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Had to let go of the old Nottingham Analogue Mentor; sorry to see it go but its days were over. Just took possession of a new VPI Scout with the larger platter, the 300rpm motor, and the large ring that fits over the platter (and over a record if you like). There's also a matching center weight. I also got the SDS line amp.Instead of buying a new VPI arm, I decided to save some money by having my Graham 2.0 mounted on the VPI. It seems to be working okay. I have a new Benz Micro Ruby 3 mounted, which replaced my original Ruby - it's still breaking in.
Re the sound, it's all still a bit new to my ears and with the cartridge still breaking in, I'm not ready to render a final decision but I think I'll be happy with this table. The sound is more "hi fi" than the Nottingham. That is, better definition, a sharper image, wider soundstage, etc. The bottom end on the Nottingham was unbeatable and I don't think the VPI will ever match it but what I really missed was the 'dance factor'. The Nottingham was soooo musical. The VPI is getting there but I noticed the difference at first. By last night, I had 25 hours on the new cartridge and found myself totally lost in the music for the first time. That's a good sign.
One question for anyone with this VPI table and platter ring: When I put the ring OVER a record, I can't use the tonearm lifter to place the needle in the start groove. When I do, it lurches towards the ring, as though it was attracted by a magnet. I about freaked out the first time this happened, imagining a severed stylus. I have to lower the arm by hand (or more appropriately, by finger) to avoid having it lurch towards the metal ring. Anyone else have this problem or is it a factor of using a Graham arm with the VPI table? Any thoughts are greatly appreciated.
Follow Ups:
Raise the lift mechanism. Your problem has happened to me. Small adjustment did the trick.
> The Nottingham was soooo musical. <In the end you might find that elusiver trait is hard to duplicate with the VPI. Then again, maybe you'll get lucky......
If the tonearm is lurching to the outside of the platter as it is lowered then chances are your anti-skate is too high. If you calibrated AS using the HiFi News Test record, then it definitely is too high. Search the forum on recent comments concernting anti-skate setting. Doug Deacon has some great suggestions.
i didn't read your post carefully enough and i thought it was just a problem clearing the ring. but after re-reading, jrags suggestion seems right on.
First, make sure your table is level. If it is, then excess antiskate is the most likely cause of outward cueing drift. A damaged or mis-adjusted cueing mechanism or arm support is possible, though perhaps unikely on an arm you've used for years and presumably know well.I recently determined that the optimal AS setting on my rig is FAR lower than the so-called "normal" settings. It's even lower than the "1/2 of VTF" or "1/3 of VTF" many other inmates use.
Try reducing AS to the lowest setting your arm allows. Then increase in tiny increments until you've applied just enough sideways bias to prevent R channel mistracking on dynamic passages (real music, not test records).
I posted this method on Audiogon and *almost* everyone who tried it reported significant performance improvements, just like we got. Try it, you may be happily surprised.
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"Do not meddle in the affairs of wizards, for they are subtle and quick to anger." - JRRT
it's gotta be the arm, because i use the ring with my scoutmaster and a jmw9 signature arm and no problems using the cueing lift. that said, i prefer to lower the arm with my finger as well.you may need to increase the height of the lift to solve the problem. it's easy with the jmw9, but ive never used the graham so somebody else may need to chime in.
I have the exact set-up as yours and if you have the washer in there the record will be ramped down causing your arm to jump to the outside exactly as you desribe.
I can't think what you're referring to. Where would I look for it?
There is a small-ish black rubber washer mounted on the spindle, atop the platter. I don't use the outer ring clamp but it sounds like that could be the problem; it could cause the periphery of the LP to be lower than the center. The rubber washer is removable.
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