Upgrade: Katalyst or LP12

[Starman]

Hi,
I did get the arm and the kore through Cymbiosis, and he reset the deck. Peter did say that if I felt unhappy, he would swap the arm out of another demo deck. It could be that the records are in need of cleaning as most are okay. However, there are some that are brand new and were sticking on a particular track; maybe its the quality of today's vinyl, it is something that I can live with
The serial number on the arm is 11626.

[beck]

I would like to understand you correctly: What do you mean exactly by "sticking"?

You said that it never happened with your Ittok. That makes me uneasy.....

[Starman]

Sticking?
The record plays a few tracks, then there is a repeat of the same lyric or tune, with a clicking sound, sometimes it will clear itself, or I have to lift the arm and move to another track.
I dont recall this happening before.
Now, it could be dirt on the record

[beck]

That would not be acceptable to me at all. Only if the record was wobbly. Dirt should not be enough to make the arm react like that.
I would make a call to Peter at Cymbiosis describing exactly what is happening and make the trip again. When buying such expensive upgrades it should work flawlessly. Take his word and try another Ekos SE arm if he cannot cure the problem using one of your records.

[lejonklou]

"Most [records] are OK"?

I have never owned a record so dirty that it "sticks". Dirt does not play a part in this, in my experience. I have a few badly scratched records that will stick on some particular point from the centre, but those are at most a handful.

If ALL your records that stick do it at the same distance from the centre, I would start by investigating the arm. Horizontal bearings OK? Arm lift not touching?

[ThomasOK]

"Most [records] are OK"?

I have never owned a record so dirty that it "sticks". Dirt does not play a part in this, in my experience. I have a few badly scratched records that will stick on some particular point from the centre, but those are at most a handful.

If ALL your records that stick do it at the same distance from the centre, I would start by investigating the arm. Horizontal bearings OK? Arm lift not touching?

Definitely +1. Take a close look at the arm lift to make sure the pad is not contacting the bottom of the arm or the edge of the bearing housing while playing a record. This can easily be overlooked when doing a setup as many of the pros hand cue everything. Thinner records will cause the arm to ride slightly lower and could cause it to rub on the cueing platform while thicker records might not have the problem. You definitely shouldn't be getting this problem if the Ittok didn't have it.

[Starman]

Update on sticking issue.
I let a friend who has a Rega 6 turntable borrow the record's that was causing an issue. He was aware of which tracks were at fault. There was no sticking or jumping as he put it.
Peter is coming to my home with another arm; I have also decided to upgrade to MC Krystal and the Urika phono stage.

[beck]

Update on sticking issue.
I let a friend who has a Rega 6 turntable borrow the record's that was causing an issue. He was aware of which tracks were at fault. There was no sticking or jumping as he put it.
Peter is coming to my home with another arm; I have also decided to upgrade to MC Krystal and the Urika phono stage.

Good to hear that it is being taken care of though also quite expensive. :-) Hope it ends well.

[Starman]

Arm now exchanged, Krystal and Urika fitted.
The system sound amazing, so much clarity; no more upgrades for a while. I will be listening to a Kore v Keel spec. deck in the new year.
Thanks for your replies and advice

[ThomasOK]

Glad you have it sorted. That certainly should be quite the musical improvement.