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Continuum Cobra S Owner's Manual

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OWNERS MANUAL
A U D I B L E S C I E N C E

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Summary of Contents for Continuum Cobra S

  • Page 1 OWNERS MANUAL A U D I B L E S C I E N C E...
  • Page 2 If you have any questions in reference to any part of your Cobra at any time in the future, please feel free to contact your Continuum Consultant for assistance. Your Authorised Continuum Consultant is: Serial Number:...

  • Page 3: Table Of Contents

    Cobra tonearm, please contact Mounting the Cartridge ......38 direct sunlight, excessive dust or your Continuum Authorized Mounting & Balancing the Arm ....38 mechanical shock. Installation Consultant Connecting and Adjusting Anti Skate ..42 •...

  • Page 4: Our Design Philosophy

    Any future products from Continuum Audio Labs will follow this same philosophy - if we believe it can be better, we will build it. If we believe we cannot improve...
  • Page 5 LP’s were played. THE ARM WAND Unique Monocoque construction using advanced fibre and resin technology proprietary to Continuum Audio Labs. The shape of the arm wand is optimised to reduce the resonances inherent in the LP playback mechanism. There is no need to apply additional damping material to the Cobra as the polymer/fibre technology is by its very nature...

  • Page 6: Counterweight

    COBRA DESIGN FEATURES CONT. PARTS OF YOUR COBRA THE FINGERLIFT VTA fine vertical adjustment knob Vertical VTA vernier The Cobra Finger lift is extended to the right of the head shell at an angle designed to allow safe operation of manual cueing.

  • Page 7: Vertical Bearing Motion

    COBRA DESIGN FEATURES CONT. PARTS OF YOUR COBRA THE COUNTERWEIGHT cont. In addition, to minimize warp wow (pitch changes as the stylus rides up and down over record warps), the arm’s vertical pivot should be at the same height as the record surface. The Cobra uses a “heart like”...

  • Page 8: Horizontal Bearing Motion

    COBRA DESIGN FEATURES CONT. PARTS OF YOUR COBRA THE VERTICAL BEARING MOTION cont. Secondary Pivot – Azimuth Stabilized with a Hardened Steel Inverted pivot resting on a man made Sapphire “Swash Plate”. This secondary pivot plays a crucial role in the stability of the arm allowing for optimum placement of the counterweight thus removing inertial problems associated with alternative stabiliser designs.
  • Page 9 Authorised Continuum Consultant. STYLUS RACK ANGLE (SRA) OR VERTICAL TRACKING ANGLE ADJUSTMENT (VTA) Continuum Audio Labs recognise that the original cutting lathes used to make the master recordings have varying degrees of calibration. We note that even minor changes in SRA or VTA can have significant audible effects.
  • Page 10 COBRA DESIGN FEATURES CONT. PARTS OF YOUR COBRA VTA fine vertical adjustment knob STYLUS RACK ANGLE (SRA) OR VERTICAL TRACKING ANGLE ADJUSTMENT (VTA) cont. Overhang locking bolt knob clockwise to raise the arm pivot and counter clockwise Arm wire guide to lower the arm pivot.

  • Page 11: Overhang Adjustment

    COBRA DESIGN FEATURES CONT. PARTS OF YOUR COBRA STYLUS RACK ANGLE (SRA) OR VERTICAL TRACKING ANGLE ADJUSTMENT Other cartridge sizes can easily be used but the (VTA) majority of modern quality cartridge bodies and stylus tip dimensions are set at or near a nominal dimension of 18mm.

  • Page 12: Anti Skate Or Bias Adjustment

    COBRA DESIGN FEATURES CONT. OPERATING YOUR COBRA ANTI SKATE OR BIAS ADJUSTMENT The Cobra allows optimal anti skate force to be increased from 8-12% of the tracking force across the playing surface by use of correct geometry of the anti skate lever and the ability to move the weight along the lever arm with an additional ability to add or subtract weights.

  • Page 13: Why Setup Is Critical

    INSTALLATION & SETUP INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA WHY SETUP IS CRITICAL VTA locking thumbscrews If a phono cartridge is not correctly setup, damage can occur to your precious record collection, and you will Overhang locking bolt miss out on the incredible realism that good vinyl can reproduce.
  • Page 14 Therefore small adjustments to the stylus tip’s position will alter the sound significantly. If you are unfamiliar with cartridge setup procedures please contact your Continuum Audio Labs Authorised Installation Consultant for assistance. With the almost ubiquitous nature of the internet there are many resources available for learning about cartridge setup.
  • Page 15 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA INSTALLATION Central arm tower This Manual is for Factory Authorized Installers and technically proficient users who are familiar with phono 232.81mm 86.95mm cartridges and tonearm installation terminology and concepts. The main steps of installing the Cobra are: 1.

  • Page 16: Positioning Central Tower On Turntable

    INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA Central Tower DISASSEMBLY & ASSEMBLY OF THE COBRA The Cobra comes to you with the main components assembled, and needs to be disassembled for installation. Cross arm - slide inside the Main Body before inserting the Central DISASSEMBLY FOR MOUNTING PROCEDURE Tower into the Main Body...
  • Page 17 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA DISTANCE OF SPINDLE TO CENTRAL ARM TOWER We recommend you use 4mm Socket Head Cap Screws VTA thumbscrews and professionally drill and tap the plinth or armboard to Vernier scale allow the arm to be bolted directly to the plinth. The 4 equispaced holes need to be drilled on a 56mm PCD (Pitch Circle Diameter) to suit M4 screws.

  • Page 18: Distance Of Spindle To Cross Arm Pivot

    INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA SPINDLE TO MAIN PIVOT DISTANCE (OVERHANG) Overhang is adjusted by positioning the main pivot in Turntable spindle Cross arm pivot relation to the turntable spindle. The Cobra uses an offset crossarm that holds the main pivot.

  • Page 19: Vta & Sra Setup

    INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA VTA & SRA SETUP Cobra central arm HOW TO ADJUST VTA AND SRA bearing cup At the rear of the main arm mount there are two thumb screws. These need to be loosened in order for the crossarm to be raised or lowered using the VTA adjustment knob at the top of the main arm mount.
  • Page 20 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA HOW TO ADJUST VTA AND SRA cont. Raise or lower the cross arm till the main pivot touches the edge of the ruler. This is the level point from which to adjust the VTA up or down.
  • Page 21 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA HOW TO MOUNT AND BALANCE THE ARM To mount the arm wand, gently place the central arm bearing cup directly on the main pivot on the cross arm. The tone arm now sits in position, held in place by the mysterious power of gravity.
  • Page 22 INSTALLATION & SETUP 8mm fine weight CONT. adjustment screw INSTALLING Anti skate lever & TUNING YOUR COBRA weight thumbscrew HOW TO CONNECT AND ADJUST THE ANTISKATE The Cobra uses a specially designed geometry to alter the force of the bias across the surface of the record from 8- 12% of the tracking force.
  • Page 23 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA HOW TO ADJUST THE ANTISKATE cont. The bias should be adjusted according to the tracking force. We recommend you set the bias by use of an appropriate test record, ie. those with tracking bands. Do not use unmodulated grooves as they do not create accurate vector forces.
  • Page 24 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA Arm wire guide HOW TO ADJUST THE ANTISKATE cont. If you are unable to adjust to the correct range, try adding or subtracting the small washer weights from the lever. This is done by undoing the thumbscrew completely Arm wire and adding or subtracting the 12mm penny washers with a 3mm hole.
  • Page 25 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA HOW TO ADJUST THE AZIMUTH cont. The azimuth must be adjusted with the cartridge at rest or using an old record and the cartridge cover installed. WARNING: DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ADJUST THE AZIMUTH DURING PLAY AS SERIOUS DAMAGE TO THE STYLUS COULD OCCUR.
  • Page 26 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA HOW TO ADJUST THE AZIMUTH cont. They are located at right angles to the azimuth adjusting sapphire ring holder. If you look at the arm from the front on you will see a brass coloured secondary pivot on the right hand side (at the rear of the arm where the main pivot is).
  • Page 27 INSTALLATION & SETUP CONT. INSTALLING & TUNING YOUR COBRA HOW TO ADJUST THE AZIMUTH cont. These are used to set the initial reference point. Then when you adjust the azimuth you can do so with accuracy and repeatability. Experienced Cobra users place permanent marker ink or coloured nail polish into one of the dashes on the azimuth adjuster next to the stationary index mark.
  • Page 28 Do not use any window cleaning solutions, silicon based polish, abrasive pads, scouring powder or solvents such as alcohol or bezine to clean your Cobra. Your Continuum Consultant can advice you on what products available in your area are suitable to use for cleaning.
  • Page 29 COBRA SPECIFICATIONS COBRA SPECS • Effective Length: (from stylus to pivot point) 239mm • Overhang: (from Stylus to spindle Centre) 17.3mm • Offset: (Headshell Offset in degrees) 23 Degrees • Cartridge Fixing Centres: 12.7mm for standard M2.5 socket head cap screws •...
  • Page 30 COBRA SPECIFICATIONS CONT. COBRA SPECS • Clearance from plinth surface to top of arm mount: 150-200mm preferred for arm wire training. • Cartridge Weight Range: 0-20Grams – Adjusted by Mass Addition Subtraction of Supplied Weight Adjustment Kit. Fine tuned by 8 Gram sliding set screw for 0.01 Gram increments.
  • Page 31 Warwick designed the wiring system for the Cobra using a unique bend of natural and high tech materials. What the engineers at Continuum Audio Labs did was to throw out the “rulebook” and question the accepted wisdom of prior tonearm designs and choices of materials.
  • Page 32 Continuum Audio Labs chose to “go back to the drawing COBRA’S DESIGN TEAM COBRA’S board” and examine the physics at play in analogue vinyl Many very intelligent minds were brought DESIGN TEAM replay systems. The physics were made visible by the use together to push the envelope of what was of Finite Element Analysis software.
  • Page 33 COBRA’S DESIGN TEAM COBRA’S DESIGN TEAM John Loton - Bachelor of Engineering (Aeronautical) Advanced Physics & Structures Design. John was instrumental in the “challenging process” where original “seed ideas” were subjected to an intense peer review process to extrapolate potential “blind alleys” Prof.

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