Hi Axel,
the resonance calculator is fine and will work fine AS LONG AS IT DOES NOT DEAL with cartridges of extra heavy weight and/or on tonearms with extra long (10 - 12" ) effective length.
Why?
Because the extra heavy body is on the extreme end of the lever and therefor its add up to effective MOVING mass is very high. To calculate this you need more than just that 3-way calculator - you would need the effective length of the tonearm too and the added mass of the cartridge taken into account in relation to its distance to the pivot/bearing point.
As for the trackability of low compliance cartridges.
Most better samples SPU's and almost all FR-7-series cartridges I have heard (about 4 dozens so far) do easily reach the 70 µm and beyond if aligned and balanced perfectly in a well-matched tonearm. The FR-7-series performs usually around 2.5 to 2.7 grams VTF. EMTs the same. The SPUs do range from anywhere between 2.5 the lowest and up to 5 for some of the older style samples.
VTF alone doesn't tell you any story about trackability. High compliance can not go with high VTF - for obvious reasons. But low compliance doesn't nessecarily needs extra high VTF either.
So your general assumptions on the trackability of low compliance carts is wrong.
However - most if not all high ultra-compliance carts are MMs. They are - viewed as a group - better "trackers" than the MC anyway. But for different reasons than compliance.
So - the calculator mentioned is fine, as long as you deal with moderate weight cartridges in 9" tonearms. When the total length and/or the cartridge mass do increase considerably, it is a different story and the calculation is enhanced by a VERY dynamic factor. Thats why all these calculations fail as soon as you deal with say a Koetsu Onyx or similar.
The crux is the added mass so far away from the bearing point and its immense effect on the effective (NOT static !!) moving mass.
Hope this helps to clarify the point.
Cheers,
Daniel
the resonance calculator is fine and will work fine AS LONG AS IT DOES NOT DEAL with cartridges of extra heavy weight and/or on tonearms with extra long (10 - 12" ) effective length.
Why?
Because the extra heavy body is on the extreme end of the lever and therefor its add up to effective MOVING mass is very high. To calculate this you need more than just that 3-way calculator - you would need the effective length of the tonearm too and the added mass of the cartridge taken into account in relation to its distance to the pivot/bearing point.
As for the trackability of low compliance cartridges.
Most better samples SPU's and almost all FR-7-series cartridges I have heard (about 4 dozens so far) do easily reach the 70 µm and beyond if aligned and balanced perfectly in a well-matched tonearm. The FR-7-series performs usually around 2.5 to 2.7 grams VTF. EMTs the same. The SPUs do range from anywhere between 2.5 the lowest and up to 5 for some of the older style samples.
VTF alone doesn't tell you any story about trackability. High compliance can not go with high VTF - for obvious reasons. But low compliance doesn't nessecarily needs extra high VTF either.
So your general assumptions on the trackability of low compliance carts is wrong.
However - most if not all high ultra-compliance carts are MMs. They are - viewed as a group - better "trackers" than the MC anyway. But for different reasons than compliance.
So - the calculator mentioned is fine, as long as you deal with moderate weight cartridges in 9" tonearms. When the total length and/or the cartridge mass do increase considerably, it is a different story and the calculation is enhanced by a VERY dynamic factor. Thats why all these calculations fail as soon as you deal with say a Koetsu Onyx or similar.
The crux is the added mass so far away from the bearing point and its immense effect on the effective (NOT static !!) moving mass.
Hope this helps to clarify the point.
Cheers,
Daniel