Origin live Silver or VPI JMW-9 Signature

At those prices you would be remiss not looking at a Moerch also (UP4 or DP6).

Enjoy,
Bob

You did not mention the table that this will go...but here are some general comments. So far I have used the VPI JMW 9 and Rega RB300 and RB600, but all the mentioned tonearm have gotten good comments from users.

The JMW-9 signature is a little on the low end of effective mass needed for the Denon DL103R. Adding a 2-3g headshell weight should help. It is a very nice tonearm especially when used with VPI tables. It does have exchangable armwand, although for the signature version they can get expensive.

I would second also the suggestion to look at other arms, Moerch DP-4, Hadcock tonearms, etc. The Moerch is very flexible tonearm, with different effective mass arm tubes available. It can be matched ideally to any cartidge. The Moerch would be my joice for my next table.

Good luck with your search,

Rene

Thank you for the inputs.

I have arranged a privat meeting at a dealer that carries both Origin Live, Moerch and Hadcock tonearms, so hopefully that will help me with my choice.

A Hadcock will probably also prove too light for a Denon 103R. It's great that your dealer can let you compare arms but make sure you audition each arm with the same cartridge, or you're wasting your time.

One thing that seems to get scant attention when talking about the origin live silver is the quality of the bearings. Remember the silver is AFAIK still using the stock RB250 bearings.. The not-very-highly-toleranced stock bearings are not addressed on the OL line until the Encounter. This can have serious repurcussions if you plan on using the arm with high-quality MCs with rigid cantilevers. I'm sure a lot of silver users will disagree and say their arms work brilliantly with high-end-carts, as so they well may. Point is, it seems to be essentially a crap-shoot when it comes to this. As a origin live modified RB250 user, i can testify to the fact that the bearings are not always happy with high energy carts. And the audio results of bearings not able to cope with a cart are not pretty.. This would not be an issue with the morch, higher end regas (600 and up - which could be modified later) and probably not with the hadcock either, being unipivot. This is all IMO, anyway -As always.. try before you buy if you can!