Battle of the Tonearms! Two Kuzma Rods, Two Ortofon Carts, One Table, One Source

A battle, not really; instead, it was an education on how two very nice tonearms from Kuzma handle resonances from vibration.

The cleverly designed Kuzma Stabi SD turntable has dual facilities to support two tonearms; because of this, we were able to compare a Kuzma 4Point and a Stogi 313 VTA identical length tonearms, each having a Kuzma headshell that hung pairs of Ortofon Bronze and a pair of Ortofon Black all in a balanced configuration into individual inputs on a CH Precision P1 phono amp and system, thereby removing variables.

The 4Point did prevail as its design allows more body and clarity from the cartridge, and rightfully so, as it is almost twice the cost; however, there is no wrong option here. Within the Kuzma tonearm lines, you will still be ahead on any table, especially now we know there is a scale in performance as you move up Kuzma’s tonearm line to better mitigate levels of vibration that further allow the cartridge to be better heard.

Cartridge choices we favor are the Kuzma brand, Ortofon, and now Hana. For any cartridge you choose, whether purchased from us or independently, I highly recommend wallyanalog.com for consultation, analysis, and setup products. Please tell JR that Ed sent you; it builds me points for Tupperware.

Regarding purchase decisions, my recommendation is the 4Point tonearm. This is a foundational piece, meaning the 4Point can be repurposed from table to table as it has proven to support scaling up in performance with the correct chosen cartridges of the highest caliber.

If there is a fixed budget, you can still gain performance in the 313 as its removable head-shell allows mix-and-match options that still allow an excellent performance, albeit up to a crossing point.

Journey Up, Be Well and Long Live Audio!