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VPI Traveler skipping - no anti skate

Hi everyone,

Back again with another analog question.  For Xmas I bought myself a VPI Traveler, and I've been working on setting it up today.  It sounds absolutely fantastic...for about half a song, and then it starts skipping.  The tonearm has a tendency to pull towards the rim of the record pretty significantly.  There is no anti-skating adjustment on this table.  VPI only recommends applying a slightly higher VTF (about .1 gram).  They also suggest a slight twist of the tonearm wire to apply slight pressure to the tonearm.  

Well, I have tried both a Grado Sonata and a Denon DL-110, and in neither case can I get through a song without the record skipping as the tonearm pulls back towards the outer rim of the record.  I have raised the VTF, fiddled with the tonearm height, checked the leveling of the table, used 180 gram and standard records.  In all cases it skips repeatedly.  

I found one other discussion of this problem on Steve Hoffman's forum, but there was never a resolution posted. Any thoughts on what I might do?  

Thanks, Scott
smrex13
15 responses Add your response
mofimadness's avatar
mofimadness
4,152 posts
 
Make sure the arm is not touching the cueing lever support bar.  This happens all the time.  You might need to lower the arm lifting tower just a bit so it isn't touching the arm.
smrex13 OP
423 posts
 
Already checked that.  And now the tonearm came loose.  I think I'll buy a CD player...
smrex13 OP
423 posts
 
Ok, got the tonearm fixed up - one of the screws had come loose inside the housing. Anyway, still skips on every song.  The arm pulls back towards the rim.  It's a 12 gram tonearm, and by all accounts the Grado should be a good match.  

Any other thoughts?  The anti skate mechanisms that I've seen are to help the arm counter the inward pull of the record.  In this case, I'm trying to counter the opposite problem - it's like the arm wants to get back on the armrest. 

Frustratedly yours,
Scott
mofimadness's avatar
mofimadness
4,152 posts
 
How are you checking the VTF?  Do you have a digital gauge or something like a Shure?  And what VTF are you using for the carts?

A tonearm is pretty simple if the bearings aren't wasted.  If it skips on every song, something has to be impeding the arm's movement.

I know the Traveler's arm is a little different to set tracking force.  Are you sure you are doing it right?
inna
5,245 posts
 
Set the tracking force at the lowest within the range recommended by the cartridge manufacturer and see what happens.

terrybbagit
31 posts
 
Another thing that might be worth checking is that the stylus is aligned correctly.
smrex13 OP
423 posts
 
To answer the questions...

1.  I'm using a digital stylus gauge to set the VTF.  I have tried the low and the high end of the cartridge recommendations, and they skip regardless.  Setting the VTF is fairly straightforward on the Traveler.

2.  The stylus (on both cartridges) seems to be aligned correctly.

3.  Perhaps the bearings were damaged when the tonearm came loose.  I had to do some pretty precise surgery to get things back together.  

4.  It sounds damn good for 30-40 seconds and then it starts skipping.

I'm going to call Music Direct tomorrow to see what they suggest.

Thanks, Scott
inna
5,245 posts
 
I would exchange the table. The question is for what? I would never use an tonearm without anti-skate and VTA adjustments. Their advice - just increase the tracking force- is BS, that's not the way. At least in my experience with Nottingham Spacearm slight changes in anti-skate affect the sound, and that's good. It takes time to find the best overall combination of the VTF, VTA and anti-skate but it pays off.
paraneer's avatar
paraneer
818 posts
 

While this TT does not have any anti-skate, it does indeed have very good VTA adjustment. Also, do you have a Traveler V1 or V2? The V1 did have tonearm problems that were rectified with the V2.

So a simple test should tell if you have faulty bearings. Does your tonearm have free travel both up and down and left to right? Simply get a hold of it by the finger grip and with the cueing lever down, check to see if it will freely move in the above directions under your control. Most important, make sure it can travel all the way to the center of the platter (where the label would be) with a fluid movement without any restraint - especially by the outer support ring of the gimbals. Is it banging into this?

If the above doesn't check out, you should have no problems returning to Music Direct as they are a great outfit.

I have a V2 and have had no problems whatsoever with playback of any records. I increased VTF by the recommended 0.1 gram and used the Baerwald solution on the supplied plastic protractor for my cartridge. Good luck brother and I am sure you will get to the bottom of this - the Traveler is a great table.

stringreen's avatar
stringreen
5,112 posts
 
It sounds that you checked everything....I would send it back to the dealer/or get in touch with VPI.  Why knock yourself out...you bought a good product and fully expect it to work.
cantgetnosat
17 posts
 
I am assuming that the problem exists for multiple records and is not due to a dirty record.

You haven't said you leveled the turntable.
hwsworkshop
36 posts
 
If it plays for a few minutes it is not the bearings, remove the wire from its connection and see if it tracks the record.  If so the wire is either too twisted or not twisted enough.  Did you buy this from Music Direct??  If so they will back you up completely.  They are the only retailer with Travelers, we stopped making them a year ago.
smrex13 OP
423 posts
 
Thanks everyone.  Yes - the turntable is level, and it skips on every record I put on, not just the older/dirtier ones.  I tried running it without the wire as recommended above, but it still skips constantly.  At this point, it's completely unusable, so I'm just waiting to hear back from a "specialist" at Music Direct.   This experience makes me hesitate on trying another table with no anti-skate.  

In my searches online I've come across several people who have had either the similar skipping problem (pulling back to the outer rim of the table) or the tonearm issue (coming loose from the housing).  

I'll keep y'all posted,
Scott
inna
5,245 posts
 
Yes please do. 
smrex13 OP
423 posts
 
Looks like Music Direct is going to exchange it for me next week.  I'll give another Traveler a try and see what happens....
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