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Silly turntable question

(The question, not the TT!)

I'm assembling a turntable setup, slowly over time.
At this point I have an SP-10 with the factory
obsidian plinth/cover. I have a new SME-V for it
that I bought about 6 years ago (I did say slowly). It's
not even set up yet, let alone having been listened to.

Now, I've gotten the idea in my head that I want a 12-inch
arm instead, the SME-312. THAT would mean selling the
obsidian plinth and buying something custom, as well as
buying the new arm.

I'm willing to admit that I must surely have some mental
quirk to want this change, untested.

Even so, I humbly ask you, what could I expect soundwise
if I followed through with this proposed upgrade ?
Subtle improvements ? How subtle ?
Or, should I just be happy with what I have ?

Speakers are DIY custom built, amps are Brystons,
listening room is way too small.

"Do you think I'll be happy ?" What a question.
noslepums
elizabeth
6,726 posts
 
Dreaming about it is always better than doing.

So I say yeah, sell the arm and buy the longer one. THEN sell the plinth and spend a few years finding someone new to make you a custom one.
If you stall long enough, maybe your table will never get finished.
But if it DOES seem like it may near completion, you can always waffle, and buy a second short arm again, then again sell the plinth, and get another new one made to handle BOTH arms..
All this should take at least another seven years..
And once you have a table, two arms and a plinth all assembled, you can spend forever deciding what cartridges you want in your arms.. and what phono preamps to use..
This could take a lifetime if you work hard at waffling.
whart's avatar
whart
1,930 posts
 
But Elizabeth, isn't this part of what we do as hobbyists- consider changes and enjoy the process, from conception to implementation? I didn't read the OP as someone who deserved thrashing for failure to implement after years of kicking around the idea....
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
But Whart, Elizabeth merely stated the truth. The OP has in fact been contemplating without implementing for years.

I have a new SME-V for it that I bought about 6 years ago...
It's not even set up yet, let alone having been listened to...
Now, I've gotten the idea in my head that I want a 12-inch arm instead...
J. R. R. Tolkien wrote a little essay, 'Leaf by Niggle', in which he jauntily thrashed himself for endlessly rewriting favorite tales without ever finishing one. It was his publisher who forced him to complete 'The Lord of the Rings' (more or less). Absent that pressure he never would have. He'd have niggled happily for even more decades amidst his unfinished tales, leaving only fragments that his son eventually assembled into a functioning narrative.

The OP has been niggling happily for at least six years and is niggling still. Perhaps, after more decades have passed, he'll leave behind fragments that his heirs will eventually assemble into a functioning vinyl rig. ;-)
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Peter, the OP is thinking of moving from 9" SME V to 12" SME 312. That's quite different from the move you made and less likely to be a clear step upward. Regardless of length, the 3xx series is not in the same league as the IV/V series.
sarcher30
596 posts
 
Seems silly to me to have something and not even try it before you get something else. It will at least give you more perspective on the differences between the two. I suppose if your SME V in still in the box and has never been used it may be worth more when you sell it.
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