Hello sq225917,
As I have mentioned previously, the little Canon SD 1000 I borrowed from a friend only records in mono and on top of that, the microphone points directly toward the LP. I frankly do not know how to record the sound from the LP into the video file. My friends and neighbors think my tone arm sounds great. I was adamant in telling them not to praise the sound coming from my tone arm, when they actually did not like it.
I am currently rebuilding a Thorens TD-124 which I had for many years. When that is finished, I'll mount my 1976 SME tone arm onto it so that I can compare the sounds. I have an audiophile acquaintance in Phoenix who agreed to put my tone arm on his VPI turn table to conduct listening tests with his buddies. That will take place before the end of the year.
I will keep conducting tests and keep the forum informed.
Sincerely,
Ralf
As I have mentioned previously, the little Canon SD 1000 I borrowed from a friend only records in mono and on top of that, the microphone points directly toward the LP. I frankly do not know how to record the sound from the LP into the video file. My friends and neighbors think my tone arm sounds great. I was adamant in telling them not to praise the sound coming from my tone arm, when they actually did not like it.
I am currently rebuilding a Thorens TD-124 which I had for many years. When that is finished, I'll mount my 1976 SME tone arm onto it so that I can compare the sounds. I have an audiophile acquaintance in Phoenix who agreed to put my tone arm on his VPI turn table to conduct listening tests with his buddies. That will take place before the end of the year.
I will keep conducting tests and keep the forum informed.
Sincerely,
Ralf
Rocky Mountain Audio Fest 2019
Hello All,
A kind friend of mine in Prescott hired me earlier this year to design and build the tooling to make a special Spring. That job put me into the position to attend the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, as an exhibitor, in Aurora Colorado in September of 2019. If any of you live in or near Aurora, You may be interested to listen to my tone arm. I will be on level 3 in the Colorado Ballroom, marketspace "H". I purchased a pair of Grado headphones and I'll have some LPs in my booth. Listen, and witness the old wives tale of "bearing chatter" disappear in the dustbin of audio history!
Sincerely,
Ralf
Hello All,
A kind friend of mine in Prescott hired me earlier this year to design and build the tooling to make a special Spring. That job put me into the position to attend the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, as an exhibitor, in Aurora Colorado in September of 2019. If any of you live in or near Aurora, You may be interested to listen to my tone arm. I will be on level 3 in the Colorado Ballroom, marketspace "H". I purchased a pair of Grado headphones and I'll have some LPs in my booth. Listen, and witness the old wives tale of "bearing chatter" disappear in the dustbin of audio history!
Sincerely,
Ralf
Ralf hand on my heart this is most fascinating recorded analogue music development I have come across in the last 20 years. My background is engineering and your thought process and ability to turn ideas in to functioning products is up there with the very best. I sincerely hope your tone arm becomes available at some point in the future, kind regards Paul
Ralf
One way that you might get your arm into production is to partner with an established hi fi manufacturer. However, it would have to be one that had a track record of bringing to market products that utilise innovative engineering. One such company is Wilson Benesch based in Sheffield UK. ( They make arms and turntables as well as speakers.) it’s essentially a family business that has collaborated with universities and other R&D institutions to great effect. So not a large corporate that would swat you away like an annoying insect. Might be worth making contact with them?
One way that you might get your arm into production is to partner with an established hi fi manufacturer. However, it would have to be one that had a track record of bringing to market products that utilise innovative engineering. One such company is Wilson Benesch based in Sheffield UK. ( They make arms and turntables as well as speakers.) it’s essentially a family business that has collaborated with universities and other R&D institutions to great effect. So not a large corporate that would swat you away like an annoying insect. Might be worth making contact with them?
I cannot figure out who is going to drop $10k to get this arm that may or may not sound good. No-one has heard it. And unfortunately I doubt anybody will hear it unless Ralph is willing to send a couple out into the wild for influential people to trial.
But then, even at $10k, it is in the upper echelon of arm prices where the great bulk of music enthusiasts do not tread. It's a pity, because I love the design and its ingenuity and the way that it has been a lifelong project for Ralph. Ralph, you have my respect.
In the back of my mind I had a little thought of giving the arm a go at some stage if things got serious with it's production, but that thought has been dashed by the price tag, and my subsequent doubts of whether the project will ever come into production.
Best of luck Ralph. What a great project.
But then, even at $10k, it is in the upper echelon of arm prices where the great bulk of music enthusiasts do not tread. It's a pity, because I love the design and its ingenuity and the way that it has been a lifelong project for Ralph. Ralph, you have my respect.
In the back of my mind I had a little thought of giving the arm a go at some stage if things got serious with it's production, but that thought has been dashed by the price tag, and my subsequent doubts of whether the project will ever come into production.
Best of luck Ralph. What a great project.
General statement
Thanks, everyone, for your replies.
The reason for being late is that, my son lives near Aurora Colorado, and not having seen him for some time, I visited him after the show, stayed for three days and then drove back to Prescott Arizona. I got back to day all fatigued and worn out. But I'll reply to all your posts individually in a day or two.
Sincerely,
Ralf
Thanks, everyone, for your replies.
The reason for being late is that, my son lives near Aurora Colorado, and not having seen him for some time, I visited him after the show, stayed for three days and then drove back to Prescott Arizona. I got back to day all fatigued and worn out. But I'll reply to all your posts individually in a day or two.
Sincerely,
Ralf
a collective reply
Hello Ray K,
My main reason to attend RMAF 2019 was to find a manufacturer for my tonearm. I've done that and the next several weeks or months will tell how that will turn out. I have taken pictures, but before I post them I have to unpack my audio components and set them up again.
Hello Doug Tuthill,
If I am lucky, and the tonearm gets made you might be able to see it closer to home in California at one of the regional shows.
Hello Paul,
Thank you for your kind words. Unlike you, I'm lost for words in the face of that kind of praise.
Hello Direct Driver,
thank you for posting that link.
Hello Studley,
Thank you for reminding me of Wilson Benesch and their quality products. I will establish contact with them after my chaotic return from Colorado returns to normal.
Hello Carlo,
You are an ingenious tonearm designer and your comments are very much appreciated.
Hello tribute,
I kept track of the cost of the final two prototypes with a spread sheet and came in with a cost of just under US $4,000 for the parts I made and all the “off the shelf” parts. All simple parts were made with my single spindle Bridgeport vertical milling machine and a lathe owned by a friend. difficult parts were made on a CNC machine owned by another friend. That cost would come down considerably if the tonearm was made by people working 8 to 5 on much more modern machinery.
Hello acg,
That problem may disappear shortly because I am in contact with a business that expressed an interest in my tonearm.
Hello LPLover,
Absolutely it would be possible. The only prerequisite would be that you can climb a ladder. I built my shop from the profit sharing money I got from my last employer when I retired. When I got to building the stairs to reach my upstairs office, I ran out of money. So, for twelve years I have been climbing that ladder several times per day and I have become very good at it. It will take me a week to reassemble my audio gear after I returned from RMAF 2019. Let me know when you may want to do that.
Hello gigigirl,
My CAD program (The Mechanical Desktop) from Autodesk, will figure that out for me. I still have to find out how to accomplish that. I can do it long hand but it would not be as accurate. Currently my head-shell resonates at 8 Hz and everything sounds great with a Soundsmith moving iron cartridge.
To all a collective sincerely,
Ralf
Hello Ray K,
My main reason to attend RMAF 2019 was to find a manufacturer for my tonearm. I've done that and the next several weeks or months will tell how that will turn out. I have taken pictures, but before I post them I have to unpack my audio components and set them up again.
Hello Doug Tuthill,
If I am lucky, and the tonearm gets made you might be able to see it closer to home in California at one of the regional shows.
Hello Paul,
Thank you for your kind words. Unlike you, I'm lost for words in the face of that kind of praise.
Hello Direct Driver,
thank you for posting that link.
Hello Studley,
Thank you for reminding me of Wilson Benesch and their quality products. I will establish contact with them after my chaotic return from Colorado returns to normal.
Hello Carlo,
You are an ingenious tonearm designer and your comments are very much appreciated.
Hello tribute,
I kept track of the cost of the final two prototypes with a spread sheet and came in with a cost of just under US $4,000 for the parts I made and all the “off the shelf” parts. All simple parts were made with my single spindle Bridgeport vertical milling machine and a lathe owned by a friend. difficult parts were made on a CNC machine owned by another friend. That cost would come down considerably if the tonearm was made by people working 8 to 5 on much more modern machinery.
Hello acg,
That problem may disappear shortly because I am in contact with a business that expressed an interest in my tonearm.
Hello LPLover,
Absolutely it would be possible. The only prerequisite would be that you can climb a ladder. I built my shop from the profit sharing money I got from my last employer when I retired. When I got to building the stairs to reach my upstairs office, I ran out of money. So, for twelve years I have been climbing that ladder several times per day and I have become very good at it. It will take me a week to reassemble my audio gear after I returned from RMAF 2019. Let me know when you may want to do that.
Hello gigigirl,
My CAD program (The Mechanical Desktop) from Autodesk, will figure that out for me. I still have to find out how to accomplish that. I can do it long hand but it would not be as accurate. Currently my head-shell resonates at 8 Hz and everything sounds great with a Soundsmith moving iron cartridge.
To all a collective sincerely,
Ralf
Hi Studley,
You must be psychic! I was about to post.
Around the middle of January I was invited by a European manufacturer of High-End audio components to come and demonstrate my tone arm. I knew that my tone arm was geometrically perfect, but I didn't know how well it sounded. Although my friends, neighbors and family told me it sounded great, none of them are golden ears or audiophiles. They just like music. The owner of the European company brought several audiophile friends and customers to his listening room to audition my tone arm and the consensus was that, it sounded like the high-end product that I meant it to be. Also invited was a well known German analog audio authority which specifically made my day. We spent an entire week listening to various LPs, and swapping numerous phono cartridges back and forth. The various amplifiers, loudspeakers and cables used were brands that I recognized but will never be able to own and even my damaged ears could tell the quality of sound they produced. What was particularly significant to me was that, even though there are five tiny precision ball bearings in the head-shell area, NONE of the various auditioners detected any so called bearing chatter!
The company is thinking of manufacturing my tone arm, both to be included with their own turn table and for after market sales to fit other turn tables.
Things may not go as planned this year because of the corona virus and the cancellation of at least one audio show so far. We'll see.
Coming back from Europe, I did something incredibly stupid to my health and I am just starting to return to normal, hence the delay in posting.
Sincerely,
Ralf
You must be psychic! I was about to post.
Around the middle of January I was invited by a European manufacturer of High-End audio components to come and demonstrate my tone arm. I knew that my tone arm was geometrically perfect, but I didn't know how well it sounded. Although my friends, neighbors and family told me it sounded great, none of them are golden ears or audiophiles. They just like music. The owner of the European company brought several audiophile friends and customers to his listening room to audition my tone arm and the consensus was that, it sounded like the high-end product that I meant it to be. Also invited was a well known German analog audio authority which specifically made my day. We spent an entire week listening to various LPs, and swapping numerous phono cartridges back and forth. The various amplifiers, loudspeakers and cables used were brands that I recognized but will never be able to own and even my damaged ears could tell the quality of sound they produced. What was particularly significant to me was that, even though there are five tiny precision ball bearings in the head-shell area, NONE of the various auditioners detected any so called bearing chatter!
The company is thinking of manufacturing my tone arm, both to be included with their own turn table and for after market sales to fit other turn tables.
Things may not go as planned this year because of the corona virus and the cancellation of at least one audio show so far. We'll see.
Coming back from Europe, I did something incredibly stupid to my health and I am just starting to return to normal, hence the delay in posting.
Sincerely,
Ralf
Hi, Ralf
I wish you the best of luck in getting your beautiful, mechanical, marvel off the ground and into production. Your tonearm is head and heels above any other tonearm I have seen in both precision and function. It has been my distinct honor and pleasure visiting and talking to you at the audio shows. Stay healthy in these unsure times.
Best regards,
Joe
I wish you the best of luck in getting your beautiful, mechanical, marvel off the ground and into production. Your tonearm is head and heels above any other tonearm I have seen in both precision and function. It has been my distinct honor and pleasure visiting and talking to you at the audio shows. Stay healthy in these unsure times.
Best regards,
Joe