All things vinyl — SME 3009 Mk2 Improved
Two Hacks to Upgrade an SME Tonearm for Less Than $50
In the world of high-fidelity vinyl playback, few components are as iconic as the SME 3009 Series II Improved tonearm. Built with exquisite British engineering and used on everything from Linn LP12s to Thorens TD160s, it was long considered the gold standard of tonearms in the 1970s and early 80s. But as technology and materials have evolved, so too have modern tonearms, many of which now outperform older designs in specific areas — especially when paired with modern moving coil (MC) cartridges.
Modern arms tend to be straight rather than curved, tapered to reduce resonant modes, and often constructed from...