Schroeder Reference Arm


Hi Folks:

The great Peter Lederman of Soundsmith uses this arm on his VPI HRX Turntable.

What was surprising about Peter's rig is that as much as I respect and like the HRX, I always find it's sound slightly clinical; however the addition of the Schroeder arm made the table sound slightly richer and less clinical while blowing my mind with it's dynamics and accuracy. Has anyone else noticed or tried this? I am experienced enough in this hobby to understand that the tonearm and cartridge provide voicing for the system but a tonearm swap on a turntable of this quality surprised me with the overall change it made. It goes without saying that I think the JMW tonearm series made by VPI are excellent.

Best:

D.H.
danhirsh

Showing 4 responses by mikelavigne

quite the heavyweight thread i've just stumbled across here....and entertaining too. :^)

i'm looking forward to hopefully observing the comparison session at RMAF 2010 on Saturday night. (i would expect that the demand for an opportunity to be present will far exceed the space to do so).

i have had all the above mentioned arms (Schroeder Ref SQ, Triplaner VII, and Talea) in-use in my room recently, and currently own and enjoy the Talea. i do share the perspectives of the other Talea owners in this thread on it's comparitive performance; but also look forward to the neutral playing field of set-up by each arm builder to reveal some clarity for enthusiasts that have not had the chance for direct comparisons (and the possibility of new truths being revealed).

i also own a couple of Reed arms and have had the Reed during my time with all these arms and feel strongly that it should also be included in this comparison.

in any case a comparison session such as this should be a great thing....and thanks to those who will put it together.
as an owner of 2 Ortofon A90's and having mounted them on 4 different arms so far with great success including the Talea and Triplaner here's one vote for the A90 as the common choice of cartridge.

i would volunteer to bring one of mine broken in (both around 150 hours so far) for Frank if he cannot find another to use. i know that Joel already owns an A90 as he has had his in my room.

and yes; i'm hoping my offering might get me a seat in the back corner to quietly observe the proceedings.
Frank,

i'll arrive Thursday evening; hopefully that is early enough to do what you need to do. if necessary, i'd consider shipping it to you a few weeks prior. whatever we need to do in the interests of the proper process.
Thom, you are welcome.

i'd like to say i don't consider myself in league with Frank or Joel in judgement of cartridge performance. i also want to point out that i have not spoken to Joel about the use of the A90 for this process and cannot say that he will agree. i in no way speak for him and wanted to clarify that in case any inference might have been taken. his A90 is not yet fully broken in last i spoke to him.

i simply offer my A90 if it helps.