REED 2B High-End Tonearm | Advanced Anti-Skating

Description

REED 2B High-End Tonearm

The REED 2B is a high-end tonearm designed for analogue enthusiasts who require precise cartridge control, flexible setup and advanced anti-skating adjustment.

The model introduces three important operating advantages: compatibility with heavier cartridges up to 35 grams, low-friction ceramic bearings, and an anti-skating system that can be adjusted independently for the beginning and end of the record.

The tonearm is supplied fully assembled, allowing the user to focus on final installation and setup parameters such as VTA, VTF, azimuth and anti-skating.

Designed for Heavier Cartridges

One of the key advantages of the REED 2B is its ability to accommodate cartridges weighing up to 35 grams.

This makes the tonearm suitable for a wide range of modern high-end cartridges, including heavier moving-coil designs that may exceed the practical operating range of more conventional tonearms.

Low-friction ceramic bearings are used in the 2B, helping maintain smooth and stable movement while minimizing unwanted mechanical resistance.

Fully Assembled for Easier Installation

The REED 2B is supplied fully assembled from the factory.

After mounting the tonearm on the turntable, the remaining setup work is focused on the critical cartridge parameters: VTA, VTF, azimuth and anti-skating.

This approach simplifies installation while still giving experienced users the freedom to optimize the final geometry and tracking behavior for a specific cartridge.

Advanced Adjustable Anti-Skating System

The most distinctive feature of the REED 2B is its anti-skating system.

Unlike conventional tonearms where anti-skating compensation is generally set as a fixed value, the 2B allows the user to adjust compensation independently for the beginning and the end of the record.

This is particularly relevant with modern stylus profiles, because different stylus shapes can generate different friction characteristics while tracking the groove.

As the stylus moves from the outer grooves toward the inner grooves, the geometric relationship between cartridge, tonearm pivot and record radius changes. The resulting skating force therefore does not remain perfectly constant throughout playback.

Understanding Skating Force

When a stylus travels through a record groove, friction generates a tangential force acting on the stylus.

This force can be described as:

F = μN

where μ represents the coefficient of friction and N represents the vertical tracking force, or VTF.

Because the direction of this friction force is displaced relative to the line between the tonearm pivot and stylus, it produces a rotational moment around the tonearm pivot.

This moment tends to pull the stylus toward the center spindle of the record.

To maintain correct groove-wall loading, the skating moment should be counteracted by an equal force in the opposite direction.

Anti-Skating Compensation Across the Record

In many tonearms, anti-skating is applied as an approximately constant compensation force.

However, because the record radius changes continuously as the stylus moves from the outer groove toward the center, the ideal compensation force also changes.

The skating moment can therefore be considered as a function of stylus position on the record.

This means that a single fixed anti-skating setting may only be perfectly correct at certain points of the record surface.

Practical Testing of Skating Force

Reed carried out practical testing to observe how skating force changes across a record.

The test used a smooth matte test record together with a Reed 3P tonearm and a Phasemation PP-2000 MC cartridge operating at a vertical tracking force of 1.9 grams.

The results showed noticeable differences in skating force between the beginning, middle and end of the record.

Independent Anti-Skating Adjustment

To address these differences, the REED 2B provides two separate anti-skating regulation controls.

This allows the user to fine-tune compensation for different positions on the record rather than relying on one fixed setting.

The controls can be adjusted while a record is playing, making it possible to optimize the tonearm more precisely for a particular cartridge, stylus profile and tracking force.

This makes the 2B especially attractive for users who want greater control over cartridge behavior across the entire playing surface.

Armwand Wood Options

Like other Reed tonearms, the 2B can be configured with different wooden armwand materials.

Different woods provide different mechanical and damping characteristics, allowing the tonearm to be matched more closely to the chosen cartridge and system.

Armwand Wood Samples

Alternative Reed Tonearm: Reed 2G

For listeners looking for a tonearm with interchangeable armwands, multiple effective lengths and optional laser-assisted setup, the

Reed 2G Tonearm

is a natural alternative within the Reed range.

The 2B places particular emphasis on advanced anti-skating adjustment and compatibility with heavier cartridges, while the 2G offers a broader modular approach to armwand and geometry configuration.

Official Reed Information

For current specifications, configuration options and manufacturer information, visit the

official Reed website
.