and background talking all through to Great Gig in the Sky.  It sounded different.  I think this was the cartridge here.  A lot more detail and depth, but I think it was from a small difference in frequency response. Also the mix felt different with things I recall being more forward now being recessed.  That is something I heard in the new pressing so I should check that one out tonight.

If I swap the cartridges I can see if the carbon fiber arm makes a difference.  I know they suppress vibration.  That may be where the detail is coming from.

I am well aware that there is no such thing as best in this hobby.  Everything is better or worse compared to your favorites and prejudices. I like the way this machine works hands off the delicate bits.  I like it shuts down an puts itself away at the end of a side or lets you repeat the side.  I am fully enamored with Straight line tracking.  Simpler shorter arms more accurate tracking of the disk just the way it was cut and all that.

So do I sell the Sony?  Do I sell the HK at a loss?  Do I do an extended loan to my son-in-law?

I have to get rid of that desk.

[audio-luddite]

Lots of music.

About ten years ago I bought a new bicycle.  It was all carbon fiber and cool and high end.  I had a good bike, but I was going to try to up my game and found a good deal. It was still expensive.

Once I spent the money I rode it a lot.  Not unusual, but it was winter here and the weather is pretty epic for rain and wind.  I was just so enthusiastic I had to ride as much as I could.  The previous year I had gone 3500 km and with the new bike I cleared over 6000 km.  It was partly to justify the money I just spent and partly because it was so much better.

In the last week or so I have been spending hours every day listening to my stereo.  Pulling old albums off the shelf and giving them a spin.  I am really enjoying it.  Reason is I just spent some money on that turntable.  If I ignore it how can I justify it?  Oh and there is that plague thing and being home a lot. Enthusiasm comes from strange places.

So part of this is justifying my money, part is exploring my collection again after a long time, and part is do I notice any differences? 

I have been intrigued by linear tracking turntables for a long time.  They should be better in fundamental ways. That is to do with geometry and how vinyl records are made.  There are other advantages, but there are also flaws and foibles in the complexity of the mechanics.

There are very simple linear tonearms that use air cushions so they are supposed to be “frictionless”.  Nothing is frictionless. Very low drag, but the lateral motion is driven by the teeny tiny cartridge cantilever pushing against the inertia of the arm. Inertia is no big deal if the lateral motion is uniform and steady which it aint.  I prefer some mechanical assistance.  I like the Rabco Solution as it is elegant, very simple, and should be reliable as long as I do nothing stupid.

My #1 system with the Sony and Grace and Signets (all antique) is really good, and was especially good once I got the anti-skate properly adjusted (That was a trick I tell you) and a cork mat for the platter.  The bloody thing just sings. Everything comes in focus and there is joy in the world.

Take that as proof that ant-skate is really critical to get right.  Add to that is the true value of it varies with the friction in the groove which varies with the intensity of the signal and therefore the best you get is close and never perfect.

Linear tracking turntables do not have or need anti-skate cuz they just don't skate.  Therefore logic tells us that this focus thing should be fine always.

I have temporarily retired the Sony.  Mostly it was inconvenience of having the HK set up on a small coffee table in an awkward place.  So all this recent listening has been with the HK.

Small and subtle differences are bubbling up. In Famous Blue Raincoat where Ms Warnes is singing background as well as lead that track is much more clearly apparent and separate.  When L Cohen is sharing lead and background in Joan of Arc those are also much more clear and separate.

The timbre of instruments is different just a wee bit.

I am crediting the turntable rather than the cartridge as the Signet is no slouch. It is supposed to be roughly equal to a few notches above the AT 440 in the current Audio Technica family. The stylus though on the Signet is a modified elliptical rather than the “microline”.  Be that as it may these are interesting differences.

Are there any negatives to the HK.  Yes there are, and I hope they are treatable. This machine dates from a time when they should have known better about sound isolation.  The bearing is mounted on a sheet metal base.  Actually everything is mounted on that. It is fairly hefty, but overall this unit weighs half of what the Sony weighs and sheet metal is sheet metal.  The Platter has less heft than I would like, but it has a fairly thick massive mat.  If you tap the top of the plinth or the lid when closed there is a strong bung sound through the speaker.  The platter runs quiet when you are not tapping stuff and seems well damped.  There is probably a path into the arm by the base plate for sound.  In an ideal world this plate would be thick and heavily damped.

So I am going to add new feet to the beast to replace the old dried out probably once reasonably good damping material on the original feet.  We will see what some Sorbothane will do there.  It may help with the base as well as foot fall sensitivity.  I will probably also try some dynamat or equal underneath the base plate.  That stuff is good at taming sheet metal.

While I play with all this stuff I will run through more records. Everything old is new again.  It is fun.  That actually is the point is it not?