Graham sounds better Wonderful arm great build quality.
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Certainly this thought won't be a revelation, but the cartridge may decide which arm is better. I heard for instance that Miyabi is great match w/ the Phantom. I have also seen the Transfiguration/Vector combo used quite a bit. No great shock , as Profundo is the Distributor for both lines. Perhaps Vector or Phantom users could just chime in, and state which cart they use. I will start by saying I use a Jade Platinum on my Vector 3. I like this combo a lot, but have also been curious how a Rosewood Sig Platinum would sound. I believe that the Jade is better in absolute terms, but perhaps the Vector may perform better w/ the much lighter RSP. Jebsmith73, it may help others to know what cartridge you intend to use. |
OK, Right now my setup is: Basis Debut table with Graham Phantom II tonearm. Dynavector XV1s Cartridge, Tara Labs GX phono cable. The Vector 4 tonearm comes complete with is own phono cable (hardwired) system. Is the Vector tonearm cable in the same league as the Tara Labs cable? The Vector 4 would be mounted on my Basis Debut. I hear this is the best match for the table and arm combo. |
Thor phono stage. Filled with Teflon tube sockets, film foil Teflon caps, total rewired with silver plated mill spec copper stranded wire, insulated with Teflon. All resistors replaced with low noise Vishay type. NextGen silver Wbts RCA connectors, Hexfred low noise diodes for the power supply. Silver plated fuse holder w/t Isoclean fuse. Furutech FI09 IEC copper inlet plug. ESR paper treated. Sitting on a fully isolated air shelf. Cable used for Phono to Preamp is a Tara Labs Zero Gold , with HFX. 1960's date code Mullard tubes make in the UK. Revelation Audio Labs A/C Power cord. |
Ebm wrote: "Graham sounds better Wonderful arm great build quality." I've followed some of Ebm's more outrageous proclamations on AGon, but this one takes the giddy biscuit. Completely unhelpful, IMO. I would suggest seeking out in-person comparisons wherever possible, as I did. Both are fine arms. Your ears and tastes will make the decision easy. |
I suggest you contact "Larryi" to get the name of his friend who has both the Vector 3 and a Graham Phantom mounted on his Basis 2500. That way you can get an informed opinion. (Here is a link to the thread in which Larry states his friend prefers the Vector to the Phantom.) Scan down for Larryi's second response Good Luck in your search! |
I have set up both on the same table a Basis Debut Vacuum. As I type, I'm staring at a Debut vacuum right now with a Vector arm on it sitting in my listening room. I also have a close friend with the same cartridge and phonostage I use that has a Phantom Arm on a Basis Debut table. The two arms, once mastered, are really good however different in approach and execution. These are two of about 5 tonearms that I consider to be very well executed functional designs that Ive observed in action that were setup correctly. Given that you already own the Phantom II; my question would be the following. What are you not content with and what are you looking for that you may feel the Vector IV can offer? |
Dre_i, Started with a Phantom I , upgraded to the II. Very nice improvement. With my system NOT powered up, did a needle drop on a spun up record . You can hear the music and vocals coming from the tone arm over two feet away! A musical tonearm that sings. So... on goes the Vector IV to my new arm board . News at 11:00 |
Jebsmith73, I can understand your comment. Besides hearing the cartridge acoustically sing, do you have any issue when listening to music? Is the music lacking in some way? Just an FYI: Some cartridges sing in the groove by design no matter what tonearm they are in. I say this as evidence of groove singing may not be an indication of degraded performance in a particular tonearm. The XV-1s is a very well behaved cartridge in terms of transferring energy to the Tonearm. I'm surprised you could hear music so far away in that arm. Did you have damping fluid in the Phantom? I hope this adjustment is more to your liking. The Vector IV is a very quiet arm. It's not good for adding flavor. So, you will mostly get of the character of the cartridge with little added by the tonearm. Some people dont like this because it takes away some tuneability/character adjustability. It may take you some time to master the arm in terms of getting the most out of it but you should be happy from the first moment you install it given proper setup. Pay close attention to setup. One more note: the XV-1S should not be riding tail down in this arm. Congratulations on adding another tonearm to the fine one you have already. Dre |
I listen to all kinds of music, I will find out more when the Vector 4 is up and running. Just heard the Vector 4 is a much better match for the Debut. Yes, we played with the different levels of damping fluid in the Graham. A little goes a long way , too much and it kills the magic of the tonearm. We played with the VTA on the fly while playing a few recordings. Yes, VTA ended up a bit high in the rear for the best overall sound. Are you using the made up IC that came with your Vector 4? or added your own Phono cable? |
The Vector IV only comes with the single terminated run of cable from cartridge clip to phonostage plug. There is no opportunity to "tune" the phono cartridge-to-phonostage interface with other cables. You have to look elsewhere in the system to make adjustments if that is your desire. Personally I prefer this approach if the cables used are of high quality. I can think of a couple really good arms (Davinci, Talea, Shroeder) that do the same and sound excellent as well. Dre |