SYNTEC Tonearm
This is an ORIGINAL, stock standard SEDCO/SYNTEC/PIEZO tonearm although it is most commonly known as the Syntec S220. Very prevalent in the Australian/New Zealand radio broadcasting industry during the 1980's
No nonsense metal construction with a barest of plastics (arm rest & audio signal plug cover)
S style
Effective length 9"
All adjustments and access is via tiny slot head or hex head screws. All parts of the tonearm are user accessible, although I would be very hesitant to mess around with the high precision ball bearing pivot - leave that part alone.
I do have a copy of the User Manual (hard copy) or it can be accessed directly online (4 pages, detailing setup and even includes a cut out guide for hole drilling, spacing etc)
BASIC TECHNICAL INFORMATION:
Construction: light alloy with low mass cartridge shell (looks like magnesium)
Rotation: miniature precision ball bearing
Lateral balance: adjustable to compensate for variations in centre of gravity between various cartridges
Cartridge shell: removable
Overall length: 310mm
Effective length: 220mm
Overhang: 15mm
Offset angle: 22 degrees
Stylus pressure: 1 to 6g
I am offering everything you see in the photographs i.e the tonearm with weights, mounting, headshell with lift arm section, tonearm rest and MOST IMPORTANT of all is that small 5 pin connector (gold plated female sockets) with some describe as a DIN connector (European standard), it is not - but it does look very similar in style. The lead from that connector is 1 metre long and terminated with 2x gold plated RCA male connectors and a copper signal ground spade.
You won't find many of these tonearms with consumer turntables, they were designed and targeted at the broadcast industry market and they are most often found with turntables such as Gates, Russco and of course, the Technics SP-10.
This tonearm is original in every way, it was the arm supplied with the Technics SP-10 I am seeking a new home for. We would often "swap out" tonearms for our vinyl archival work and ended up using Rega RB series arms more often than not and sometimes the SME3009 (original) so this Syntec tonearm actually didn't see a lot of use by us.
The Syntec S220 is quite short and designed for an alignment with null-point radii at 62.0mm and 102.8mm. Although the manufacturer recommends mounting it at 205mm from the spindle, some opinions suggest that 201mm may be better and with a null point of 66mm this could imporove outer groove performance. Experimentation is called for here!
COSMETIC CONDITION:
Very nice, clean and dirt/dust free
No physical damage to any part *** (see my notes below though)
Pivot looks and feels fine
SPECIAL NOTE:
I noticed when taking a look inside the main shaft that mounts onto the plinth (to see what type of arm wiring was used) that the wires look to be quite twisted with one possibly broken. It is probably not a bad idea to undertake a delicate re-wiring job of the tonearm, a nice, high quality replacement tonearm lead can make the world of difference to the resulting sound.
This has always been stored "in pieces" and will remain that way, sitting on a bed of bubblewrap and sealed in plastic. These tonearms are robust but also delicate, treat them with respect!
