Vertere Reference Tonearm Push the boundaries of analogue reproduction. The state-of-the-art Vertere Reference Tonearm transforms any high-end record playing system. Every part of the Vertere Reference Tonearm has been individually designed and manufactured to overcome the shortcomings of existing tonearms.
Each detail is meticulously engineered and contributes to the excellence of the whole. Performance is enhanced to a level of resolution, clarity, dynamics, timing and sheer power that is normally associated with live music. Horizontal Motion Bearing Assembly & Pillar Sleeve As the cartridge tracks the record it also has to move the tonearm, side to side and up and down. It does this in order to position itself, as closely as possible, on the mean line of the groove.
Failure to do this accurately will result in loss and distortion of the musical signal the cartridge is to extract. To assist the cartridge in this cumbersome task, the reference tonearm utilises a unique bearing design both in the horizontal and vertical planes. Using metal/polymer film provides silent, ultra‐low friction movement of the arm without any stiction. Vertere Reference Tonearm is a true state-of-the-art component, which can transform the performance of high-end record playing systems. The Vertere Reference Tonearm has been created to push the boundaries of analogue reproduction by systematically addressing every aspect of tonearm performance. Each individual component is bespoke and has been specifically designed to complement the overall philosophy, design and purpose of the Vertere Reference Tonearm.
The unique bearing design of the Vertere reference Tonearm provides a noise-free and a stiction-free operation of the tonearm. This achieved by utilising microns thick metal/polymer laminate film acting as the bearing. With this unique configuration there are no rotating or sliding components in the bearings. The arm tube and the head shell are both made of titanium and tight tolerance fitted to each other. Titanium has a property to fuse weld with such tight tolerances making the head-shell and the tube effectively one piece. This maximises rigidity to weight ratio and provides the optimum support for the cartridge. Vertere Reference Tonearm has unique split geometry, where in vertical direction the arm has a longer effective length than that in the horizontal direction.
This split geometry ensures that the cartridge can track very low frequencies cut in mono as well as the higher stereo frequencies with absolutely integrity. The counter weight assembly is fully articulated to regulate tracking weight when the record is warped – even with slightest of up and down movements of the tonearm. Every note is played with life-like dynamics and clarity. Internal wiring is a special version of Vertere Hand-Built Pulse cable, in one continuous run from the cartridge tags to the exit cable connector at the base of the tonearm. All connectors and contacts are custom made with three times the standard thickness of gold plating. Special care has been taken to make sure that the arm will be easy to calibrate and a delight to use. The tonearm cueing light, integrated into the head-shell, is a blessing when playing records as well as being an essential aid when setting up a cartridge.
Basis 2200 turntable w/ Basis Vector Model 4 tonearm.
It discreetly and pleasingly illuminates the record grooves in the area around the stylus contact point, making it easy to cue records precisely without disturbing the mood lighting of your listening room. With its own dedicated power supply, the light may be dimmed or switched off at will. The lift/lower mechanism itself is custom-built from solid stainless steel and has been precision engineered to ensure smooth, firm and accurate cueing.
When it comes to calibration, the Vertere Reference Tonearm is properly engineered to give complete accuracy and certainty in cartridge set-up. Precise setting of VTA is made easy by a fine adjustment screw that’s additional to the main setting of arm pillar height, while the arm mounting also provides for fine adjustment of azimuth. The performance of a record playing system using the Reference Tonearm will be enhanced to a new level of resolution, clarity, dynamics, timing and sheer power that would normally be associated with live music.
Thanks for making such a great product. I can unreservedly recommend it to any enthusiast.' Douglas, from Canada Audiomods on Rega RP3 ' I just recieved my Mint and checked my alignment on my Rega P3 - Audiomods arm. I had been using a printed protractor up until this point. When I checked with the Mint I was off a 1/2 mm. Now, I scoffed and shook my head when I read people heard such a difference when their cart was out by this miniscule amount. Well, I too, have heard this.
The image is sharper, more details are presented, playback is quieter, and you just want to spin more records! ' John, from United States Pro-ject Xperience with stock arm ' I wanted to let you know that the Tractor alignment went great!
I spent a few hours making sure I had everything right, but it was worth it. My new Sumiko Blackbird cartridge sings with a nicely balanced and focused soundstage and with incredible detail - I am listening for hours at a time. I had it aligned originally with the Sumiko Pro-ject tool but the stylus itself was a little too far back towards the pivot and not perfectly in alignment with your marking lines. Now it is within a hair’s width of being perfect.
I would recommend the Tractor to any audiophile or audiophile wanna-be (which I still consider myself to be) – you are my new best friend. I have a second identical Project turntable on a different system with a Sumiko Bluepoint 2 cartridge that I will re-align as soon as I get some time for this. ' Jerome from France Project 8.6 on Project Turntable '. FYI - I bought a Rega cart (Apheta) for my Rega Tab;e and Rega arm. It uses the 3-point Rega system (just 3 screws and you are finished, no alignment necessary).
But a couple of guys on the Vinyl Engine forum recommended the Mint Tractor. It sounds much much better now after proper alignment.'
Ulrich, from Germany 9-series Rega Tonearm on Rega Turntable ' This Upgrade is worth every Penny, wow. Who needs 3D? No more sibilance, Sound is better in every aspect.
Not a little better, much better! A little bit tricky, but worth the effort.
Everyone should do that before thinking about a new cart or so, one will be astonished what sleeps in the old cart.' Douglas, from Canada 9-series Rega Tonearm on Rega Turntable ' It took me 3 1/2 hours to set up my cart. I followed your instructions to the letter, and boy, and I am being rewarded for my efforts! My table now has no more inner distortion, and sibilance that was killing me.
I now know for a fact that I have the correct geometry. The increased detail is just fantastic! My mid range has suddenly come alive! I am now truly rediscovering my record collection.
This is truly a fine instrument!' Anthony, from United States 9-series Rega Tonearm on Rega Turntable ' I achieved excellent results using your tractor today. I have been setting up my own cartridges for many years and have used a variety of protractors, from the basic cardboard or printout to the Mobile Fidelity Geodisk, and your system beats them all for detail and accuracy. The parallax system is quite clever, the instructions were very thorough and clear, with great examples and photos, and the combination of 3x and 10x magnifiers were excellent for ensuring accuracy. Thanks for a great product.' Stephen, from United States 9-series Rega Tonearm on Rega Turntable ' I received the package and aligned my table yesterday. The process went smoothly, and I was able to eliminate some tracking distortion that's been plaguing me since I bought the table new.
I'm very happy with the result. Thank you very much.' Jeremy from Singapore Rega on Rega '. (Proud Owner of #8571) Bruce from United States Rega Tonearm ' Just want you to know I am very happy with the reproduction that I am getting from LPs using your Mint LP/Best Tractor. Even though I don't have every parameter perfectly dialed in (my Rega RB-300 makes this tricky), I still am getting beautiful tonal balance and detail from the Rega and a Shelter 501 cartridge. I just need to make very fine adjustments to tweak left-right balance but I am still getting great results due in part, I'm sure, to your precise design.
' Edward, From United States 9-series VPI JMW9 '. I spent about half the day using the MintLP Best Tractor to align my Dynavector 20x2L on the VPI Scout 2. The instructions, diagrams, and photos were helpful. When I first tried to use the Best Tractor, the angle of the stylus/cantilever when resting on the Best Tractor was a little off. I attributed this to having moved the counterweight on the VPI to the middle of the range for the cartridge. In doing so, I probably changed the prior azimuth setting. So, I set azimuth in accordance with the VPI manual to get that within the ballpark before going back to the Best Tractor.
This helped with getting the proper angle on the stylus/cantilever when resting on the Best Tractor. Then it took a long time to check, re-check, and re-check again (!) everything. The arc, thick double lines, and reflection to get parallax correct really help. The Best Tractor is very precise in this regard.
As for listening, I noticed an improvement with more precise imaging and firmer sounding bass. The sound image seemed more defined. Overall, I am very happy with the product. Thanks again,' Todd, from United States VPI 10.5i SE on VPI Classic '. The difference from the VPI jig to the Mint is profound, at least in terms of where I'm at with my system (meaning: profound to me is what most would say 'wait, is there a difference?'
Off the top, the entire side of an LP sounds fantastic. No longer do I hope for better on the first track. IGD hasn't necessarily been an issue but I am finding that 'hot' pressings still have all the dynamics I strive for but do sound cleaner, less 'distorted' at a micro level.
The soundstage has greatly improved - I get an even better sense and feel for the '3D' potential of vinyl after adjusting things. Tonally I've really never taken issue with the VPI setup but I do feel like the midrange is now presented more completely - vocals especially are more lifelike. Surface noise also seems to be reduced, even the random 'pop or tick,' as it were, isn't as distracting as before.
The album I have on now, Jack Johnson - Brushfire Fairytales is a little notorious for being a poor pressing but even given that, the music is more engaging after the changes.Changes are pretty much all aspects of the geometry. From memory - and I should have taken a picture before I embarked on this adventure - I had to pull the cartridge forward in the headshell by around 1/16' and I found the cantilever was pointing 'off and up to the right' fairly heavily but that was easily corrected. Azimuth adjustments were also fairly obvious with the Mint setup, I ended up needing to adjust that counterclockwise a bit which has made a significant impact in soundstage stability. That is, if I move my head or walk around the room the sound doesn't 'wander' like it used to. Overall, it only took about 90 minutes to complete the setup.
That seems fast, but everything is spot on. The advice in the manual to gauge how much adjustment was necessary, as well as the tip about adjusting each side of the cartridge independently served me well. Well I am using my backup cartridge until my Dyna gets back from an upgrade, the backup sounds great never heard this good before.' Edward, from United States 9-series VPI JMW 9 on a VPI Turntable ' My overall thoughts: Excellent. Absolutely excellent. Not the easiest or most pleasant of processes, but in the end it gets the job done right. And what a musical result.
I suggest that in your directions that you have your customers tape the Best Tractor (leaving a bit of tape loose to attach to the platter later) before starting the process of finding the correct overhang. Not attaching the tape to the platter, but attaching it to the Best Tractor. Then when it's time for the BT to be attached to the platter, minimal contact with the BT is required. I saw that right away and did it and I was happy to have anticipated unnecessary annoyances after having gotten the overhang right. I'd also suggest that they use the blue painter's tape. It's very strong and tight but is easily removed with no residue. Your various advices in the instructions are remarkably insightful, and I thank you for them.
' Jon, from United States VPI JMW9 Signature with Scoutmaster ' I wanted to let you know I received the Mint Tractor. What an upgrade to my system. The sound is so much more natural.' Joe, from United States 9-series VPI JMW10.5i ' Yes, so far so good. My cartridge was way out of alignment even though I thought it was good using the VPI protractor. I have it aligned up pretty good now, though I need to take more time for perfect alignment.
The sound has improved. So, thank you very much for a great product.' Jeff, from United States 9-series VPI JMW10.5iSE ' I finally had time yesterday to use the protractor and properly set up my new Lyra Delos on my VPI Classic. I thought I had it close and felt it sounded great all this time. Well I studied and read the directions a couple times and still used them each step of the way. I must say the directions and tips are great and made the process much easier. I used the Lupe and a USB microscope which made seeing the stylus on the small line very easy and precise.
It took me several hours with many breaks to get it perfect but I did manage to get it there and I have to say that the time and effort was well worth it. I am truly blow away on the sound and detail I am getting from my set up. I am not able to hear any IGD and the cart tracks perfectly now. Thank you for such a great product and the time taken for the wonderful directions and tips as i feel they are worth more than the protractor.' After alignment with the Tractor there was significant improvement in the quality of the midrange tone. I had been trying to improve this area by adjusting the cartridge loading and VTA without much luck. Very happy with the sound of the system now.'
John, from United States VPI JMW 3D 12-inch ' Just re-mounted my Clearaudio DaVinci cartridge on my Transrotor/Graham table/arm and can't begin to tell you how much more satisfied I am after trying all of the other protractors. The musicians are now so palpable, I sometimes feel I have to move out of the way for them!' Augustine, from United States Moerch DP6 with VPIHW19 His hardwork: ' I finished the setup yesterday. Here are my observations: Before this I used Dr.
Feickert protractor. The overhang was perfectly set up with the Dr. Feickert when checked with MintLP. I was very glad to see that. However, the alignment was way off.
I expected this because the Dr. Feickert protractor, has no parallax view to reference the line of sight needed for correct alignment. The MintLP excels in this regard. The use of the 10x loupe takes some getting used to. It is essential for getting the stylus on the line. Lighting is essential and I found that a reflected light, as opposed to a direct light worked best for me.
Probably the hardest and most frustrating part was the inner alignment. Your clear instructions and techniques (relax, etc.) guided me through it. In summary, this is an extremely well thought out product.
It is the culmination of what must have been hours and hours of trial and error and revisions. I highly recommend this product and feel it is essential for proper alignment.
I finished the set up at 1:00AM. It took me about 8 hours total throughout the day. My wife would have killed me if I had cranked up the stereo. ' His Impression: ' As promised here are my impressions after alignment correction was done.
Recall that the overhang was already set correctly. The overall effect has been very noticeable and well worth the time it took to do it correctly. The detail has improved as has the soundstage. Listening to complex classical music is much easier now because I no longer have to strain to follow musical lines. Opera voices and diction are similarly enhanced allowing me to follow printed translations with ease. Instrumental timbre is more realistic. This is especially noticeable in the lower range winds such as the bassoon and the English horn.
The string are more realistic. Finally, and in some cases this is not a good thing, you can definitely hear the recording engineer when they fiddle around with sliders. I could always hear this before, but it really jumps out at you now. Probably the most entertaining of the group is Rudy Van Gelder when he was a young recording engineer for VOX Records in the late '50's and early '60's.
This was before he went on to Jazz. He loved to highlight musical lines, bringing them to the front, massing the strings in the back, etc. Totally unlike anything you would hear in person, but very entertaining (and educational) to listen to. FWIW, my cartridge is a Dynavector xx2. Thank you once again for a great product. Future setups will take less time now that I know what I am doing.
Anthony, from United States Moerch DP6 on TW Acustics Raven ' The results are very good, I noticed my analog playback sounds clearer with more detail and separation. I was as much as 2mm off in the inner groove.
The difference was quite noticeable. ' Michael, from New Zealand Moerch DP6 12-inch on EAT Fortes ' Just finished fiddling and setting my arm up and the results are excellent, accurate set up really pays dividends with more detail, clarity, openness, I could keep adding to the list if you want but I think you get the idea. Thanks again for a great product and excellent service. ' Marcial, from United States Moerch DP6 12-inch on Teres '. Also recently acquired a vintage tonearm that I'll probably get another tractor for it.' V Giulio, from Italy Da Vinci on Kuzma XL I think your Protractors are indispensable tools for a serious Hifi listener.
I have also a lot of tractors from other brands (Clearaudio, Mobile Fidelity, Triplanar Gauge, Schroeder Gauge etc,) but now I use only yours, the only wich give a perfect alignment of the tip and cantilever, not the body. I think your Protractors are indispensable tools for a serious Hifi listener. I have also a lot of tractors from other brands (Clearaudio, Mobile Fidelity, Triplanar Gauge, Schroeder Gauge etc,) but now I use only yours, the only which give a perfect alignment of the tip and cantilever, not the body. Paul, from United States Kuzma 4 Point 14-inch tonearm on Technics SP10 '. Domenico, from United States Graham Phantom on Air Force One ' I received the Mint LP tractor today and immediately put it into use. I had setup my Graham Phantom Supreme twice before: the first time using the jigs provided with the arm (which proved to be quite inaccurate) and the second time using a Feickert Universal Protractor. After using the Mint LP, there is no doubt in my mind that it is much easier to get the geometry exactly right with a custom arc protractor, the only limit to absolute accuracy being the user's patience.
I really liked the way the Mint LP deals with the parallax effect. BTW, using the Feickert protractor first to set pivot-spindle distance and approximate overhang and then the Mint LP to fine-tune overhang and set the offset angle likely provides the most efficient and accurate procedure. My only suggestion for a small possible improvement would be to print on the Mint LP the pivot-spindle distance that the protractor is customized for.
I know from a previous email that in the case of the 10' Graham Phantom Supreme I have, you assume a pivot-spindle distance of 231mm, rather than the 230.3mm specified in the tonearm manual. Since the correct pivot-spindle distance has to be set in order to use the Mint LP, it would be useful to have a reminder on the protractor. I will be recommending the Mint LP to my friends. Best,' Bas, from Netherland VPI JMW12.6 on Garrard 301 1 simple advise: buy it!
Less distortion, detail, exact channel seperation! Its really precise.
My Kiseki Lapis Lazuli really shines! I ajusted it in 20 minutes (way to quick, but its dark here. Want to do more exact ajustments in the weekend).
For now excellent! Music in my room. Cheers Bas Stephen from United Kingdom Technics SL-1210/Jelco SA 750D ' Tractor arrived yesterday. Spent an hour or so setting up my Astatic MF-100 and Nagaoka MP-11 Boron on the Technics SL-1210/Jelco SA 750D. Absolutely stunning difference! Have been listening to my records all morning and I can't believe how much the sound has improved. This has to be a must have piece of kit.
Thanks ' Mor from Japan Glanz on VPI Scout ' I received the Tractor on Saturday, and I spent the weekend setting up both my Miyajima Madake and Miyajima Zero mono cartridges. The result is amazing! I've never heard them sound so good. Thanks for a great job!
David, from United States Basis 2800 Turntable with Basis Vector ' I wasn't off by much but could I ever hear the difference. Everything sounds much more balanced and focused. Why I waited so long to invest in a tractor is beyond me. Thanks' Paul, from United States Clearaudio Innovation with 12-inch Universal Arm '. John, from United States 9-series Technics SL1200 with stock arm ' I received the Tractor this weekend, and I used it to align an AT440mla cartridge on a Technics SL1900 already. It worked great! The Tractor was easy to use.
Since I had actually gotten pretty close with my original alignment, it only took me an hour or so to tweak it with the Tractor. There is a definite improvement in the sound. The bass is tighter and cymbals sound better.
I am very pleased, and I will recommend your products to my friends with no hesitation. Lucas, from United States 9-series Technics SL1200 with stock arm ' I received your package on Wednesday and successfully aligned my cartridge over the weekend. Thank you for sending it out so quickly. Instructions were clear and useful: I managed to align the Ortofon 2M Black in about an hour and spent additional time tweaking azimuth, VTA, and tracking force. In the end, I managed to achieve very high channel separation (34dB!!, per the Analogue Test LP) and low channel imbalance (0.7dB). The 10x loupe, by the way, was absolutely critical to achieving perfect alignment.
There's no way I could have done it using only the lighted magnifier you provided. A very well spent extra $13. FYI: before your package arrived, I successfully aligned my cartridge using a carefully printed Baerwald protractor from VinylEngine for the SL1200. The Technics headshell has sufficiently long slots to accommodate the Ortofon in this geometry. I don't recall a particular sonic advantage from aligning my setup this way, but it's nice to know it will support it (at least for this particular cartridge).
' Douglas From United States SME M2-12R ' I received the Mint Tractor days ago and have already put it to use. Amazingly, I had the overhang set perfectly using the SME M2-12R alignment gauge. However the cantilever was not in alignment and was off by quite a bit.
Putting it into alignment has definitely improved the sound. The Mint Tractor has been a worthwhile investment. ' Brian, from United States TW Acustics 10.5 on TW Acustics Raven ' Just a quick note to let you know how much I enjoy using the Mint Protractor. It is very easy to use, the instructions are good, and more importantly it gives me confidence I have the proper set up. Your communication and delivery speed were great and appreciated. Thank you for a wonderful product!' David, From UK Yamaha GT with Yamaha YA 39 ' hello yip, its 1am on a sunday morning,after spending a relaxing saturday afternoon aligning my cartridge with your tractor, i've now discovered what my cartridge really has to offer, the space between the instruments has opened up the notes have much more presence and the background much more quiet, i'm going to have a hard job not going through my entire record collection, i'm afraid i'm going to have to blame you for many sleepless nites ahead, well who wants to sleep when music sounds this good.
I haven't even done any fine tuning yet,so more joys to come i hope, please accept my thanks for your wonderful tool no serious vinyl fan should be without one, now to win the lottery and buy myself a walker audio prescenium. Best wishes David '.