![]() ![]() The tonearm is a counter-weighted propped cantilevered beam as a structural description…. I am unaware of any such data and until some is provided…it seems presumptuous to base an argument or philosophy on this…□Įnergy transference into the tonearm is more easily understood I believe, as it is a purely structural phenomenon….⏄ If cartridge resonances OUTSIDE of the cartridge body really exist (and if they did I can’t help but think this would indicate information loss?)….they would be easily measurable and the data should be available for all the cartridges in the market place…❓ Many people have mentioned both cartridge resonances and “energy transference” into tonearms over the years….yet no-one (to my knowledge) has provided any scientific data or evidence to support such claims…? Of greater concern and something that is not easy to measure are the secondary arm and cartridge resonances that are excited by the energy put back into the arm.An interesting point Viridian…and one that I’ve been wrestling with over five years or so….□ The best match for ANY cartridge ever made….is simply the very best tonearm you can afford…whatever its Effective Mass…□ This Resonant Frequency has ZERO affect on the sound quality of a particular tonearm/cartridge combination and I have proved it hundreds of times with a dozen different arms and over 40 cartridges. Yet these days….everyone (without exception it seems)…even tonearm and cartridge designers….happily follow the dictum of this Arm/Cartridge MATCH as if it affected sound quality….❓ I have three out of a thousand or so……and have NEVER experienced miss-tracking or hum even on these three…❗️□ So how many badly WARPED record do you possess…❓ For instance if your tonearm/cartridge Resonant Frequency was 18Hz and you had an organ record or one containing synthesised bass going down to 16Hz….your tonearm may miss-track or you MAY develop a hum❓□ This simply insures against the possibility of any ultra low-level frequency information which MAY be on the record, also inducing this same miss-tracking or hum. Keeping the lower limits of your tonearm/cartridge Resonant Frequency to 8Hz simply insures against this possibility.□ The raison d’etre of this Resonant Frequency…is to avoid WARPED records inducing ‘resonance’ into the tonearm….īut doesn’t it have any meaning for NORMAL records…❓Ī badly warped record induces the tonearm to rise and fall rapidly on the ‘sprung’ cantilever of the cartridge.ĭepending on the severity and frequency of this warping….a subsonic frequency between 2-5Hz is induced so if your tonearm/cartridge Resonant Frequency dips into this frequency range….it will begin resonating and thus miss-track and/or induce hum through your system.□ The RECOMMENDED Resonant Frequency of any tonearm/cartridge combination is between 8-12Hz.īut WHY is this the recommended frequency and WHAT does it really mean…? The Resonant Frequency can be calculated using a complex formula relating Tonearm Effective Mass to the cartridge’s Compliance….or it can be simply measured using a Test record of various frequency sweeps. Over the last 10 years or so…this topic has become not only ubiquitous, but has mutated beyond its definition, to THE guiding principle of matching cartridge to tonearm….❓❗️□ ![]() When I began my journey in high-end audio 36 years ago….no-one ever wrote about arm and cartridge matching nor tonearm resonant frequency…? ![]()
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