wjm@whuxj.UUCP (MITCHELL) (05/30/84)
In reply to Craig Preston's queries:
I don't know how much you want to spend on a turntable/cartridge - based on the
rest of the system, I'm assuming you want to spend about $500 on both and the
comments are based on said assumption.
1) There really isn't that much difference between a good belt drive and a
good direct drive turntable in this price range. A belt drive unit will give
you better isolation between the motor and platter, which is why almost all high
end ($1000+, not including cartridge or arm) units are belt drive ones.
2) As long-time readers of net.audio know, I strongly prefer moving coil
cartridges due to their lower effective mass. The one drawback is that many
of them require a head-amp or transformer (and the standard Hafler 110 preamp
doesn't have a head amp built in - although you can get the DH-112 head-amp
board for $75.00). I'd recommend a high-output moving-coil unit like some of
the Adcoms since they can go straight into a standard phono input.
Another advantage of moving-coil cartridges is that, due to their low inductance
they are insensitive to the capacitance of their load (preamp input + cable
capacitance).
3) As for stylus shape, the best bet is one of the "Hyper-elliptical", "Line-
Trace", or other multi-radial designs. There have been many excellent new
designs in this area in the past few years, due to work that was started for
the (now defunct) CD-4 discrete quadraphonic system, that yield less record wear
and extended high frequency response compared to a "standard" elliptical tip.
4) Meaningful specs: Cartridges - (assuming you go the moving coil route,so
loading requirements aren't critical)
Frequency response is most important here
Both - there are a number of mechanical specifications
including mass, compliance, and effective mass
that are important in determining that the
cartridge is matched to the arm, and that the
resonance points are not within the audible range
or where they will be excited by warped records.
Turntable - You don't have to worry too much here, most
modern turntables have quite acceptable
speed accuracy, wow/flutter, and noise specs.
I'd pick the turntable based on its features
(automatic/manual, degree of automation, etc)
and feel for the controls rather than for
specs. One caveat, in this price range AVOID
linear tracking units - they tend to be
trouble prone due to their mechanical
complexity and your $$ are better spent on a
good conventional arm.
Arm - In general, the longer the pivot distance the less
distortion. Look for low friction pivots here.
Also, make sure the arm is matched to the cartridge.
General Advice: Don't let the dealer give you a package with an "El Cheapo"
cartrige included. There are several test records that you can bring with you
to help evaluate the units.
1) The Shure "Audio Obsticle Course" will evaluate the tracking ability of a
cartridge
2) The Telarc "Omnidisk" contains pink noise bands for frequency response tests
tones for resonance tests, and separation measurement materials.
It also contains some tracking test material.
Unless you have considerable experience in this area, let the dealer set up
the unit for you. Setting up phono cartridges is a bit tricky and a royal pain
in the #%^$*&.
In response to your other questions:
1) I have both a DH-110 preamp and DH-220 power amp and are very pleased with
them. They are an excellent value and you can save even more by building the
kits, which are quite simple to put together (especially the power amp).
2) 16 gauge is the smallest speaker wire I'd use with the DH-220 and then only
for very short runs on 8 ohm speakers. 14 or 12 gauge is to be preferred.
Monster Cable is somewhat better (I put it in when I got my new speakers) but
may not be cost-effective. "Stereo Review's" testing found no difference
between it and heavy gauge cord. It should give you better treble response,
since it is designed to minimize skin effect.
3) Frankly, I'm very wary of any H-K equipment. H-K is a company that comes
out with innovative circuits, but there's one catch - sometimes they don't work.
Personally, I'd stick to Nak decks, since Nak's budget models would complement
your system nicely and provide solid reliable performance for the price.
4) Although I haven't personally heard them, Stax headphones have received
good reviews in the hi-fi mags.
Regards,
Bill Mitchell (whuxj!wjm)tynor@uiucuxc.UUCP (05/31/84)
#R:whuxj:-25200:uiucuxc:18500029:000:750 uiucuxc!tynor May 30 22:13:00 1984 Re: H/K decks... I currently own an H/K 400XM. I think it sounds much better (less metallic) than the Nak LX-3. Stereo Review just reviewed the new CD-491... they liked it a whole bunch (said it performed as well as decks costing twice as much...) A caveat about Nak. If you are thinking of making tapes for your car, or for a friend, be forewarned! Nak uses a different equilization curve than all other manufacturers. Tapes made on a Nak will sound dull on another brand. Likewise tapes recorded on another brand sound a bit zingy on the Nak. Steve Tynor ihnp4!uiucdcs!uiucuxc!tynor University of Illinois Champagne(?)-Urbana P.S. I agree on your choice of power amp. (Hafler DH220) Can't find a better amp for the money.
peters@cubsvax.UUCP (06/04/84)
I once saw a reply to the accusation that Nak uses a different equalization
than anyone else, written by a Nakamichi engineer. (It was in one of the
audio mags a few yrs back.) He said, as I recall, that Nak uses what
everyone else uses now... but they used it before anyone else did. In other
words, what Nak was using 6 or 7 yrs ago has now become the industry standard.
{philabs,cmcl2!rocky2}!cubsvax!peters Dr. Peter S. Shenkin
Dept of Biol. Sci.; Columbia Univ.; New York, N. Y. 10027; 212-280-5517