Rega and VPI tonearm owners - READ THIS

I have just spent the past two evenings listening to a wide variety of LP's after installing Express Machining's "The Heavy Weight" counterweight on my Rega RB900 tonearm (which is mounted on a VPI HW-19 Mk 4 turntable, and has a Grado Reference cartridge). I was prepared to be disappointed, thinking that changing the counterweight on the tonearm would be, at best, barely noticeable. Holy mackerel, was I wrong!! This replacement counterweight is the best $80 addition I have ever made to my analog front end -- and if you own a Rega tonearm, you need to buy this gizmo.

The "Heavy Weight" replaces the standard counterweight on the Rega arm, and is also available for the VPI and AudioQuest tonearms. (I can't vouch for what it will do for the VPI or AudioQuest tonearms, but it made a major improvement on my Rega.) The "Heavy Weight" is made with its mounting hole off-center, near the edge, so that the weight hangs below the plane of the tonearm like the counterweight that's mounted on the end of railroad crossing barriers. The counterweight is secured with a set screw, unlike the standard weight on the Rega arm which is held in place by a rubber donut lining the mounting hole. The "Heavy Weight" is even supplied with a hex key that fits the set screw -- nice touch.

Folks, if my experience is representative, I've got to tell you that the improvement provided by this counterweight is NOT subtle. In addition to tightening up the deep bass, the modified tonearm yields better focus, imaging, detail, and the soundstage is deeper in both directions (both in front of the speakers and behind them). I know, I know, that seems like a ridiculous improvement to attribute to a counterweight, but I listened to some 20 LP's that I know VERY well (classical, jazz, vocals, etc.) and it is NOT my imagination. To verify what I was hearing, I put the original Rega counterweight back, did some more listening, and the improvements I had noted with the "Heavy Weight" disappeared.

In addition to the improvements I heard almost immediately, I also noted on further listening that the high frequencies seemed more extended and natural -- particularly cymbals, triangles, and bells, as well as the upper frequencies of violins and brass instruments.

If you own one of the tonearms mentioned, I strongly urge you to buy the Express Machining "Heavy Weight". I feel like I've made a wonderful discovery, and would have been very pleased with this performance at twice the price. It's almost like stepping up a notch in the quality of your cartridge.

The "Heavy Weight" is sold by several retailers. I got mine from "The Elusive Disk", and I think that The Audio Advisor also sells it. Now, stop reading this post, and get online and order one for yourself. I firmly believe that you are going to be very pleasantly surprised.