Linear tracking vs. Pivoted tracking tone arms.

Djnorth, Nice web site, great images of the Airtangent.

Glad I included it in my list since you (seem) to be connected to the company. The Airtanget 10B is one of the linear track arms I was referring to, among the six I have owned. A truly beautiful arm.

Puroagave. Agree about the Versa 2.5 and John. He is a brilliant engineer. I did much of the photography for him, including the images of the Red Rollers and Wood Blocks. I too owned this table and doubt that there are more than one or two tables ever built that compete with it. In my opinion they would be the Rockport and Walker. I have heard both, and currently own the Walker.

Many great ways to play an LP, I agree with every suggestion here, especially within the price points each one represents. To vote for the one arm I would own again, should I find there were no linear's to choose from, it would be the Tungsten Graham with Ceramic arm and upgrade cables. A remarkable design, VERY difficult to get perfect, as you can clearly hear differences of one tenth of a gram and azimuth changes that are wrought by resting a red sable brush on the side weights. Well worth the effort when dialed in.

Only caveat, this rig requires a perfect foundation and stand, as changes of a few millimeters in floor shift will cause the unipivot to shift azimuth. This is confusing to hear the sound deteriorate and return (say before and after a rain with pier and beam home), until you learn to sight the turntable in with a level every so often, so the arm is realigned "automatically" rather than spending 45 minutes chasing the adjustment, only to have it off when the foundation moves again.

Hope the comments help those who are trying for perfection in their dial in.

Greetings fellow music lovers and equipment junkies. This is LBO (Lou) following up on all of the wonderful responces to my inquiry on linear tracking arms. I am very greatful to all who responded, even the "devil advocates".
Mr.Porter: Your insight and knowledge in this field is remarkable. The Rockport, Air Tangent, and Eminent Technology are way beyond my price range. I am trying to stay below the "diminishing law of returns" curve in my ultimate selection. The Graham pivotal is impressive and a small engineering marvel. At $2,600.00, less cartridge, it is on my selection list. I had considered purchasing the Clearaudio "Revolution or Solution" tables. Their platter bearing design and AC drive motor are not as robust as the Michell. The Revolution does have a linear arm, but I can not get detailed information on the arm, how it functions, etc., and no one in the Detroit, Mi. area stocks them. Perhaps you can add some additional comments on this table combo. Floor shift is in constant flux in my abode. With 16" centers and 2X8 joists supporting .5" plywood, I am concerned about keeping the Graham in adjustment.
Greggey: Your additional overall insight on belt vs direct drive is understood.
Sean: What in the world are you doing with four tables at one time? Let me know when you want to part with one of the Linear trackers.
Caterham: Thanks for the philisophy, cartridge, and marketing lesson. The Dynavector series was my initial choice for the Rega arm.
Psychicanimal: My Sony is a dead ringer for the Pioneer PL-800, and functions in the same manner. The same design engineers must have worked on both projects during that decade/time period.

Keep the follow ups comming.
Best Regards, Lou

If you decide to sell that PS-X555ES, please let me know.

William Gray

Los Angeles, CA
(626)794-0162
wdgray@yahoo.com

I have also run linear trackers for years. I now run a Triplanar.

IMO, the Triplanar offers a lower tracking angle distortion than most linear trackers due to the fact that most linear trackers have far more lateral tracking mass than their vertical mass.

The cantilever of the cartridge is what the arm has to follow. If your tracking mass is extreme in the lateral mode, the cantilever will flex. If it does that, it becomes the source of the tracking error! If you run a cartridge that has low compliance so you can deal with this problem, the low compliance may be a problem in the vertical mode. The cantilever of the cartridge is quite short- so if you can see it flex at all then the tracking error is considerable.

So a radial tracking arm may well have a lower tracking error!

For this reason if a linear tracker is used, IMO it should be servo controlled rather than some sort of passive air bearing or the like. In this way the lateral and vertical tracking masses can be identical. To my understanding, there are no such arms made right now.

I've got to chime in here. I've been running a Trans-Fi Terminator low pressure air bearing tonearm that is affordable, simple to set up and sounds fantastic. Easily runs with my SME-V which I also love. The music flows so beautifully off the Terminator it is hard to describe. Just sounds so effortless.