Vinyl Asylum

Posted by Dave Garretson (A) on August 16, 2007 at 12:42:12

In Reply to: RE: Interesting, but posted by J.D. on August 16, 2007 at 10:08:13

turntables-- particularly the better ones-- are not RVs, pickup trucks, or Carvel ice cream. If they were then every obese, pick-up driving burgher in America would still have a TT.

From what I've read, Teres has tested rim-drive with both heavy and light platters. Most listeners seem to prefer rim drive to belt drive irrespective of platter weight. However the greatest improvement over belt drive was with lighter platters. That the greatest improvement was with a lighter platter may mean (1) that as you say, there is inherent synergy between direct-coupled drive and a light platter, or (2) that with belt drive, a heavy Teres platter had already achieved close to optimal speed stability, or (3) that the superior resonance control of a heavy platter was "weighing in" as a variable in overall performance.

BTW, the composition of the platter (e.g. acrylic vs. wood vs. laminate) is a variable independent of platter mass and should be considered elsewhere.

But it's to be noted that incombination with platters of high & low mass, the sound of Teres's belt-driven tables was improved by switching to a direct-coupled motor.

Has anyone actually refitted a vintage Lenco or Garrard or any other idler with a heroically heavy platter in order to make a determination as to which is best? Perhaps the original choice of medium-weight platters reflected build-to-cost business models or merely prevailing design practices?

As has been remarked elsewhere, there are too many linked variables in the composition of a vintage TT to be certain how much of its performance is due exclusively to idler drive. Put another way, the noise associated with older motors & bearings & transmission systems in these vintage idlers, may add problems that do not afflict modern belt-driven TTs refitted to rim-drive.

Your bias toward "clean-sheet" designs flies in the face of the evolutionary nature of TT design. As HW has said, it's a mature business and designers can make a turntable sound pretty much anyway they want. Why not then the hobbiest himself? I have converted my VPI TNT to thread drive and a rigid suspension and noted changes that I prefer to the VPI "house" sound. I will have been well served if this TT can be further improved with Teres rim-drive while preserving my investment. I will also have fun determining whether or not the VPI TNT flywheel has synergy with a direct-coupled motor. Isn't tweaking of this sort much of what vinyl is all about?