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Post by Paul Barker on Jul 17, 2016 8:38:39 GMT
I should say that after that visit I'm off to find my Mayware again. I was sidetracked some years back when a guy came into my circle who made air bearing arms. suffice it to say, I'm going back to the Mayware which had nothing that needed
" fixing" about it anyway. I only opted for the rather badly finished air bearing that this individual had started promoting in our small group. But I did criticise it from the start, though I was shouted down. I should have just binned it and gone back to Mayware right then and there. But your own psyche tricks you when you have spent 3 or 4 hundred pounds and everyone else says it is great. Now having heard Steve's Mayware I should have believed myself and gone back to the Mayware right then.
Not that this guy may not have improved his air bearing arm since those days.
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steve
Rank: Trio
Posts: 206 
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Post by steve on Jul 17, 2016 21:29:43 GMT
Yes, the Mayware is a superb bit of kit. To me, it's sad that, back in the day, almost overnight, these types of low mass, low friction tonearms suddenly found themselves "so last year" once the Sondek/ Ittok/Asak hedgemony developed, with the full cooperation of the mags at the time, except for Hi-FiNews, into a full blown marketing assault, that was relentless and ultimately damaging for the industry.
With high compliance, high end, MM cartridges such as the Sonus Blue, Shure V15 and Stanton/Pickering 681EE, coupled with low mass arms such as the SME III and various Hadcocks, Missions, Audio Technicas and Maywares, there was an obvious limit to what could be charged for them. Once these ultra rigid, precision bearing, "zero free play" high mass British tonearms and exotic moving coils from the far east, all but took over the high end, the sky was the limit in terms of the prices they could get away with.
An entire technology, that was highly developed and sophisticated and produced equally sophisticated sound, suddenly found itself high and dry, replaced by uncouth brashness masquerading as a "pacy, rhythmic and exciting" presentation. We entered a world of Brent Spar equipment stands, stupid little speakers, needing 100W to get above a whisper, where the hideously ugly stands were either ten ton fluted column, sand filled, cast things or black, square section spaceframe abominations. Both versions sported fearsome spikes that would pierce your feet and hospitalise you without a seconds hesitation and ugly black minimalist boxes, with wobbly knobs that purported to be amplifiers were regarded as the ultimate.
The whole thing was IMO a disaster for sound quality, a disaster for domestic acceptability and ultimately a total disaster for the mainstream hi-fi industry, particularly in the UK.
When I listen to my vinyl collection, with this sophisticated old technology of idler turntable, low mass unipivot arm and hi-compliance cartridge and hear the superb sound quality produced, I feel like I have found, at last, the proper sound of analogue. It's about as far from the Flat Earth as it's possible to get, which pleases me more than anyone can imagine.
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Post by MartinT on Jul 18, 2016 5:21:51 GMT
I agree with almost everything you say, except that I do like a good moving coil cartridge.
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steve
Rank: Trio
Posts: 206
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Post by steve on Jul 20, 2016 20:43:42 GMT
Here's another one of my son's hacked Lencos; this time with Linn Ekos and Ortofon Kontrapunt.  |
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Post by Paul Barker on Jul 24, 2016 5:50:46 GMT
I agree with almost everything you say, except that I do like a good moving coil cartridge. Ditto, but when I called in at Steve's and heard his set up, I would want for nothing if I had it. But I have been out in the cold over vinyl for a while, so any analogue sounds like an Oasis in a dezert after so long listening to Itunes, Spotify, and dab in the van, my convenience methods. All blown away by the simplest analogue reproduction chains, whether FM tuner, magnetic tape or vinyl. Non of this said to start a tribal war betwixed the mediums. Just to put a context to the opinion about what Steve can demonstrate at home. He like me has his apple tv his itunes, his dac. His present vinyl setub, all be it mm, is beautiful, emotional, musical, enjoyable. I would be perfectly content retired, sat in that environment with the addition of one additional piece a of equipment; a record cleaner. Then I'm done. Yes with you on mm vs mc. But Steve's mm blasts digital out of the race. It does better for my ears than a denon 103. I can't justify the £1,000 plus cartridges I have afforded in the past, so when I do get back into the vinyl fold, I'll probably copy Steve. his cartridge arm combination is the best mm I ever heard, and better than the budget mc at similar cost. |
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Post by MartinT on Jul 24, 2016 7:40:00 GMT
I can't argue with that!
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