Unable to achieve setup perfection with the Ikeda 407

iaxel

Well-Known Member
Oct 25, 2016
390
185
173
Iaxel,

What didn’t you like about the Raven GT that caused you to replace it with the AF3?
Nothing :), just the upgraditis bug ;)
Anyway, in total the AF3 is a much better table (the issue with the Ikeda existed on the Raven GT as well, but I had the Raven 10.5 as an alternative). I’m also looking to add an additional tonearm to the AF3, yet to have decided which...
 

Uk Paul

Member Sponsor
Sep 27, 2012
516
183
955
UK
Thanks. The distortion is mot consistent across the whole lp side, and it’s not across the same frequency. It’s just at extremely difficult passages (where most tables and arms fail) that the problem resides.

Iaxel, what headshell are you using? And, is the sound excellent between complex passages? It could be that the resonance produced by the cantilever isn't being damped by the body/headshell/arm. Assuming the union between arm and cart is sound, maybe it is worth trying a damping pad / layer / isolator in between cart and shell?
 

jcarr

Well-Known Member
Mar 24, 2012
52
30
913
Tokyo
www.lyraaudio.com
Due to the nature of the elastomer materials used in cartridge dampers, temperature and humidity can have a decided effect on performance, including tracking. You may wish to contact your cartridge manufacturers to get their recommendations for optimal operating conditions.

In my experience, many listening rooms in North America and Europe are too cold. I often recommend placing an incandescent lamp near the tonearm, so that it can provide localized heating as well as better visibility.

Lyra's recommendations are 22~23 degree Celsius and 57~58% relative humidity. I believe that these are quite standard recommendations across the entire Japanese phono cartridge industry.

hth, jonathan
 

iaxel

Well-Known Member
Oct 25, 2016
390
185
173
Due to the nature of the elastomer materials used in cartridge dampers, temperature and humidity can have a decided effect on performance, including tracking. You may wish to contact your cartridge manufacturers to get their recommendations for optimal operating conditions.

In my experience, many listening rooms in North America and Europe are too cold. I often recommend placing an incandescent lamp near the tonearm, so that it can provide localized heating as well as better visibility.

Lyra's recommendations are 22~23 degree Celsius and 57~58% relative humidity. I believe that these are quite standard recommendations across the entire Japanese phono cartridge industry.

hth, jonathan
Hi Jonathan,

Thanks for the reply.
I live in the Middle East and the (inside) temperatures are usually around the numbers you mention.
 

iaxel

Well-Known Member
Oct 25, 2016
390
185
173
Iaxel, what headshell are you using? And, is the sound excellent between complex passages? It could be that the resonance produced by the cantilever isn't being damped by the body/headshell/arm. Assuming the union between arm and cart is sound, maybe it is worth trying a damping pad / layer / isolator in between cart and shell?
I use the Ikeda headshell with the Koetsu and the (much lighter) Oyaide headshell with the ZYX.
The sound between complex passages is, indeed, excellent.
 

iaxel

Well-Known Member
Oct 25, 2016
390
185
173
Float the arm with zero anti-skate so that the stylus is comfortably away from the platter (or use the stylus guard), then if you gently nudge the arm at the cartridge end toward the spindle, it should smoothly and slowly move, gradually coming to a stop. If it stops abruptly, then the bearing is sticking. If this test looks ok then maybe there’s a problem with the internal spring which creates the VTF. To check this, reset the VTF by setting the VTF dial to zero and use the counterweight to unbalance the arm until the correct VTF is achieved. Play some records.
Tried it. The bearing seems to be fine.
Also set the VTF dail to 0 and balanced the arm only with the counterweight.
Unfortunately, this did not have any affect on the end result.
Thanks again for the advice.
 

jsn

VIP/Donor
Jan 8, 2014
40
1
398
Hi iaxel,
From vinyl engine, the it-407 has its own null point setting:
pivot to spindle (mm) 295
effective length (mm) 307
overhang (mm) 12
inner null point (mm) 65.303
outer null point (mm) 110.623
.
You might try to follow the setup an see if it can help.
 

awsmone

Well-Known Member
Apr 6, 2014
1,616
513
435
Canberra Australia
Hi iaxel,
From vinyl engine, the it-407 has its own null point setting:
pivot to spindle (mm) 295
effective length (mm) 307
overhang (mm) 12
inner null point (mm) 65.303
outer null point (mm) 110.623
.
You might try to follow the setup an see if it can help.

Art Dudley in his review of the Ikeda points out to achieve Baerwald alignment you must rotate the cartridge in the head shell by several degrees, makes me think they use Stevenson alignment in the arm

View attachment 38906 36B9F45C-38A6-4CA1-A2ED-03AA23102DF1.jpg
 

byrdparis

Well-Known Member
Nov 24, 2015
427
478
295
Israel
i was aligned my cartridge in Acoustical system Uni din (while remain the 295 p2s distance)
and it works great.
(i was asked Dietrich from A.S about the 407 and that is what he suggested).
 

iaxel

Well-Known Member
Oct 25, 2016
390
185
173
Thanks for the suggestions. I was unable to achieve satisfactory results with the Ikeda 407 and eventually decided to sell it.
Purchased a much better arm IMHO. Tracks better, sounds better - I'm now a happy camper.
 

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