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Clearaudio Unify - High or low mass?

Soloist

Soloist

pfm Member
Dear Collective,

After EXTENSIVE research (i.e. I looked at three random pages in an internet search) I've failed to discover what my tonearm is considered to be in terms of mass.

I have an itch to scratch in the form of new cartridge purchase and I'm looking for a good match. I currently have a Troika fitted which is there because that's what I had... Not scientific any way.

Whaddyathink?

Andrew
 
Andrew,

Allegedly rated at an Effective Mass of 9g, your CLEARAUDIO Unify tonearm (I'm assuming the 9" version) would likely be considered a LOW-MEDIUM weight arm.

Having established that, you need to help us further:

Budget? Apart from as little as possible...
MM or MC? No doubt you are set-up already for one or the other...

What turntable do you have, BTW?
 
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Ok. Full details - sorry! It’s an Avid Volvere. Yes, 9” arm and I’m imagining I need to be upwards of £500 to do it justice, happy to tip into four figures if it’s a dream match 😎
 
Very easy, if a faff, to measure EM to a very good degree of accuracy, copied to here from Vinyl Engine, which was copied from elsewhere (many tracking force scales will do the weighing). I measured a Hadcock and got 6-7g, which is very low, and also a figure that is scattered across the www with no mention of source/validity -

Principle: To measure actual tonearm effective mass, all one needs to do is determine the moment of inertia of the tonearm about the pivot, then calculate the equivalent mass required at the effective tonearm length to provide the same moment of inertia, and that mass is then the effective mass of the tonearm.

Step1 The tonearm is a lever balanced about the pivot. The vast majority of mass on one side of the lever is a lump mass in the form of the counterweight. So weigh the counterweight (mass m [kg]) measure the distance from the centre of the balanced counterweight to the pivot with a ruler (r [m]), and then calculate moment of inertia from I=m*r^2 [kgm^2]

Step2 To evaluate MOI of the cartridge side of the tonearm, remove the counterbalance and cartridge (inc mountings), then use a weighing scale to measure the weight W of the tonearm at the headshell end, with the tonearm parallel to the platter. W is half the weight of the cartridge side of the tonearm (less a small bit for the stub - ignore), so the mass Z of the cartridge side of the tonearm Z = 2*W (kgf), and since it is vertical Z is also the mass in kg. The effective length L can either be measured (between stylus tip and pivot) or looked up from published figures for the tonearm. Then calculate moment of inertia from I = Z*(L^2)/3 [kgm^2]

Step 3 Calculate the total moment of inertia I(tot)

I(tot) = [m*(r^2)] + [Z*(L^2)/3] kgm^2

Then effective mass M at effective length L is given by

M*L^2 = [m*(r^2)] + [Z*(L^2)/3] kgm^2

So M = ([m*(r^2)] + [Z*(L^2)/3])/(L^2) kg

which reduces to

M = [m*(r^2/L^2)] + [Z/3] kg

In itself, this is an interesting result. It shows the contribution to effective mass from each side of the tonearm, mostly it comes from the cartridge side. It shows what to vary if one seeks to increase/decrease effective mass, principally the mass of the cartridge side of the tonearm, Z. But some influence is also possible from a heavier counterweight, and in a non-intuitive direction perhaps (heavier = lower M because balancing distance r influences M as power of 2).

For S shaped tonearms, would need to evaluate the MOI differently. Same for tapering mass/length arms. For tubular arms with detachable headshells, MOI of arm and headshell can be evaluated seperately and added together, that is a principle of MOI, contributions of coupled parts can simply be added. The stub is relative low mass and close to the pivot. One could correct, but i think it only makes a few % difference and is OK to ignore. All of these measurements/ calcs are just for tonearm, no cartridge or fixtures fitted. Add the cartridge/fixture mass in the normal way to obtain total effective mass.
 
Soloist said:
Ok. Full details - sorry! It’s an Avid Volvere. Yes, 9” arm and I’m imagining I need to be upwards of £500 to do it justice, happy to tip into four figures if it’s a dream match 😎
Click to expand...

Couple more questions:

How does the deck currently sound?

Is there anything about the sound that you would like to change or improve?

(Cartridges can help do that…)
 
Soloist said:
Dear Collective,

After EXTENSIVE research (i.e. I looked at three random pages in an internet search) I've failed to discover what my tonearm is considered to be in terms of mass.

I have an itch to scratch in the form of new cartridge purchase and I'm looking for a good match. I currently have a Troika fitted which is there because that's what I had... Not scientific any way.

Whaddyathink?

Andrew
Click to expand...
Why don’t you email the guys at Clearaudio and ask.

This guy says 9g
 
Soloist said:
Dear Collective,

After EXTENSIVE research (i.e. I looked at three random pages in an internet search) I've failed to discover what my tonearm is considered to be in terms of mass.

I have an itch to scratch in the form of new cartridge purchase and I'm looking for a good match. I currently have a Troika fitted which is there because that's what I had... Not scientific any way.

Whaddyathink?

Andrew
Click to expand...
I've had Unify and Satisfy carbon and both , if memory serves, were 9 or 9.5gram , as mentioned earlier ask Clearaudio directly they're quick to reply and very helpful.
What cartridge are you looking at?
I've used Ortofon Cadenza- Blue and Bronze which are fairly heavy with compliance 12-15Cu with no issues , Zyx cartridges are quite light so you might need extra SB weight , Benz Ace, Wood SL were fine too - none of the above landed outside recommended resonance range.
 
Personal experience over countless changes - everything sounds 'kin brilliant, until you swap something for something else that better suits you taste/hearing/system/phase of the moon.

Same ol' advice - read around, make a general decision, buy used carefully (if that is a cart', be VERY careful and best to buy here). Sell on at little or no loss if not your thing.
 
Thank you all.
SONDEKNZ said:
Couple more questions:

How does the deck currently sound?

Is there anything about the sound that you would like to change or improve?

(Cartridges can help do that…)
Click to expand...
I think it sounds amazing... It's that age-old question, 'could it be better?' that drives. To be fair, that's a fair assumption on my part that the Troika must be getting to a point in its life.
 
Soloist said:
Thank you all.

I think it sounds amazing... It's that age-old question, 'could it be better?' that drives. To be fair, that's a fair assumption on my part that the Troika must be getting to a point in its life.
Click to expand...

Interesting...

If we believe all of what we have read, your current rig actually has a LOW-MASS arm, mated with a LOW COMPLIANCE cartridge.

And whilst this combo sounds amazing to your ears, on paper, it might be deemed an epic mismatch. Such are the vagaries of the arm/cart matching science.

Conventional wisdom suggests that: -
The LINN Troika would sound much better on a heavier arm; or
The CLEARAUDIO Unify arm would be much happier with a higher compliance cartridge, than the Troika.

Given that it is the Troika that is moving-on, I would be looking at higher-compliance (than the Troika) cartridges for your arm.

If I were in your shoes, I would try...

DYNAVECTOR Karat 17DX: Rated 15cu compliance @ 10Hz, compared to your current Troika 10cu - so more suited to a lighter arm - and within your budget. Its a proven performer.

17dx_45eqdwq0w.png

If you are wanting to spend a lot less, I'd also suggest that you take a look at...

DENON DL-110: Considered to have a Dynamic Compliance of around 14cu @ 10Hz, compared to your current Troika 10cu. Another proven performer, the DL-110 sounds superb on Light-to-Medium arms such as those fitted to the TECHNICS 1200 turntables and the ubiquitous REGA RB300 tonearm family.
In the grooves, it is as quiet as our SHELTER 501/2 - one of the attributes for which this DENON is justifiably legend. Sound-wise, its a stunner with superb bass and plenty of extended detail - but its NOT a forensic detail machine, having an ever-so-slight warmth and fullness that we enjoy.
So, call me a confirmed DENON DL-110 fan-boy!
As an aside, we ONLY got the DL-110 performing its best after 50-hours of break-in, with (very heavy) 100R of Impedance Resistance and with a (light) 1.6g VTF. The 1.6g VTF also bodes well for long-term low-wear on your precious vinyl.
WARNING! The DENON DL-110 sounded dreadful fresh out of the box! 😂 ...and be sure to remove the stylus guard, for best sound!

PB200042.opti.webp
 
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