Why are modern arms so ugly?


OK.......you're going to say it's subjective and you really looove the look of modern tonearms?
But the great tonearms of the Golden Age are genuinely beautiful in the way that most Ferraris are generally agreed to be beautiful.
Look at the Fidelity Research FR-64s and FR-66s? Look at the SAEC 308 series and the SAEC 407/23? Look at the Micro Seiki MA-505? Even the still audacious Dynavector DV-505/507?
But as an architect who's lifetime has revolved around aesthetics.......I am genuinely offended by the design of most modern arms. And don't give me the old chestnut....'Form follows Function' as a rational for ugliness. These current 'monsters' will never become 'Classics' no matter how many 'rave reviews' they might temporarily assemble.
128x128halcro
I am Shallow. I purchased a Thales Simplicity arm over a Kuzma 4Point mainly because of looks. Glad I am not the only one that shallow.

What do u guys think. The Thales Simplicity. Beauty or Beast? Careful now you may hurt my feelings. Lol
Thales Simplicity arm?.......interesting.
Not ugly......certainly more beautiful than the Kuzma 4 Point.
How does it sound Leicachamp?
Sound quality IS NOT important, according to the premise of this thread. :-)
Dear Halcro, When Marie Antoinette asked her servants why
the people are revolting she got as answer: they have no
bread to eat. Marie was very suprised and asked: but why
they don't eat cookie's instead?
You seem to have as much understandig of 'people' as Marie.
Ie you are professionaly involved in eastethics, have interest in art your 'whole life' and you expect the 'commons' to admire Cobra tonearm?
There is a grammar reason also. If we think as we speak then there is an obvious dominance of 'S is P' (subject-predicate) sentence form. We ascribe some predicate to a given object. Say Mona Lisa is the most beautiful painting
ever made. Ascribing an predicate to a given object is the
same as to know what kind of conditions an object must satisfy in order to decide if the object in casu satisfy the conditions. The 'is' between S and P has 4 different
logical readings one of which is the existence. Ie there is
no much sense in ascribing an predicate to a not existent object. This would mean some quality without a bearer.
Now those 'new objects of art' or 'the shock of the new' as
you put it are obviously never seen before.Ie 'non existent'. So the most of us have no idea what predicate to put on or no idea what kind of conditions this new object
satisfy. The only way out seem to be some comparison with
'the old ,known one'. And there is our dilemma:it looks not similar to anything I know. Those who are educated in art are in a different position because they get the 'feeling' for the art and are able to recognise the 'new beauty' or something 'special' in an new object of art.
We in Holland have Van Gogh museum. The riddle: the most visitors come from Japan. The most of them come to Holland primary because of Van Gogh and, probably, tulips.

Regards,
Halcro,
"As the Moderator here.....'modern' arms which do not advance the art and science of the design....are not of interest."
That rules out the Continuum arms then - there is nothing new there other than the "shape" of the arm tube - which looks like an Art Deco Bakelite Slimline Telephone handle or an overripe banana with frostbite.
Seriously Halcro - there is a total disconnect in aesthetic between the arm pillar, VTA adjusters etc and the arm tube itself. It is the design equivalent of a carbon fiber and glass box stuck on the back of an 1880's wooden villa - and the villa still has nails sticking out of it.
As for fit and finish - as one who has worked extensively in the surgical implant business - it is average.