Headshell 'rolling' with the SL-1210

[Marco]

LOL. What are you like?

Hopefully you're now ready for full on

Marco.

[Peter Stockwell]

Hopefully you're now ready for full on

Marco.

Tell you what, tho, with an SL1210, and thus vinyl as primary source, that CD is becoming a secondary source and likely to be superceeded by streaming audio of some kind. Mind you the CD player does sound good at ours, it's just that it doesn't have the same finesse. It has the bones and the scale but just falls short in the darker corners of music. Evelyne doesn't like using the TT, either.

The Sumiko headshell is audibly clearer in the treble than the stock Technics shell. It doesn't change the fundementals and it's certainly not a night and day difference. It cost me £34 with postage.

Value for money ? Probably.

[Marco]

You should definitely look into streaming audio as it has the potential (with a good DAC) to retire your CDX/XPS in the same way as the 1210 retired your Garrard

Regarding your 1210, once you get the KAB mods done it will become a different beast and the game will be raised even further between CD and vinyl. The CDX/XPS is great (I had this combo for a while before getting a CDS2) but your 1210 and a decent music server/computer set-up will elevate your music listening pleasure into a different league.

The Sumiko is a good headshell so it should be an upgrade from the stock Technics one, but you will get a much bigger improvement from the Cardas headshell leads, and certainly the rewiring of the arm, PSU, etc - all those are fundamental to the deck's performance.

If you're bored sometime try stopping the platter from spinning with your finger and feel just how much torque there is present in the 1210's motor (if you've got longer fingernails you might lose one, though!) and then think how those sheer levels of torque slap speed stability into line, and how that might impact on the deck's handling of music...

Marco.

[Peter Stockwell]

You should definitely look into streaming audio as it has the potential (with a good DAC) to retire your CDX/XPS in the same way as the 1210 retired your Garrard

Une chose à la fois. It would take a certain amount of negociation. I use an iPod in the car with ALAC files. In that environnement it's more than adequate. (I also installed some focal speakers, that have me itching to try the uppermarket Focals at home). We sometimes use the iPod for background on the main rig. What I would like to be able to do is get a macBook to access the iTunes library on the main computer. But, contradiction, I also want things to be simple. . . . That's why I bought Naim

So, taking up your remarks in another thread, an integrated amp would be a big step in that direction. However, that would cause a scandal at home because I bought a new 282 in january, I know that wouldn't go down well at all.

I guess the thing to do would be to get the audio streaming one step at a time, starting with an airport express, maybe.

[Steve Toy]

Just think how much that new 282 (very nice that it is) is worth...

[Peter Stockwell]

Just think how much that new 282 (very nice that it is) is worth...

That's true Steve it's worth north of £2k, I think. I bought mine from a dealer in Versailles which was more than UK retail, but in my eyes the guideline prices are what you can get in the UK. Selling it now would cause more trouble than it's worth. Someone I know would ! I may have been "unwise" to buy at full retail, but I wanted the demo in a controlled context, with CDM1Ses, and it was here or nowhere.

In anycase, and this is something I feel I have to come to terms with, ultimately you have to be satisfied somewhere. I think that my system is musically satisfying, brought home to me by a subsequent demo involving CDS3/555PS & Supercap options, and also in comparison with an audiobuddy's CDS3/555PS/552/300 based system. In a Naim context I'd have to spend way too much money to get any improvement that is, arguably, musically better.

That might be the reason people are prepared to spend silly money on Nait 1's and 2's.

I think you'd argue that you get more enjoyment from your bottles, but apart from the curiosity I've getting new gear into the system, I'm also tired of changing it too. (I feel like I have 2 heads ) .

[dmckean]

I ran across this headshell a number a months back:

http://www2.117.ne.jp/~y-s/head-shel...S-1As-eng.html

It looks interesting but probably not the ideal amount of mass for the Denon 103.

[Marco]

It's a nice headshell that, Dave; I've seen it before. Like you say though, not for a 103 unless it was mass-loaded somehow

Marco.

[Peter Stockwell]

When I'm further along with my SL1210 I might try one of these with an AT440 or AT150.

[dmckean]

http://www.oswaldsmillaudio.com/prod...eadshells.html

These headshells look interesting too.

That entire website is pretty interesting.