Denon DL103

[tlscapital]

I've ordered the shim so the Denon will be on trial fairly soon whilst the Transfig goes away for a possible re-tip. Thanks for the help guys!

If ever you get to love some your DL-103, later you can always try to add up temporary some more mass both on your headshell and counterweight. And hear the difference for yourself maybe. The cartridge/tonearm resonance calculation helps to match cartridges according to their compliance to tonearms according to their effective mass. But only that really. Not further up the possibilities.

For one to trust it's ear is much more significative IMHO. For example, gradually I have increased the effective mass of my tonearm to meet the low compliance of my DL-102 (no manufacturer's specs given there) and done this resonance calculation only last to see where it would put my ears preferences. If I was in the ball park at 8 Hz and later closer to 10 Hz I did hear the difference.

[alphaGT]

I recall seeing a kit at Music Direct, that consisted of several cartridge screws. They came in various materials, from nylon, to brass, aluminum and stainless steel. And each had a set with small screw heads, and another with very large, knurled screw heads. Maybe akin to placing a penny on the headshell? But, from the reviews I read people were very pleased at how they were able to tweak their sound to their liking. And, it was around $50 or less, guessing from memory. I’ve been saying I was going to buy this kit for years now, but haven’t gotten around to it.

Russell

[guero]

Well, I have fitted the Denon without the shim (it hasn’t arrived yet). I have been quite surprised at how decent it sounds considering it is brand new. It does lose out on some subtlety to the Spirit but I don’t think that is unreasonable considering the difference in price between the two. The Denon has a bold quality in my system which I have enjoyed. Once the shim arrives I will see what difference it makes. My MC phono in the Audiolab 8000C seems a good match for the Denon in practice but I will get the chance to mess about with a 1:10 ratio SUT and the MM stage soon.
All good fun!

[guero]

Well the shim arrived but I need some longer bolts so being impatient I popped a small bit of blutac on top of the headshell and attached the shim. The counterweight is hanging right off the back to get me close to 2.5g and that can’t give the best results. Just going to have a listen now and see how it has changed the sound. I might have to invest in a heavier counterweight or mod the one I have.
All very good fun. It didn’t sound half bad without the shim tbh.