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In Reply to: Upgraded power cord for VPI Scout motor? posted by gnugear on March 6, 2007 at 09:25:03:
I don't think changing out a power cord on your TT motor is going to give you much of a performance upgrade. Some might say that a better power cord will improve the quality of the current from the wall and therefore provide more stable and consistent power to the motor, thereby ensuring that you have constant and steady speed of the platter. I think the best thing you can do for your TT is to get an outboard motor controller with power conditioning. The outboard controller cleans up the power and ensures that you have steady, clean juice to the TT motor. The best place for an aftermarket power cord is to the speed controller and into the wall directly. That's the setup I have.
Follow Ups:
THE most obvious AC cable changes, and where a Ac cable (and outlets too) really reveals it's true sound, and soundstage, is on my TT motor. I have owned a walker Motor controller - and the Ac cord to the TT motor was way more appreciable than stock cord to TT motor and upgraded AC cord to the Walker. I would upgrade the Ac cord to the motor, then by all means get a Ac motor drive (VPI or Walker) and upgrade its cord too!Outside of a power conditioner feeding a system, the biggest improvement with stock cords everywhere else is the TT motor - melts the walls away....
I say upgrade every AC cord in the system though - why stop at just one, get your whole system right! come on..... in for a dime, in for a dollar and do it right..... (ie "right" as defined by what your ears and feet enjoy, fuck the wallet - treat yourself once and awhile)
Note, I find every cable effects a system, AC cords more so than speaker, more so than IC's...... assuming your room treatments are in order, system setup is together (isolation, racks, cable routing..), and speakers positioning are optimised (screw the WAF), and your gear has a certain synergy and "plays nice" with each other....
Everyone has a different opnion of what works best. Why not suggest upgrading to a dedicated 20 amp circuit with cryoed in wall wiring and run from a subpanel? That made a huge difference in my system. i still don't understand the physics of why the TT motor PC cord is going to make that much of a difference in soundstage depth. It's all about regulating the juice to the motor. The motor PC does not power anything in the signal path from the TT. I use upgraded PC for my phon pre and all my other components. There is a noticeable difference. Blacker backgrounds. Lower noise floor, more forward presentation. The differences were clearly audible. It was like moving up in rows in a concert hall. I was closer to the music.Would love to hear an expert's opinion on why the motor cord makes a difference.
I agree with you on the dedicated 20amp lines! Do it. But then again, I didn't just run one, I ran 4 - 2 solid core 10g, 1 stranded 10g, 1 solid core 12g. And broke them all in, and listened. Acme outlets, dedicated home runs for each outlet to the panel - no breaks in the chain (This is an asylum right..... I go off my "meds" from time to time and do things like this.......)I thought the 10g made the 12g sound like zip cord! bass, bass impact and also soundstage size, hall info,...... and the solid core 10g was much more "coherent" than the stranded 10g, also a larger more defined stage with slightly better seperation and height too. The 10g stranded was better than the 12g solid, but the 10g solid is the way to go having listened to all 4 (if you include the 14g that was originally in the wall....)
Put it this way the difference was such, I ended up replacing the 12g and stranded 10g with 10g solid core lines..... if you have played with 10g solid, you'd understand it is a pain, but sonically well worth it.
IF I was really a true looney I'd braid each dedicated 10g solid core line! I probably should just look at JPS inwall too! lol, but the whole "Aluminum Wire" in my walls via the JPS has me a bit spooked...
Now someone in need of some serious Asylum medication,counseling, maybe alittle time in the "isolation ward" would do the Gold plated breaker pannel, goldplated breakers,.... that Isoclean setup looks killer.....
As to the AC cord upgrade to the TT motor - I can't even begin to explain it. I have heard the differences a decent Ac cord has provided on all my gear, but especially now with the other Ac cords having been upgraded, all my cabling having been addressed and the ability to hear small changes easily, the TT motor Ac cord vs Walker with upgraded cord too, made the Walker expendable - for now. Now, VPI design's with the motor controller as part of their system, so maybe it is a more neccessary component of a VPI analog rig. The TT is a "system", Phonostage + cart/tonearm + TT + cabling as a whole entity (not to mention cart setup - VTA,VTF,overhang,azimuth,antiskate). Thus you "hear" and "See" the whole chain as "one".
Maybe I came off to strong, I just wanted to emphasize you shouldn't neglect the Ac cord to the TT motor, as here it is a real "eye opener" swapping cords through here. Regardless the least you should do is get rid of any 18g or 16g cords to that TT. Volex or Belden or.... even the Asylum Recipe,...
Regardless of where a cord works best, synergy wise (amp vs preamps vs source vs...) its "sound" and soundstaging abilities are most obvious on the TT motor here.
Maybe just swap the Male terminations on your existing TT cord (Acme, Wattagate, Oyaide,) and listen. But take those Meds first... (I think it might be time for mine again...... Nurse.....)
the VPI might be more forgiving. With my Basis, the Walker was a sometimes audible improvement, more timbre related than things like seperation in the stage or size of stage. Even then, I wasn't sure I heard that much of a difference.... when I had a decent Ac cord on the TT motor(stock cords were a different story). I plan on revisiting a Walker motor controller once I've upgraded the TT (2500 most likely). But upgrading my Ac cord on the Basis TT motor just left the Walker in limbo..... put it this way, I don't miss it, and that for me says something. lol.
a fellow AC member invited me over for a demo a few weeks back. He was explaining how for his Super Scoutmaster (the motor and the SDS controller) the 'sound' of those pc's wasn't as important as the shielding. i believe he used really thick PS Audio cords.for the phono preamp, an unshielded cable was best. for the motor and speed ctrl, shielded was the only way.
before geting upgraded power cords. these units can be found on Audiogon used for a decent price.Here's one for a reasonable price:
http://show.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/shm.pl?accspowr&991858364&item&Hwdsound&4&5&
I bought mine used and paid about the same amount. New they run about $1,000. Best investment you will make for your VPI TT. As to shielding, I guess I don't understand why an unshielded PC between the motor and SDS would be better than using an aftermarket PC.
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