Nothing like beating the system (no pun ) !!
Arche headshell with London Reference cartridge - fantastic results
I've owned a (Decca) London Reference cartridge for about a year and have found it to be an excellent sounding cartridge. It's really special with an immediate and "real" sound.
My tonearm is an FR66s which has a detachable headshell so this allows very easy interchange of cartidges- resulting in an obsessional (and expensive) fixation with collecting cartidges.
Apart from the London, I've ended up with 2 Koetsus (Jade DC and Urishi Vermilion), an FR7 fz, Zu Denon 103 with ESCO stylus, SPU "classic" and SPU Synergy.
For some time I could never get the Jade to really sing. Switching to an Arche headshell (and some great help and advice from Syntax) really improved things. Moving from Brinkmann La Grange to Balance 2 months ago totally transformed the Jade and really for the first time I could see what the fuss with Koetsu is all about.
However the Balance did not lead to any great improvement in the London. If you read reviews they usually say "sonically brilliant but very fussy about arm and vinyl condition."
That had been my experience. I know little about the science but gather that the lack of cantilever means you are very reliant upon the arm to deal with resonance.
I assumed I was in the right ball-park with the FR66. Before buying the London I specifically discussed this with Brian Wilson (who makes it) and he told me he uses an FR64.
Dont get me wrong - I loved the London from the word go. Once I got used to it I tried it with different headshells. I found the best sound came with a Yamamoto black ebony. This seemed to have a "calming" effect compared to the Orsonic Av1. Speculation here but maybe the wooden headshell had some anti -resonant effect.
Being unable to stop tinkering I took the plunge and went for another Arche. Fitted it to the London (with Aggolos silver wires and Acoustical Systems titanium screws) lowered onto Balance and all expectations were surpassed.
i couldn't believe what a difference (beneficial) I was hearing. The thing was as solid as a rock: It seemed to be far more mechanically relaxed around a full range of vinyl (old/ near knackered/ new). Surface noise and clicks reduced to near Koetsu level.
But best of all, the sound was amazing. It's a cliche but forget the hi-fi descriptions - the sound is just real, in the room.
I listen to a lot of old choral music recorded in big cathedrals and containing spoken voice passages. The voices became totally human and the decay (echo within large venue) literally melted into the farther draw walls.
The organ made my sofa rumble.
As I said I'm not technical and all I can do is report on my own personal experience. However any London Reference owners that might be interested in a way to maximise the performance of this cartridge I would urge to consider this headshell.
The end result ,in my system at least, is nothing short of astonishing.
My tonearm is an FR66s which has a detachable headshell so this allows very easy interchange of cartidges- resulting in an obsessional (and expensive) fixation with collecting cartidges.
Apart from the London, I've ended up with 2 Koetsus (Jade DC and Urishi Vermilion), an FR7 fz, Zu Denon 103 with ESCO stylus, SPU "classic" and SPU Synergy.
For some time I could never get the Jade to really sing. Switching to an Arche headshell (and some great help and advice from Syntax) really improved things. Moving from Brinkmann La Grange to Balance 2 months ago totally transformed the Jade and really for the first time I could see what the fuss with Koetsu is all about.
However the Balance did not lead to any great improvement in the London. If you read reviews they usually say "sonically brilliant but very fussy about arm and vinyl condition."
That had been my experience. I know little about the science but gather that the lack of cantilever means you are very reliant upon the arm to deal with resonance.
I assumed I was in the right ball-park with the FR66. Before buying the London I specifically discussed this with Brian Wilson (who makes it) and he told me he uses an FR64.
Dont get me wrong - I loved the London from the word go. Once I got used to it I tried it with different headshells. I found the best sound came with a Yamamoto black ebony. This seemed to have a "calming" effect compared to the Orsonic Av1. Speculation here but maybe the wooden headshell had some anti -resonant effect.
Being unable to stop tinkering I took the plunge and went for another Arche. Fitted it to the London (with Aggolos silver wires and Acoustical Systems titanium screws) lowered onto Balance and all expectations were surpassed.
i couldn't believe what a difference (beneficial) I was hearing. The thing was as solid as a rock: It seemed to be far more mechanically relaxed around a full range of vinyl (old/ near knackered/ new). Surface noise and clicks reduced to near Koetsu level.
But best of all, the sound was amazing. It's a cliche but forget the hi-fi descriptions - the sound is just real, in the room.
I listen to a lot of old choral music recorded in big cathedrals and containing spoken voice passages. The voices became totally human and the decay (echo within large venue) literally melted into the farther draw walls.
The organ made my sofa rumble.
As I said I'm not technical and all I can do is report on my own personal experience. However any London Reference owners that might be interested in a way to maximise the performance of this cartridge I would urge to consider this headshell.
The end result ,in my system at least, is nothing short of astonishing.