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Will all due respect to user510 (and apologies!), here's my candidate for AR pic of the day - a modified Merrill AR ES-1 with Morch UP-4 and Benz Micro Glider H2.
There are more pics below in the Inmate Gallery.
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Follow Ups:
Nice looking rig ndeed. As a former AR owner, I can relate!I do have a question re your selection of the red armwand on teh Moerch. According to published lists, your cartridge (Benz Micro H2) has a compliance of 15 and weighs in at 6.8 grams. This would result in a calculated total arm/carridge resonance (RF) of 11.62 Hz. Acceptable, certainly, but I would think the ideal wand would be the heavier blue, which puts you closer to the arguably ideal RF of 8Hz; here it calculates as 9.21 HZ.
Moerch extra light gr) 0.000015 3.8 6.8 12.62
Moerch light (red) 0.000015 5.7 6.8 11.62
Moerch medium (yellow) 0.000015 7.4 6.8 10.91
Moerch heavy (blue) 0.000015 13.1 6.8 9.21My question then is why the red armwand (I don't have Moerch's own table handy, so I have no idea if he rec'c this one for that cartridge) and, as a follow-up, did you measure the horizontal and vertical resonance using a test disc?
Thanks for your reply,
Thanks for the kind words.As for the red arm, I choose that precisely to get between 11-12hz, which is generally acknowledged to be the target range. 8hz is, IMHO a little low and easily excited by a wobbly rack, footfalls on a suspended floor, etc. being amplified by the sprung 'table. I base this feeling on being able to *watch* the Glider on an old Sumiko MMT bounce and flutter quite noticeably - the resonant frequency of that combo was actually right about 8hz. Of course, YMMV.
With the red tube, the cart is rock-solid and sounds *wonderful*. Incidentally, I found out during later conversations with Herr Moerch that he recommends the red tube for the Glider.
See the link below for the 'official' table.
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Great looking AR, grailer !What's the story with the shelving in your (also great looking) rack ?
Are they a Diy composite ?
Thanks for the compliments! I just finished the rack and am pretty pleased with it.The shelves are DIY Symposium shelves (aluminum/MDF/foam sandwich) from illini_skn's recipe over in the Tweaker's Asylum.
The link below is to the thread about the rack & and its construction.
Eventually, I'll replace half the top with a Neuance or another DIY Symposium shelf, also riding on spikes, for the 'table.
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Sweet!! I love the chrome ring. You have one of the few that has good chrome; I've seen a couple where the chrome peeled off. Mine is black powder coat. Love the arm; George's favorite.Did you add lead to the plinth? Adding 25# to mine made as much of a difference as any single merrill upgrade and put it darn close to the heirloom. Do it.
You can put your table up against almost anything and not make any apologies.
Thanks! I really like the chrome ring too - looks great with the Morch. I didn't know Merrill made black powerdercoat. I suppose it would be less magnetic than the chrome (which can be a problem).Yes, I did add lead to the plinth - not quite 25#, but a fair amount to the inside of the plinth, underside of the metal top plate, and then spray-painted the top of the metal top plate with a decent, thick, crinkle-finish paint. I agree though, the extra damping, especially when the subchassis is kept nice and light, only makes the sound even better.
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Isn't that a great table? I have one as well as a Merrill Heirloom. The Merrills are the best kept secret in high end audio IMO.
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I couldn't agree more - I've heard all sorts of 'tables and while none can compete in the price-vs-performance area, there are very few that can compete in the overall performance regardless of price.Of course, with that last point, it's very likely I'm reaching the point of diminishing returns with my downstream gear too.
IIRC, the main functional differences between a full Merrill AR and the Heirloom are the outboard power supply and sliding weight on the subchassis to adjust spring tension, yes?
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I wish I could say that, Grailer...while the AR Merrills are great tables, the Heirlooms ( the later versions ) are significantly better.
The motor is enclosed in an oil bath which dampens all vibrations & noise, the inner platter is made of a special resin that allows the screw-on clamp to work well, the plinth is so dense with lead that it effectively deals with acoustic feedback & the outboard power supply makes listening to 33s & 45s a breeze, etc, etc. The Heirloom is so dang quiet that half the time I can't tell if it's on. Let me add that the AR Merrills are great turntables. I have kept mine for my second system. I bought my Heirloom from Thom Mackris (great guy) who started the Redpoint & Galibier turntables. He thought very highly of the Merrills too.
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Interesting stuff! Thanks for passing along the info - oddly (or perhaps not), I've stuffed my plinth with lead as well and am pleased with the result. I also updated the motor controller with something like a DIY 'geddon design (courtesy of AR Guy here). I'll end up with an SDS too some day - Thom recently sold his Merrill external power supply, but I had to pass because it's not made for the motor I have.On the inner platter side, I've a friend who's fabricating a thick acrylic inner platter with threaded spindle for a screw-down clamp. The inner platter works with Merrill's outer platter (and therefore periphery ring), so aside from the oil bath on the motor, I'm aiming to get close!
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I still fondly remember an ES-1 I had many years ago. My girlfriend has one now that she loves too.
That's quite a compliment, especially coming from a Nottingham owner now - thanks!
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wood is so lovely. rich and warm..............
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I agree - and the beauty of the Merrill is that it's all acrylic and lead underneath. Ah, the best of both worlds!
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