which phono stage for dl103?

[Marco]

Hi Jim,

Marco suggested the AT-PEQ20 and I have never heard of it but would like to get some info on it before ordering the Bugle.

I have replied regarding this on your thread in the welcome area

Marco.

[GeorgeO]

Hello all-
Lot's of great advice on the site for getting the best from the DL-103. I just bought a DL-103SA, have an EAR834P enroute and am leaning toward the Bob's Devices Cinemag SUT. I'm really looking forward to it.

So, I understand the "more mass is better" concept for the DL-103, and the AT headshells look like a great option. But I would assume that at some point, depending on the tonearm, you could overweight the arm and start moving in the wrong direction.

With that in mind, what would be an optimum total headshell weight to shoot for (headshell/cartridge/spacer/screws, etc) when using the DL-103SA on a TT like the Technics SL-1100A with stock EPA-110 tonearm? I haven't been able to find exact specs on this arm, but others here have advised that it's a medium to high mass arm.

Thanks for any advice you can offer-

[DSJR]

I should still add that even though over-massing the arm can be good if the cantilever assembly is well damped, the basic compliance of the 103's isn't that low, which makes me wonder if there's something else in play. Using an 18 gramme shell is going to take the arm-cart resonance down to warp frequencies (and a springy sub-chassis ought to be avoided I feel).

Anyway, good luck to all prospective and actual 103 owners.


P.S. WHY does this stuff have to be so expensive? The prices seem to have increased by at least 50% in the last ten years or so, yet relative wages haven't IMO. The Dynavector 10XV was £225 IIRC when introduced and now it's £300. The 20 series has gone from £300 to nearly £500 and the 17D's (which I always liked a lot although the OC9 is probably easily as good) are now several hundred quid. The currency situation can't account for all of this, can it?

Rant over

[Chris]

If the Hagerman Piccolo is anything to go by, I´d go for the Bugle for MCs and its own power supply instead of batteries. I use one with my Piccolo fixed at max gain (26dB) and it is totally silent. Of course I use a Troika and not a 103.
P.S. Experiment with the load impedance resistors - when I fitted Schinkohs, things got a lot better.

[vencel]

Hello Marco,

I've seen your suggestion about the Denon DL-103 pickup.
I am also planning to buy a Denon DL-103 but the "R" version and I am looking for a suitable headshell for it. I am using an SME 3009 II (non improved) tonearm and would like to ask you opinion which headshell should I but for this combination?
Also which bias and rider weights should I use with this?

Regarding the SUT for the Denon first I was planning to buy a vintage Siemens T41 transformer but after reading some posts here I decided and ordered the Haufe transformers.

I would really appreciate your kind help,
László

[pure sound]

P.S. WHY does this stuff have to be so expensive? The prices seem to have increased by at least 50% in the last ten years or so, yet relative wages haven't IMO. The Dynavector 10XV was £225 IIRC when introduced and now it's £300. The 20 series has gone from £300 to nearly £500 and the 17D's (which I always liked a lot although the OC9 is probably easily as good) are now several hundred quid. The currency situation can't account for all of this, can it?

Rant over

From a high of 250 Yen to the pound in mid 2007 its now trading at about half that ie 128 Yen to the pound, so no surprise that the costs of Japanese goods have doubled recently