Mission 774 on a Logic DM 101...advise, possible improvements for the arm ?

[walpurgis]

I mean,,ppl will fall asleep when I post pics of the DM101 later on after that.

Worry not. The DM101 will surprise you. It's a very fine turntable!

[Bigman80]

Just been having a look and the DM101 looks like a very good unit. I like the off board PSU and it seems very well made. I agree with Jez, this combo could work really well together.

Visually I like it too, same kind of grey as the toshiba so a red platter mat and you're arm with orange writing will look just fine.

Can't wait to see it set up. Oh, and yes, Klotz MC5000 is a great match. I had it on mine for ages. Very excellent

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[DSJR]

The DM101 was a good deck, but doomed to failure due to the main competition, which was basically a blue-printed beefed up version of the well established and well loved TD150. The DM101 had to hit the ground running and to me, never quite made it through no real fault of its own - in my opinion.

I haven't read all the posts here, but from experience what lets the Mission 774 arm down is the tacky finish of many early castings and also sticky or notchy bearings, which are exposed, so may need cleaning out. the arm is a low mass jobbie, so to me not really up for a Karma or Troika style of groove-mangler.

One arm I reclkon would go very well if you can find one is an SME 309 (LOVED the troika I used with it and far better than an Ittok and early Ekos).....

[Bigman80]

My experience of the 774 is not as described above.

Finish is neat and tidy, bearings are smooth and solid and it's been fantastic with the plethora of cartridges I've put on it. Mass can easily be added too. Fluid damping also can be altered. I dare say there may be other experiences but mine has been one of pure joy. It's seen off rega arms, and a PU-? Arm too. I'd love to compare it with an Alphasson though.

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[walpurgis]

I haven't read all the posts here, but from experience what lets the Mission 774 arm down is the tacky finish of many early castings and also sticky or notchy bearings, which are exposed, so may need cleaning out. the arm is a low mass jobbie, so to me not really up for a Karma or Troika style of groove-mangler.

I have three 774 arms and none have bearing issues. The finish is perfectly adequate, even if it does not have the 'scientific instrument' look of fancy Japanese arms. Yes, it is a low mass arm, but the fluid damping counteracts that, providing a resistance for the cantilever suspension to work against instead of using mass to do this. Although, as Oliver says, mass can be added if desirable. I've had no end of stiff, low compliance cartridges sounding excellent in this arm.

[torstoi]

Just been having a look and the DM101 looks like a very good unit. I like the off board PSU and it seems very well made. I agree with Jez, this combo could work really well together.

Visually I like it too, same kind of grey as the toshiba so a red platter mat and you're arm with orange writing will look just fine.

Can't wait to see it set up. Oh, and yes, Klotz MC5000 is a great match. I had it on mine for ages. Very excellent

Thanks Oliver.
Mine has no offboard psu though, there have been various versions & mine is an inboard psu type, though the speeds can be electronicly choosen by 2 push buttons.
It's called 'electronic' or the like...and according to what I read up to now also relatively rare.
For now I'll try to get it running with the Mission as it is and see how that turns out.
Then maybe look for an offboard psu solution, but leave the deck untouched optically.

Can I ask detail about where you got or how you made your red suede mat ?
Did you buy the suede in that colour or is it available in that colour...or is it a finished plattermat product.. ?

I received a tip that a 'Vileda' artificial leather window cleaner cloth, cut to plattersize works great with some platters.
Should be the original Vileda, no cheap copy.
According my source there was quite some technological effort in devellopment & it would be relatively expensive from the material alone,
if it weren't produced in such giant numbers for window cleaning.
How to colour it red is beyond me, but maybe they're available in blue instead ?
You may try it if you like, I think I'll try it with the Logic, too.

[Arkless Electronics]

I seem to recall that the 774 has pre-loaded ABEC 9 rated bearings so as good as it gets on that...
It works wonderfully well on a DM101 as I can state from personal experience over many years of hearing my friends front end.

[torstoi]

The DM101 was a good deck, but doomed to failure due to the main competition, which was basically a blue-printed beefed up version of the well established and well loved TD150. The DM101 had to hit the ground running and to me, never quite made it through no real fault of its own - in my opinion.

I haven't read all the posts here, but from experience what lets the Mission 774 arm down is the tacky finish of many early castings and also sticky or notchy bearings, which are exposed, so may need cleaning out. the arm is a low mass jobbie, so to me not really up for a Karma or Troika style of groove-mangler.

One arm I reclkon would go very well if you can find one is an SME 309 (LOVED the troika I used with it and far better than an Ittok and early Ekos).....

Hi David,
yes well, you're basicly right the Mission is not ideal (if used totally undamped via fluid) for a Troika.

I have to create a certain ballance to A)keep the suspension happy by not fitting an arm that is too heavy & would thus compromise the work of the subchassis.
I have no exact measure what 'too heavy' is, so I can only work with an educated guess.
From this point alone, the Mission is making 10 out of 10.

B) would be to keep the cart happy with the arm & here I can work with the fluid damping to make it fit to work,
a little compromise, but an acceptable one.

I appreciate your tip with the SME and still have them on the radar as a probant for trying at some point later.
Do you know where I can look up the absolute total weight of SME arms ?
Someone already suggested an SME IV to me,,,but this one is heavier than the Ekos still & the Ekos according to some voices is too heavy for the DM101 suspension.
Is the 309 a lighter arm from the weight than the SME IV ?

I appreciate your info..loved the Troika and better than Ekos sounds pretty promising,
I'd like to give the LP12 something to chew on for a while..

[Bigman80]

Richard,

I got my platter mat from eBay and after a quick search it seems they aren't on there currently although there are alternatives. I think mine is 4mm thick but the ones on eBay are only 2mm. That may actually help keep the weight down for you.

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[torstoi]

My experience of the 774 is not as described above.

Finish is neat and tidy, bearings are smooth and solid and it's been fantastic with the plethora of cartridges I've put on it. Mass can easily be added too. Fluid damping also can be altered. I dare say there may be other experiences but mine has been one of pure joy. It's seen off rega arms, and a PU-? Arm too. I'd love to compare it with an Alphasson though.

There's actually no need to argue, I think the perspectives are both valid and correct in their own way.
The SMEs are known for their perfection in finish, there's little doubt in that.
I'm fine with the finish of the 774 and in fact I'm aiming at an 'organic total' in the look of the completed deck.
Here, it has to be said that an optically too perfect arm, shiny and spotless would make the deck itself look more like 'just pulled out from the dump' and create a stark contrast.

The bearings will show in practical use soon..if there's any issue, that'll be dealt with.
My guess is they'll be ok but we'll see.
I also think the many good opinions about the 774 have a reason
& that does not mean those about the SME are wrong.

I'll simply keep this SME idea on my radar, maybe there's a chance of an internal shootout at some point ?