Reference Arm

The Well Tempered Reference Arm adds a number of major advances to the original Well Tempered Arm concept. These are not changes in the design principle of the arm, which no one has ever been able to improve upon. Rather they are carefully thought out ways of getting even more performance from Bill Firebaugh's original design. The Reference Arm provides substantial improvements in dynamics, transient response, bass weight, midrange richness, and neutrality throughout the audible frequency range.

Carbon Fiber Arm Tube. The Reference arm tube is a larger diameter carbon fiber epoxy composite tube. The fibers in the plies have a specific angular orientation to the tube for optimum axial and radial stiffness.

Internally Damped Adjustable Damping Cup. The Reference Damping Cup consists of a heavy-walled, low resonance, two-piece cup with constrained layer damping material bonded between the two pieces. The entire cup assembly is threaded on the outside permitting the user to turn a knurled rim at the top of the cup to fine tune cartridge damping independently of all other adjustments.

One Piece Arm Paddle Assembly. The Reference Arm Paddle Assembly has been combined into one massive machined part which connects to the arm in two locations for greatly improved rigidity in this important part of the unique Well Tempered Arm design.

Base Mounted Adjustable Arm Rest. A black Delrin, two-piece adjustable arm rest is mounted on the turntable base.

VTA Adjustment. The VTA can be adjusted with complete control by means of a setscrew in the top of the main arm post.

Internal Wiring. The Reference Arm is wired with what our listening panel has chosen as the most neutral of all available wire options.

Three Piece Counterweight. The Reference counterweight consists of a main weight and two secondary weights to match all cartridges.