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Graham Phantom1, Kuzma Stogi Ref, Naim ARO

Hello Everyone, I am in the final rounds of selecting a tonearm upgrade for my Verdier/SME3012 combination. Somehow I am unable to make up my mind. I have drilled down to these arms as the final short list within my budget of $2k

Naim ARO (used)
Graham Phantom1 (used)
Kuzma Stogi Ref (used)
Rega RB1000 (new)
Fidelity Research FR64 (used)
Scheu Classic
EMT 929

The cartridge I will be using is a Dynavector Karat 17D3. I am not sure how people choose tonearms in general. My TT should be able to host any of these arms well. So it boils down to which tonearm can handle the Karat well I guess. I normally listen to all kinds of music with preference to classic rock so I like my music to be full and lively with good PRAT.

Would really appreciate some input here. I know I still have to buy blind but your inputs will help me big time in at least eliminating few of these from the list.
pani

Showing 2 responses by pani

pani OP
1,214 posts
 
FR64 has always been a mystery to me. Some love it and some dont care about it. I could not find enough internet reviews about it as well to have a clear idea about its sonics. What is it about FR64 ?

Otherwise I am leaning towards Rega 1000 or a Naim ARO, slightly preferring the ARO because of its "musical" reputation. However, the ARO has a fixed headshell and fixed holes, does that mean it can only take certain cartridges ? Can anyone throw some light on this aspect ?
pani OP
1,214 posts
 
Does the equation change if I add the Basis Vector 4 tonearm to the list ?
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