Sumiko Blackbird Initial Review

[Mr. Lin]

Which cantilever is sagging? And what exactly do you mean by "sagging?"

[pbda]

Great thread; I've been using a Blue Point Special Evo III for a while, and have always wondered what the additional cash would buy to upgrade to the Blackbird.

[MarSanZ]

Originally Posted by Mr. Lin

Which cantilever is sagging? And what exactly do you mean by "sagging?"

The cantilever on the Evo III started to sag/bend to a point where the body was actually was touching the LP during playback. My dealer sent it back to Sumiko for warranty and threw in some nice words. I expect to have it back in a few weeks. I have read a few articles on the web that this has happened from time to time with the open body Sumiko cartridges. I was very careful when setting up the Evo and the Blackbird and used the recommended tracking force, so we will see what Sumiko says, it was only 2 months old.

[Art K.]

Originally Posted by MarkD

I bought a Blackbird a year or so ago to put on my Linn. I've got the Basik Plus tonearm and I couldn't get the Blackbird mounted on it. The position of the mounting points were too far forward so the rear of the cartridge interfered with the pins on the headshell. Had to send it back and ended up with a Dynavector 17D3.

That Dyn ia a great cartridge...you didn't do so bad...lol!

[Mr. Lin]

Originally Posted by MarSanZ

The cantilever on the Evo III started to sag/bend to a point where the body was actually was touching the LP during playback. My dealer sent it back to Sumiko for warranty and threw in some nice words. I expect to have it back in a few weeks. I have read a few articles on the web that this has happened from time to time with the open body Sumiko cartridges. I was very careful when setting up the Evo and the Blackbird and used the recommended tracking force, so we will see what Sumiko says, it was only 2 months old.

OK, that's good, for a second I thought you were telling us that the cantilever on your new Blackbird was sagging, but the tone of your post seemed to cheerful for that to be the case. Well, I'd sure be cheerful if I had a Blackbird! I was about to buy one when I ended up going with the Glider, which was slightly used and much less money because of it. I don't regret it, but I seriously wonder if I'd like the Blackbird better, just based on everyone's descriptions.

[MarSanZ]

Originally Posted by MarkD

I bought a Blackbird a year or so ago to put on my Linn. I've got the Basik Plus tonearm and I couldn't get the Blackbird mounted on it. The position of the mounting points were too far forward so the rear of the cartridge interfered with the pins on the headshell. Had to send it back and ended up with a Dynavector 17D3.

MarkD,

I thought long and hard about the Dynavector DV 20XL .25mV as well, but decided on the Blackbird after reading many reviews. Also, I was already impressed by my Evo III, I felt by sticking with Sumiko and moving up the ladder I couldn't go wrong. I am glad I made the move.

[Mr. Lin]

Originally Posted by MarSanZ

MarkD,

I thought long and hard about the Dynavector DV 20XL .25mV as well, but decided on the Blackbird after reading many reviews. Also, I was already impressed by my Evo III, I felt by sticking with Sumiko and moving up the ladder I couldn't go wrong. I am glad I made the move.

The 20X gets mixed reviews, so you might have made a good decision there.

[MarSanZ]

Originally Posted by markd51

Congrats on the new acquisition! Your sound should get even better at both ends of the spectrum with some more break in time.

You're good to go for awhile, but if you want to extract even better sound from this combination, I highly recommend in time, getting a Mintlp Protractor. www.mintlp.com

Yes, I know my friend, after the new Cartridge, and VPI SDS, you've lightened your bank account a good amount, and with the economy as it is right now, it hurts even more.

You'll find with the Mintlp Protractor, that even the VPI Jig leaves a lot to be desired for getting exacting critical alignment.

After switching from a Turntable Basics Mirror Protractor, which I thought was pretty good, especially for the money, I did note errors in my alignment, both with overhang, and zenith angle.

There is such a thing as "close", and then being "exactly right on" with alignment. Lesser tools only come close, and the Cartridge is never truly correctly aligned. It all boils down to exacting, precise geometry.

The difference in sound the Mintlp tractor made was a very good improvement. From what I understand, Yip has many models of his protractor ready to go on hand, so shipping should be quicker in the case of your VPI Table-Arm. I see he does have them ready to go for the VPI-JMW Arm Combo.

There's not one user over on Audiogon, myself included, who felt the Mintlp Tractor was over-priced, or a waste of money. All who have used this Tool have nothing but high praise, and were 100% satisfied with thier purchase. I cannot say enough good about it, it made a marked improvement to my sound, with better, more solid Bass Response, smoother, purer Mids, and Highs, and just a more "right" sound. Mark

Mark,

I finally got around to getting a Mint LP Protractor, you were spot on with this one! Although it was a lengthy and tedious process, the results were astounding and WELL WORTH IT. The Mint LP protractor allows you to dial in both the inner and outer null points, I mean you are literally splitting atoms here. My over hang was short and the alignment was off compared to the setup using the VPI jig. I highly recommend this tool for setting up any cartridge. Everything just sounds so natural now, music just oozes out without any hint of strain, really smooth, it brought the mids a bit forward (my system needed this), better inner details, quieter backgrounds and tighter more defined bass. All in all a great success!

Thanks for the recommendation.

m

[markd51]

Hello my friend,
Just out of curiosity, I clicked on this revival of this older thread to see what was cooking your end, with the Sumiko Blackbird, and how it was doing?

Little did I know, that it was specifically, a personal response, and a thanks as well to me! :-)

That's fantastic that you got the MintLP Protractor, and that as the rest of us MintLP users have found, the increase of sonic performance, squeezing every last bit from your Cartridge!

The highly critical geometric parameters, adjustment of overhang, proper alignment of the two Null Points, and Cantilever-Stylus Azimuth are so much more precise-accurate with this tool. Yip was a genious, how he made clear areas in the Mirror Overlay for the Null Points, and that the little minute Null alignment lines-grids, (which look like a little two-lane Road through the jeweler's loupe) alleviate-eliminate parallax aiming error of the Cantliever Zenith Angle.

The way I think about this Protractor, or any other for that matter, is that if extreme accuracy isn't at least achieved at the two critical Null Points, (which only two can be with a Pivotal Tonearm), then if these aren't correct, every other point on the LP will be even further misaligned, and incorrect.

I'm very happy you are really now seeing how much killer performance this great Cartidge is giving you!
Enjoy! Mark

[RWFE]

I was wondering how you like the Blackbird after a year? I have a scout with the EVO III and have been using that cartridge for about a year and a half. I keep wanting to upgrade and was going to this month but got socked with a thousand dollars in dental expenses for myself, wife and daughter so I am gonna have to wait longer but was interested in your impressions as you used both.

Thanks,

Richard