What improvement does a tone arm upgrade bring?

[ClassikFan]

I’ve never really considered this before as I got my Gyro with a Technoarm and have not thought of upgrading but what are the areas that are improved by moving up the arm league. Is an SME V the pinnacle for the Gyro?

 

[lazycat]

Not sure about the SME. But when I've upgraded arms there is just more of everything, in a good way.

Detail, bass and general musical togetherness(pseud ) all improve. I imagine because of a more stable platform for the cartridge.

My Ittok was a great improvement on my LVX, the same goes for my Tabriz vs an AO'd RB300 on my Technics.

 

[kernow]

I’ve never really considered this before as I got my Gyro with a Technoarm and have not thought of upgrading but what are the areas that are improved by moving up the arm league. Is an SME V the pinnacle for the Gyro?

The V and IV aren't wildly different, both a great fit for the gyro too.

 

[hiesteem]

I try and evaluate a turntables primary sound signature. They all have one. Then try and do the same with the tonearms sound signature.
The Gyro and SME do seem to work well together. I hear the Moerch and Audiomod tonearms work well with the Gyro as well.

 

[Lurch]

When I went from the OL Encounter 3C to the Conqueror 3C the difference was far from subtle. The sound just opened up, more space between instruments, bigger deeper soundstage, it was as if the music had slowed down to give me time to hear what was going on. The Techno arm is a good arm at its price point and the SMEs work well with the Gyro but are a bit spendy + you'd need a new armboard. A very good upgrade for sensible money would be either an OL Zephyr, Encounter, or Audiomods 6 which is also very good, + you can continue to use your existing armboard.

 

[DomT]

Another arm to throw into the mix that will work on your armboard is an Audio Note Arm 2. I have the Arm 2/2 model. At the time of purchase my SME dealer suggested that I get the Audio Note arm over the SME because by comparison the SME would sound 'ploddy' and 'matter of fact'.

As mentioned on here before when I had a TW Acustic Raven AC T/T I initially bought it with a Graham Phantom arm and then after several months I exchanged the Phantom for an SME V. I ran with the SME V for several months but I preferred my Audio Note Arm 2/2 to both and so I sold the SME V. (And when I bought my Raven I also compared it to an ORBE with SME V)

All of these arms are different and will work better on some decks more than others. And arms of this calibre are very likely to be a good improvement over what you already have; but will you enjoy the music more? Different people will prefer one arm over another. It's almost impossible to do demos as you need two identical turntables. But if you value fluidity/musicality over slam and detail my view would be to avoid the SME. (I like SME arms on their own decks; and I nearly bought a Model 10/SME IV but not for it's musical fluidity).

Listen to people on here who like the same musical presentation as you. If they say buy an SME then buy one. And if they say avoid then best to look elsewhere. Having said all of that the Technoarm was designed to work well on the Gyro. Why not just buy some more records and don't worry about it?

And the other important thing is that cartridge that you intend to use with the arm as if they don't mate well then that's also a problem.

 

[triumph]

Michell’ but much of my recent activity has been around a Rega. The reason for this is simple enough. The Gyro has been fitted with an SME M2 arm for the last few years but unfortunately, that’s developed a ground issue that is going to be a bit of a pig to fix. Thankfully, the Gyro is fairly adaptable when it comes to arms so today I’ve changed the arm board over to one that follows the old Rega (single hole) mounting pattern and fitted a Vertere SG-1 to it.

The SG-1 the ‘cheaper’ of the two Vertere arms (all things are relative but the big arm is very spendy indeed) and uses a sort of ‘locked unipivot’ bearing and is made from a medley of very nice materials. It would be wrong to say fitting it has been ‘fun’ (it’s still rather fiddly) but it has been fairly hassle free and the results are impressive. I used the SME because it was easy to swap carts on so I was expecting the Vertere to be better but, even so, I’m surprised at how much better it’s already turning out to be.

 

[Rockchild]

There are two arms that I would consider for the Gyro which are ‘affordable’ and give the best performance for your money. Both hand made by experts in their fields
Audiomods series 6
Audio Origami PU7

I’ve had both and in desperation, sold the PU7 to help pay for a divorce. Which was sad but I have the AM on my Gyrodec and it’s like putting the Gyro on steroids and they both show what the deck and cartridge can do.




The Audiomods gives 90% of the PU7 at less than half the price. Sorry to the SME fans but they never really excited me and the costs are getting silly.

 

[ClassikFan]

Thanks for the replies, I have not really considered changing before but as I hav e upgraded practically everything else bar TT & speakers in the past 24 months I was just wondering….. but I think I’m going to go for Don’s suggestion for the time being -

“Having said all of that the Technoarm was designed to work well on the Gyro. Why not just buy some more records and don't worry about it?”

 

[Beobloke]

Last year I moved from an SME309 to a V. I always loved the 309 and still do, and felt sure that it was giving me about 80% of the V's performance.

I soon realised I needed to re-asses that figure to about 65%!

 

[It Cost How Much!?!]

SME IV and V really suit the Gyro, but I would Orbe it first and then upgrade the arm. I am a big fan of Wheaton Tri-planar arms, a step above a V in my view (and I own 3 V's and a IV).

 

[DomT]

Michell’ but much of my recent activity has been around a Rega. The reason for this is simple enough. The Gyro has been fitted with an SME M2 arm for the last few years but unfortunately, that’s developed a ground issue that is going to be a bit of a pig to fix. Thankfully, the Gyro is fairly adaptable when it comes to arms so today I’ve changed the arm board over to one that follows the old Rega (single hole) mounting pattern and fitted a Vertere SG-1 to it.

The SG-1 the ‘cheaper’ of the two Vertere arms (all things are relative but the big arm is very spendy indeed) and uses a sort of ‘locked unipivot’ bearing and is made from a medley of very nice materials. It would be wrong to say fitting it has been ‘fun’ (it’s still rather fiddly) but it has been fairly hassle free and the results are impressive. I used the SME because it was easy to swap carts on so I was expecting the Vertere to be better but, even so, I’m surprised at how much better it’s already turning out to be.

Sounds like an interesting arm. The Audio Note Arm 2 is a 'captured unipivot'. I wonder if there is something special with this type of arm. I will read up on the SG-1.

 

[Rockchild]

Last year I moved from an SME309 to a V. I always loved the 309 and still do, and felt sure that it was giving me about 80% of the V's performance.

I soon realised I needed to re-asses that figure to about 65%!

Come on man! The V is really expensive and I’ve seen some new ones going for 8K!!
We are talking Gyro here and the SME is totally out of the question imo. You know the PU7 and I’ve read many things you have said about it and at 2.5k, it’s much better suited to the Gyro.
It’s all very well saying how good a V is but the whole picture is much more important don’t you think?

 

[Rockchild]

If you really wanted an SME, had this still been available, I would have got this.

Thread 'Mint condition SME Model 10, SME V arm, Dynavector XX2 cartridge - NO LONGER FOR SALE'
https://www.hifiwigwam.com/forum/th...ctor-xx2-cartridge-no-longer-for-sale.103824/

 

[Beobloke]

Come on man! The V is really expensive and I’ve seen some new ones going for 8K!!
We are talking Gyro here and the SME is totally out of the question imo. You know the PU7 and I’ve read many things you have said about it and at 2.5k, it’s much better suited to the Gyro.
It’s all very well saying how good a V is but the whole picture is much more important don’t you think?

No, you've seen Vs being offered at £8k. I would be amazed if any had sold for this!

Also, I didn't say I'd done the upgrade on a Gyro. FWIW I think the sweet spot for the Gyro is the 309. I wouldn't be going for a V in this situation unless an Orbe was underneath it first.

 

[Rockchild]

No, you've seen Vs being offered at £8k. I would be amazed if any had sold for this!

Also, I didn't say I'd done the upgrade on a Gyro. FWIW I think the sweet spot for the Gyro is the 309. I wouldn't be going for a V in this situation unless an Orbe was underneath it first.

So you haven’t read the thread properly before commenting

 

[Beobloke]

So you haven’t read the thread properly before commenting

I have. The first part of the questions was "what are the areas that are improved by moving up the arm league?" and I offered my experience that moving from a 309 to a V made a huge difference.

I did not originally answer the second part of the question as to whether the V was the pinnacle for a Gyro but now I have.

Clue - it was two posts back in case you didn't spot it.

 

[triumph]

Sounds like an interesting arm. The Audio Note Arm 2 is a 'captured unipivot'. I wonder if there is something special with this type of arm. I will read up on the SG-1.

also a unipivot lower cost version of the reference
https://www.stereonet.com/uk/news/v...nce-tonearm-generation-iii-silencer-announced

 

[ClassikFan]

I have had a look at Audiomods site, series 6 does look interesting.

 

[Rockchild]

No, you've seen Vs being offered at £8k. I would be amazed if any had sold for this!

Also, I didn't say I'd done the upgrade on a Gyro. FWIW I think the sweet spot for the Gyro is the 309. I wouldn't be going for a V in this situation unless an Orbe was underneath it first.

So why mention it then. This was specifically regarding arm improvements to the Gyro. SME are nice but wildly over priced and hyped. There are arms that are excellent for the Gyro at a much more affordable price and don’t loose anywhere near what the SME’s do in resale.
Don’t get me wrong, I adore SME engineering and having one for several years, I thought it was ‘the best’ until a light bulb popped up and I said ‘can I get something close to the performance but cheaper’ and the answer was yes.