Originally Posted by
walpurgis
Increase the fluid damping on the 774 with a larger paddle or thicker silicone fluid, the bass will improve.
The 774 benefits from a high quality rewire. The cable out to the phono stage can be improved on too. The mid and top will benefit.
NOOOOOO!!!! It's my experience when setting these things up for a living that too much effing damping KILLS this arm, slugging the bass and making the whole thing tuneless - tried on several decks when this arm was new! Lord I set up enough of these damned things and acted as tonearm bearing quality control in the early days as we sold so many, a sizeable number from each batch we had delivered had to be returned due to notchy or sticky bearings - it's a shit rough tat of a thing yet you peeps wank yourselves silly over them today and get all manner of high prices for them when passing them round the community
Seriously, my suggestion for damping on a 774 is the smallest paddle just scraping the surface of the fluid. I like my vinyl musical dynamics free and unfettered you see, not smothered and overly controlled.
YMMV of course today
Other crap to consider - What's yer cartridge wired with? Usually copper and not always PCOCC either! Loading can revive or kill some cartridges too as can low overload margins in some foo phono stages. Are you sure it's the arm - what's your digital like? If this latter isn't right either, then I suspect it's something else in the system myself.
My own experience is that pure silver wires can be very good, but silver plated wires can be scratchy sounding and not pleasant with more assertive equipment...
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