Unipivot vs Linear Tracking

"The spcial soundstage performance on LT is more a result of it's non mechanic grounded bearing that of the LT design".------

I'm going to assume this means what I've been ststing about the lower mechanicl friction of the air bearing design.....something that surely must be a reason for the Schroder's apparent reputation!

Yes,I am more concerned with this attribute,as opposed to a few degrees of tangency!

With all due respect...the arm I had been exposed to(for ten years)was "absolutely" superior to anything else I have heard(including my own choice).,,..

Those folks in my little audio group consistently confirmed this,and have more credability(to me)than some naysayers,who were not lucky enough to be present.

Aside from the more relaxed stage presentation,there is more air/depth/space between instruments/and tonal attributes....

I'd love to see someone owning a well set up Walker,or a Forsell chime in,and state that if they "did" move to a pivot(for whatever reason),they got the impression that the air/linear "arm"(I'm not talking about the table)was NOT missed....

If you haven't lived with one,I understand the doubts(on the argued theory)...that's too bad,because these "instruments" can be a doorway to better analog sound!

Best

Dear Sirspeedy: +++++ " With all due respect...the arm I had been exposed to(for ten years)was "absolutely" superior to anything else I have heard(including my own choice).,,.. " +++++

there could and can be several reasons why is that, one of them is that your music sound reproduction priorities are different from other people ( including me ) other could be that till today you never heard/hear the perfect pivot tonearm/cartridge combination.
Anyway what many of us have is a subjective ( estrictly personal like yours ) opinion and other people have a subjective/objective opinion ( I'm between these ones ).

Anyway IMHO I have to say again that the quality tonearm performance is a summary of many subjects where the tracking error is only one of them, sure it is important but in my whole tonearm experiences ( like I say ) it is only one more subject to take in count: the sum of the parts is the answer.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

i have recently purchased three additional tunrtables, a Technics SP-10 Mk2, an SP-10 Mk3 and a Garrard 301. this is not any commentary on my Rockport; it is a matter of curiosity about all the excitment people are having with these vintage dd tt's when they install them in a modern plinth and add a state-of-the-art arm. i also want to have my other cartridges mounted and ready to play. i am currently contemplating which arms i will use; in any case each arm will be pivoted.

once they are all up an running i may not keep all three (rather the wife may not allow me to).....but i want to hear them for myself.

my agenda was not the linear tracking verses pivoted arm question; and clearly the Rockport and these other tt's will have fundamental differences.....but it should shed more light on the question of this thread too.

personally; i am much more a direct drive (or rim drive) guy than a linear tracking guy and think that properly applied it has more fundamental effect on the music than the arm approach. music fundamentaly is about timing. this comment is not to hijack this thread but more to put it in a bit of context.

Mikelavigne and Raulruegas are the guiding lights here. Technics applied more money, expertise and R&D muscle to the development of the SP-10 series than all modern turntable manufacturers combined will acces during their lifetimes. You have to remember that this was the mighty Matsushita corporation at the peak of their high end audio venture. The SP-10 was subsidized by the sale of millions of mass market turntables. No one will ever sell turntables in those numbers again. I went from a Well-Tempered Reference table to an SP-10 MK II and it was a leap upward in terms of stability, authority and even quiet. And let me say that very few of you currently own a quieter table than that WTT.

Raul's point about set-up is also very strong because the matter of which design is optimal becomes moot unless both comparative units are optimized. While you are amazed that moving your speakers an inch makes a big difference, you must then realize that moving your stylus forward .2 mm or rotating it one degree can make as big a difference. I have a Technics EPA 100 MK II tonearm with a variable dynamic damping system built into it. This allows adjustability in damping of the arm to accommodate a wide range of cartridge compliances. I've noticed that very small changes in my damping adjustment can affect the sound of my system in significant ways. I would guess that no LTT could match the performance of this pivoting arm without a similar damping capability unless the cartridge match was absolutely perfect.

Some while ago I started a thread about the relative merits of belt drive and direct drive. It went on for quite a while and generated some pretty emotional observations and banter. Ultimately nothing was really resolved but the same result became apparent there as what we are seeing here. People seemed to agree that implementation was more important than the fundamental design approach.

Many years ago I had the first version of the ET tonearm and I could use it happily today if it was a little more user friendly and convenient. I knew less then and maybe I'm being naive in my recollections about it but I mention it because I have experience with both. I've also owned the B&O 4004 LT table and a Yamaha PX-2. I don't really have a preference. I am starting to see, however, that a lot of the best products to come along in history were provided by manufacturing giants. Led by reviewers, we have tended to overlook them in favor of home based garage creations with gimmicks , panache or political connections. This old Technics stuff is absolutely killer.

If you have the time and motivation, set aside a long weekend with all the KAB 1200 modification kits and apply them to a factory fresh Technics SL1210MG5 one by one and you will be impressed at the outcome and with the changes of each along the way.