Does the JMW 10 3D Tonearm work with the Classic 3 turntable? It appears that the azimuth side weights are wider on the 3D arm than the ones on the stock stainless steel arm ( approx 3 and 1/16 inches from side to side on the 3D arm vs 2 and 3/4 inches on the stock stainless steel arm). As a result, the left hand azimuth weight rubs on the VTA tower and does not allow the arm to track properly. Any thoughts or advice to share? What am I doing wrong? Thanks.
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I met this problem before. straight chain fatty acids
I upgraded to a JMW 3D-12 with Reference wire and yes, a new base was needed. I had VPI do their excellent upgrade work. They even voluntarily 'repaired' a couple of very small cosmetic dings to the piano black base. I also added IsoAcoustic feet and placed the turntable on a 4" thick maple wood base. IMHO ranking the improvements from most to least is the tonearm, the feet and then the wood base.
I did not change the location of the base and everything seems to work just great with the 3D arm now that I have the smaller weights installed.
Good to know the shorter weights are available for this application. Is the original arm base for the JMW-Classic 10.5" compatible with the JMW 10 3D arm? If so, does the base have to be moved to accommodate the 3D arm or do they have the same pivot to spindle distance?
I just became the second owner of a Classic 3 with JMW-Classic SS unipivot, and am curious about this upgrade path in the future.
Thanks to you both! I just spoke to VPI and the right-sized weights are on their way to me now. Such a relief to know I am not crazy!
Same thing happened to me and VPI supplied the weights BRF correctly points out. The smaller weights are perfect. I have 2 of these tonearms.
Some of the early Classic 3 tables had this issue, but the good news is that VPI can supply a JMW 3D-10 with shorter azimuth weights to allow the tonearm to clear the vta tower.