Upgrade Tonearm for VPI Aries 3

I have and old HW19 MK4 with the original JMW Memorial 10 arm and DV XX2 MK2. And was unimpressed. The same thoughts as yours went through my mind. I used the Mint LP tractor, digital scale, loading, VTA, phono pre - you name it. In the end I tried a Nordost Frey2 tonearm cable and found some hidden magic in the rig. So I went to Frey2 for the line to main amp and then phono pre to line pre. Each step brought all aspects of the sound up to a new level and now I wouldn't dream of changing it. If my old rig can go to freaking awesome from disappointingly frustrating I'm sure yours can too. I mean, the magic's in there. Finding it is the thing. Just a note here - I have the old Frey to compare to and it's not in the same league as the 2 version, not even close.

Bill

You have a unipivot tonearm that changes azimuth and VTF. A loose counterweight could do that but yours is ok. Does your arm clear the lift when playing? Are the tonearm wires binding between the arm and the connection block? Is the anti-skate ok? Is the cartridge suspension damaged? Is the point on the unipivot damaged? Is your counterweight hitting anything?

My XX2 has close to 200 hours on it now. I have found setting the VTF at 2.0 and the loading at 100 Ohms to be helpful. Sometimes on the same album the sibilance can be fine on some tracks and exaggerated on others, regardless of the tracks location on the disc. Most albums play just fine. I think mixing that hypes the top end is at fault and the XX2 doesn't gloss it over. The sibilance is equal and undistorted in both channels.

Bill

Be careful with the damping fluid. True, removing most of it will liven things up but, at least on my arm, it also affected the treble. Noticeably the sound of cymbals became harsh. I filled the cup until the arm just contacted the fluid and it was not enough. Half a drop more did the trick.

Bill

Abill,

I understand. You may have guessed that I have recently, over the last year actually, added the XX2 and fought with the set-up of the arm to accommodate it. If you can improve the sound by getting the damping fluid correct then by all means do so first. It will help you determine the changes in sound that experimenting with VTA and VTF bring. Through trial and error and repetition I have learned and here is my advice:
Set the loading at 100 Ohms. I found setting it higher to liven things up but sacrifice the ease of audiophile quality for "wow" first impressions that soon become tiring.
Get the azimuth right.
Set the VTF. Some prefer 1.95, others 2.0 2.0 has more heft.
Re-Align the cart if necessary and recheck everything.
Experiment with raising and lowering the arm height. Reset the VTF when you do. It will change.
The correct range of height will be apparent when lowering the arm makes the bass sound slow and your foot stops tapping. Raising the arm picks up the beat and there will be a small range in that area where the magic happens. Raise it too far and the sound feels emotionally bleached (my test).
And lastly, get a good phono cable. I tried the VPI 2 cable with the Discovery wire and it sucked with a capital "S" compared to what I'm using now. As always YMMV.
Good luck. It all sounds easy until you try it for yourself. Sometimes it's what your listening for and sometimes it's what you "feel" that determines the correct setting.

Bill

Abill,

On the VTF - no the extra .05 on the VTF doesn't audibly affect the tracking on my set-up. Within the range of the cart, the consensus seems to be that more VTF actually makes the cart track better. In my experience, mistracking is better cured elsewhere in the set-up process.
My arm has the original factory wiring from the era it was manufactured. It's an original JMW Memorial 10. Nothing special?
Mu vinyl is played by a Dynavector XX2 MKII, VPI HW-19 MKIV with JMW arm, Stand alone motor, VPI digital speed control, Nordost Frey2 phono cable to an ARC PH-7 phono pre, Nordost Frey 2 to an ARF REF-3 pre, Nordost Frey 2 to an Ayre V-5xe, Acoustic Zen Satori Shotgun cables to Vandersteen 3A Sigs.