TURNTABLE SETUP Questions thread - don't start a new thread, ASK YOUR QUESTION HERE! - Page 10

So i got a pioneer PL-200 vintage turntable with an Ortofon 2M Red Cartridge and a TC-750 preamp. 

Do you think this will play good using my fiio e7 with the AT ATH-A700? 

Should i upgrade something? Sorry for all the questions, but i'm waiting for the stuff to arrive. I just hope it plays good :)

Thanks!

Let's hope so. As soon as i get the gear all give my feedback. 

1977 Sony PS-X5

 

Picked up the table Friday night - was sleepy then and sleepy now. BUT, after being fully rested and one day in, I'm starting to hear flaws I did not pick up on at the seller's home or my first listening session. 

 

The Wheel is a bit warped - okay, maybe just a bit unbalanced. And it drags. Not terribly so but it is noticeable. Unsure if this is related to the unbalanced revolutions or if the motor/drive is starting to have issues. Haven't yet bought a record clamp/weight, could that possibly help my cause?

 

The TT has good tone and all notes come through fully, but the table I believe has begun to show its age. If my issues require decent money, I'll just have to source a $500 entry TT and be done with it all for now.

 

What you are noticing can or can not be a big deal. Are you referring to the "wheel" as the platter which the record sits on? If the table is having drift issues your going to see it on the strobe. The platter can have some small movement maybe from side to side but that may not effect the speed and just be how it was made.

 

The markers on the strobe should only drift slowly back or forward, showing how locked it is in speed. Some one else can chime in here but I don't think it is even possible to have speed changes which are that fast.These strobe-direct-drive systems lock in at 33.3 rpm or 45 rpm and show you as the strobe flashes on the marking along the base of the platter. Some let you adjust the TTs speed in small increments to get the markings to give the effect of staying still. These little bars only drift slightly back and forth showing you are quartz-locked into your needed rpms. In the case you have described there would be no such perception obtainable. The bars would always be a blur, as the platter was slowing down and speeding up per rotation.

 

They can be from power surges from the AC effecting the speed of the drive motor. I think your direct-drive system stops that though? The AC has more of a speed effect with something like a simple motor/belt used with a VPI system.

 

The platters are usually not made out of something that could warp. There is a much better chance to get warp from your records.

 

When you say it drags, are you hearing a contact resulting sound. I'm more accustomed with 1200s but I'm guessing the platter comes straight up and off? Maybe not? Any electronics guy can tell you if the motor is failing. The record clamp is theoretically to reduce slipping by the record. They even make record rings too which help press the edges down reducing the adverse effects of a record warp.

 

Are you actually hearing a tone wobble in the music like you have a non-constant speed issue? Hard to believe the sound would change per single rotation?

Edited by Redcarmoose - 11/4/12 at 4:58am

 

Thanks for your reply. it's really difficult to express what I'm hearing on Day 2 - I've been away from vinyl for so long. Records can and do warp, so I took the extra step to observe the wheel/platter with no record. The strobe looks to be in sync, however, the wheel isn't perfectly round. So, when it goes around... not always but sometimes I'll hear the pitch slow for a hot second. 

 

It's as if something slipped, then caught it's grip and all is ok. Different records sound either worse or more forgiving. Some records I won't even notice. But again, I made my observations by looking at the wheel, disk, platter or whatever you be calling it, go round and round. Perhaps, a lil' too much Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of steel in my music collection.

 

Since this table is a short-term solution, I may just roll widit! I'm enjoying getting reacquainted with the sound of vinyl, flaws and all. There's simply more dynamics, shimmer and other lively notes that doesn't fully come through via my digital rig. It's been really really fun the past two sessions, save one tiny little problem - nearly all my vinyl collection is in storage except the 8 LP's I have on hand. And have already burned out listening to them over-and-over. Gonna need to buy some more records! 

Yes, I remember hearing that effect. Like it's something where the motor is trying to speed up the platter just for a second. There will be somebody here that will enlighten us on the ins and outs of servo/quartz time-warps and the treatment there of.

 

I once thought heard a strange scratching sound coming out of my turntables like Grandmaster Flash, turns out..........the gal next door was having her own party of sorts?

 

Edited by Redcarmoose - 11/4/12 at 5:55am

^^^
I'm haveing the same problem, just got my first turntable as a gift (garrard AT 6 mk. 2) and as the table rotates it kinda wavers, always in the samespot.
took the whole thing apart and regreased all the parts that the manual pointed out, everthing looked fine. but back together I'm haveing the same problem

any fixes? or should I be looking for a nicer one?

Wavers?  Wobbles?  

 

It could only be a few things.  Either the platter wasn't machined right, the sub platter (if there is one) wasn't machined right, or the shaft is bent.  Who knows, something heavy enough might have fallen on it sometime.  Can you rotate the platter into a different position on the sub platter?  

Edited by Eee Pee - 11/4/12 at 12:42pm

With the SL1200 you would just stick a new bearing assembly (which includes a new shaft) in there, problem solved for under $50.



Are parts easily available for this Sony?
Edited by grokit - 11/4/12 at 1:06pm

 

Yes. There seems to be a slight rise and fall, ebb and flow.  Redcarmoose hit the nail on the head with the description on how it sounds.

The issue here is the speed. Skylab's question is also a concern. Does the warp move from side to side or up and down. Many tables are going to have a slight side to side platter movement which will not effect the speed. If the strobe never changes it's pattern your ok, I would think.

 

http://www.vinylengine.com/library/sony/ps-x5.shtml

 

Here is a download the owners manual but you have to register to get it.

 

Haven't got that far along. I spent the night contemplating investing a few dollars in it versus getting a brand entry level table 'round $500 - Music Hall, Pro-Ject or even a pre-owned MM-7 for $600. The tea tins are a bit barren at this writing...

 

Great! After actually hearing feedback from you all, tonight will bring greater focus - will likely hone in on the suspect. 'Cause the more I think about it, it IS about the variation of speed. And the ever so slight side-to-side, rise and fall seems a kind of normal. Just fired my second TT, while my beloved Oakland Raiders hang on to a slim lead, and the second table's platter looks identical going round-and-round, but no variances with speed.

 

You guys are good!