DIY Schroeder Tonearm???

[SKR]

Jeffrey,
Thanks for the description of your gears and cabling..One more thing I wanted to know, you got got your Arms wired by Vendenhul 150 silver wires. Do you find these silver VDH wires bright or thin or is it perfect sound you were looking for. How is the body of sound and mids and low frequencies

I was also using Silver bullets RCA plugs , but recently I tried WBT Nextgen Silver RCA plugs model 0102 and these are too good much better then Silver Bullets though a lot more expensive.
SKR

[Jeffrey Davison]

That's a very hard question to answer. It's a bit difficult to use my ears (which at 54 years of age) could be much different than yours. Also everything is system dependant and I am sure that my equipment (like my ears) is, probably safe to say, not identical to yours. In my system with my amps, phonostage, amps speakers etc, with my ears, I find no high end stridency. The lows exploit the lower limits of my 15" open baffle speakers very well indeed. I strive for the most natural sound I can. I strive to get out all things in my system that would tell me I'm listening to a "reproduction". To that end, I believe I have acheived my goals with the project, but then again, nothing is absolutely perfect and I constantly look for ways to improve things.

I have listened to many systems and I can say, I am happy.

There is a saying "If it isn't broken, don't fix it" Well, my system is very far far away from being "broken" and while not trying to "fix" any one problem, I look for ways to make improvements. That comes from trial and error over time. A constantly moving target, not that I am dis-satisfied with any present "percieved" system limitation, it's just my nature to further refine the refinements.

JD

Originally Posted by SKR

Jeffrey,
Thanks for the description of your gears and cabling..One more thing I wanted to know, you got got your Arms wired by Vendenhul 150 silver wires. Do you find these silver VDH wires bright or thin or is it perfect sound you were looking for. How is the body of sound and mids and low frequencies

I was also using Silver bullets RCA plugs , but recently I tried WBT Nextgen Silver RCA plugs model 0102 and these are too good much better then Silver Bullets though a lot more expensive.
SKR

[SKR]

Originally Posted by marekst

SKR,
I never heard the real thing but I made two different Schroeder type tonearms and they both shamed OL Encounter which is much better than Rega300. Silver wire is not necessarily better, it sounds brighter, so it may sound better in systems that need more details, dynamics, excitement, edginess etc. You didn’t specify what you don’t like about Schroeder sound, I suspect your system is too dull for that tonearm. If you want to build a tonearm a bit more dynamic but not shrilling like Regas you could try tensioned string suspended unipivot.

Marek

Hi Marek,
Can you suggest me which Tonearm wires to use as you have made your own arms and you are very happy with them..
Jeffrey is happy with Vendenhul-150 silver wires so I am also considering that for my other tonearm.
But if you have some more options do guide me do let me know. I want very clean and detailed sound but must have good body and soundstage.
As Jeffrey correctly said we audiophile keep looking for improvements.

SKR

Hi Jeffrey thanks for your reply. The reason I am asking you is because I want to change to Vendenhul 150 for my other tonearm and before i do that i want to make sure if you are happy with VDH. Although you did not give a clear judgement but it appears you are pretty happy with your system. Also you have heard a few other systems and still feel very satisfied with yours mean a lot to me.
SKR

[Jeffrey Davison]

When I first got the SME arm that I put on the Thorens, I rewired it at the time, That was 4 years ago. To live with something that long is actually saying I really liked the wire. I liked it so much as to use it my DIY Schroeder.
That's saying something as it is not the least expensive choice.
Next fall, I will have to change the surgical silicone tubing for the air pumps and compressors on my Versa.. funny how 15 years can make rubber stiff and brittle...Even tho i was planning on rewiring with the Cardas Litz it originally cam with, I will again reach into my wallet and go with the VanDenHul without hesitation.

Originally Posted by SKR

Hi Marek,
Can you suggest me which Tonearm wires to use as you have made your own arms and you are very happy with them..
Jeffrey is happy with Vendenhul-150 silver wires so I am also considering that for my other tonearm.
But if you have some more options do guide me do let me know. I want very clean and detailed sound but must have good body and soundstage.
As Jeffrey correctly said we audiophile keep looking for improvements.

SKR

Hi Jeffrey thanks for your reply. The reason I am asking you is because I want to change to Vendenhul 150 for my other tonearm and before i do that i want to make sure if you are happy with VDH. Although you did not give a clear judgement but it appears you are pretty happy with your system. Also you have heard a few other systems and still feel very satisfied with yours mean a lot to me.
SKR

[berlinta]

Hi SKR,
Just to confirm what you heard, - the Soundscape pictures are completely outdated and if you have a No.2 arm with the wiring shown in the picture, I agree with your assessment. At the time I was more or less forced to use it due to pressure from a number of distributors. But 4 years ago, I was able to convince most of them that the current wiring is superior even though it doesn't bear a marketable name. And it comes with Eichmann Silver Bullet plugs, not the cheap Deltron plugs pictured.
All of which isn't supposed to imply that I don't respect what you heard, quite the opposite.

All the best,

Frank

[marekst]

Hi SKR,
“Can you suggest me which Tonearm wires to use”
The answer to that question is simple: silver! I said it sounded brighter (not bright, just brighter) and that’s what your sound needs. Anyway, if you believe that silver changed your Rega into a super hero, nothing else but silver will do for you. Just stay away from solid silver in Teflon insulation one dude was pushing on EBay; it is too stiff for the job.
Which tonearm are we talking about, is it the $2k “poor men” model of Schroeder? Sell it, don’t waist WDH silver on it. If you really want a Schroeder, get the reference model (with silver wire) from your dealer for long term in-home audition and only if you like it, pay for it.

Now if the question is how to get a very clean detailed sound with good body and soundstage …we need more information. What is the rest of your system, what are your speakers? What is the music, how old are you or how high do you hear? You won’t get it clean until you get the room acoustics right; you won’t get it really detailed until you get sensitive speakers. If you’re used to the sound of your system and change one component, the small difference will sound big to you (for a while) but not to others, that’s how the brain works. The trick is to get long term satisfaction. I liked the sound of my Schroeder “clones” but since I don’t like the name, I made my own, original tonearm (not a Schroeder clone) and I am very happy for more than one reason.

Marek

[binspaul]

Hi,

Got my tonearm head shell section and the small screw that goes inside the anti-skating wheel today. I will be going for the final assembly this weekend.

Best regards,
Bins.

[binspaul]

Hello Jeff/Frank,

I would like to know a bit more on the extra wheel that is placed on the counter weight and its functions. I am still not clear on how it can help in adjusting the VTF. Please comment...

Best regards,
Bins.

[Jeffrey Davison]

it offers, well on mine, just a way to very fine tune the VTF without moving the main weight. Once I get very close with the main weight and get the arms' side to side balance where I want it, I can keep it there with the set screw and "dial in the exact VTF with the extra thumbwheel. Also if I change the VTA for a 180gram (or more) record, I won't have to touch the main weight at all, the adjustable brass thubwheel gives me all the weight adjustment I need. Since getting the main weigh is fairly time consuming, the adjustable weight is relatively quick. but... Don't adjust it while playing a record ;^P

JD

Originally Posted by binspaul

Hello Jeff/Frank,

I would like to know a bit more on the extra wheel that is placed on the counter weight and its functions. I am still not clear on how it can help in adjusting the VTF. Please comment...

Best regards,
Bins.

[Renron]

Could a portion of an anti-static electronics bag be used in lieu of the Mumetal under the lower magnet? How about in the arm tube? Mumetal is $$$ stuff!

Just thinking out loud.
Ron