Spacedeck arms conundrum

Hi all,

I have a NAS Spacedeck and am currently using an RB300 with the full OL upgrade shabang and a Koetsu Rosewood Signature on it.

I have been wondering about how much more I could get from the cart if I upgrade the arm and having read earlier threads (Baudrillard's quest for an arm a while ago) it seems that both the AceSpace arm and the Morch UP4 are two good options.

I would like to ask your expert opinion on the following:
a) With my current Rega Armboard can I use any of the two aforementioned arms? If not, what is involved in getting a proper armboard for either of the arms above?

b) Is any of the above mentioned arms better than the other (or is there another better option within that price range) for using with the Koetsu?

Thank you very much for any help!
Jack

 

Jack - say, for example, you were to go for the Spacearm. This simply involves changing the size of the sleeve in the hole on the arm's pod. You'd get one with your new arm, and send (or pass back to the dealer) the old, Rega-sized sleeve back to NAS.

As to choice of arm, I can assure you you wouldn't be at all disappointed with the Spacearm. I went from an OL RB250 (weight and full-re-wire mods only) to the Space and found the improvement not subtle at all; in fact it was one of the very few genuinely jaw-lowering moments I've had in recent times. It was like the turntable had had someone standing on its chest with the Rega-based arm - the Space jsut let the thing breathe.

Is the Space the best you could go for? Hard to say but for the money difficult to deny its great sound. Les at Walrus is a Big Fan of the Morch arms, and I have no real reason to doubt him. They're not cheap though. Don't write-off the Hadcock GH242 aswell of course.

I see you're in London so just give Les at Walrus a ring - I'll bet he says go for the Morch.

Good luck

 

I use an Roksan Artemiz on mine - I think the arm is very underrated as it has some very novel features and sounds very good to me.

First off it has a free hanging counterweight that sits way below the pivot this means it rides warps brilliantly and also avoids any issues with the weight storing energy and so on still a unique feature I believe.

It has what Roksan call "pyramid" bearings that only engage when the record is actually being played. I'm led to believe that this set up gives the benefits of a unipivot as well as those of a gimballed arm - I don't know if its true but I do know that I've used loads of different carts and it's never had a resonance problem of any kind.

It is very well made for sure not the best looking but still you can see it's a quality item.

I really like mine and it fits a rega board. I've seen them on ebay for well under 500 quid left field I know but it's a serious arm and as good as many of the more popular ones.

http://www.roksan.co.uk/pdfs/ArtemizNew01.pdf

 

Thank you both for your help.
I am inclined to go for the AceSpace (Spacearm) as it is from the same stable as the TT (so it must work well with it) and I am upgrading from Rega just as Gromit did, so it should be a similar improvement... But I will look into the Roksan (thanks for the suggestion I had not thought of it!) and Hadcock, Morch as alternatives and give Les a ring at some point. I prefer to buy 2nd hand so I don't like to bother Les when I am unlikely to buy from him... but maybe he has something 2nd hand there...

Does any of you know if one of these is better suited for a Koetsu (which needs a high mass armtube as far as I know).

Thanks again guys!
Jack

 

Jack - I have it on good authority that Tom Fletcher uses a Koetsu in his own turntable. If the combination was a poor one I can't think for a minute that he'd be using it. You're right of course that the Spacearm should be the perfect match so in many ways it's the 'automatic' choice. Also a P-of-P to set up. Effective mass on the Space is around 13g.

I too read Jools' link to the Artemiz arm with great interest - fascinating product. As with the Morch & Hadcock, would certainly like to hear one on a NAS.

 

If you go for the Morch, it will cost you an arm.

 

I often get shot down in flames for saying that I think that NAS arms are cack.

It's experience having played and listened through various NAS arms... space, mentor blah blah- not made up fluff on my part.

Go for the Moerch. Or a Hadcock. Or a Kuzma. Or a VPI arm.

NB - my experience is about 4 years old now. The 'latest' NAS arms may be a world apart - I simply wouldn't know.

By the way, I am no 'NAS hater'.. I have a NAS deck and love it. I just think their arms are the weak point of what they do..

....and 'cack' is too strong, just not as good as the competition, a bit wooly and clouded is better .

 

by the way...

REALLY getting to know the satff at 3 of the better vinyl orientated shops around, it was suprising how many people agreed..

I won't name the shops, it's not fair or right - this is my opinion and it's unfair to drag others in when they've talked to me in a private conversation.

 

Look - FFS will you please stop saying there are better arms out there than the Space!! I'm trying DESPERATELY to fend off the demon on my shoulder which keeps whispering 'Morch Morch Morch' in my earhole.

 

sorry Gromit

and you know, on PFM and ZG my opinion is in the minority regarding the NAS arms - so really it's just a single opinion on here.

Truth be told, with unlimited funds I'd stick a SME V on there and be done.. but I don't feel the need.

Upgraditus is a bitch with fangs..

 

You're not wrong.

Talking of Morch, I see Pete & Les have 'removed' the price* from the Morch page on their website. I don't really like the look of that.

*ie it won't have gone down.

Hadcock still appeals for me though, plus it's a tad more affordable.

 

don't know if this is a good hadcock or not

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Hadcock-GH228...ryZ48648QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

Morch. Or Hadcock, if you don't mind the arm falling to pieces after a while...
S/H Morch UP4s come up fairly regularly on Audiogon - where I gt mine - for around 400 quid NM.
Worth every penny, and an arm that is capable of delivering the full potential of your cartridge.
You will need the approriate (and stupidly expensive) SME mounting adapter, which can be purchased direct from Nottingham if you are in the UK.

 

I had always assumed the Morch arms were a fairly easy fit, and hadn't realised you needed an adaptor for them on a Spacedeck - do you have a picture of the SME adaptor by any chance?

 

Here's the collet on an Interspace HD. Spacedeck is different, maybe easier?



It's a bodge, and an expensive one at that.

 

Thanks, Joel.

It appears from that picture that it might well be a drop in replacement on a Spacedeck, unless the nut on the Morch's mounting pillar is still used (I assume it isn't) or the Morch has an unusually short mounting pillar.

I was considering a UP4 at some point in the future so hoped to be able to get away without any additional expense, other than the arm.

 

Once you get the collet, it is a drop in replacement at least on the Interspace. One problem was the stupid NAS spacers are too high. A quick trip to Akihabara solved that, but it should not have been necessary since I'd had to fork out a hundred quid for a bit of turned metal

 

Slightly off this topic, but has anyone tried out the new Ace Spacedeck, and/or the Ace Space Tonearm yet?

I've got the old (eg 2 years old) versions, but I might upgrade if I can get enough for them on Ebay.

 

Ditto that (my NAS is similar vintage - Feb'05 in fact) - Signals claim the new Spacedeck 'comprehensively trounces' the older model - the arm is a less significant improvement.

 

sniff sniff.... bullshit detector is working overtime ....


god I'm a cynical bugger