$800 Cartridge Shootout and Upgrade Path

Hey Doug,

What does ROFL mean? Is it like “ROTC?”

I think it’s fairly obvious that Twl is very knowledgeable, but I don’t know how he came by that knowledge. Some amateurs are quite talented. Maybe Twl is one of them. But apparently he is not an amateur so it would be interesting to learn about his background as well as yours. So start talking… : > )

And thanks for the very informative experiment you ran this week. But the very things you described missing in the expensive turntable/tonearm combination used with a cheap cartridge – “no highs, not much bass, kinda slow and sludgy” – are some of the attributes of the Koetsu Tiger Eye/Denon setup, except I didn’t really hear slowness and sludge. Hmmmm?

Letch,

I wouldn’t imagine that there’s a large difference in sonic quality between the platters used on the Teres 255 versus the one used on the 265, but you will need to ask Doug for more information. I think it’s more a matter of aesthetics than sound. I prefer the look of acrylic on wood, rather than wood on wood. But that’s me.

While you know I like the Teres 255, please keep in mind that you will have to do some finishing work, and you will need to feel fairly comfortable with that decision. I am sure that more than a couple of hours are required despite what is said on the Teres web sit. But if the process does not intimidate you, by all means go for it!

If I were to buy the Galibier, I would choose the upgrade platter, especially after reading Twl’s comments above about rotational momentum reducing stylus drag. I think that’s important. However, the PVC platter does not appeal to me from an aesthetics point of view. Sure PVC might be heavier, but I like the look of acrylic much better.

I don’t know what you have read about acrylic platters, but there seems to be many turntables that use acrylic for their platters including Clearaudio, Transrotor, and Bluenote, just to name three. And if you go with the lead-shot version, you will be buying a platter with a lot more mass, which should help reduce the upper-midrange resonance that Twl talked about. I am also wondering what a platter mat might do as well?

Let me know about your listening impressions after you have heard the Teres. I won’t get that opportunity before I buy.

Artar,

I guess I'll give you the quick rundown on my TT. Since wood is my business, and one of my favorite hobbies it was a fairly (ha!) straightforward affair. Selecting the woods for the look I wanted was actually harder than everything but the veneering of the radii on the plinth.

The quality level I was shooting for is probably a little less than what Chris sends out. I knew I'd never sell it, so there was one thing I really didn't care to get too anal about. To look at the pictures it looks like an heirloom piece. But there are a couple of slight flaws in the veneer that I didn't feel like fixing. Since I had a vacuum clamp/veneer bagging system on order at the time, I knew if I wanted to fix it it would be easy. I used cauls and clamps, and while I could have made it perfect, I wanted to get it done. If I would have waited for the bag, it would be perfect.

The process itself was simple, if you have access to the tools and knowledge:

Select grain you want to show, lay out wood, cut wood.



Joint wood, plane wood, cut wood again, lay up wood, glue wood, clamp wood, sand.



Layout holes, drill holes, fill holes with lead, plug holes, making sure that the curly end grain on each of the teak plugs lines up exactly, then sand.



Sand some more, prep for veneer, veneer, sand, sand some more, sand even more!



Many coats of shellac, using steel wool in between each coat.

Final polish with pumice suspended in paraffin oil using a felt pad.



Easy, eh?

One thing I did was make it a little bigger all around than a “stock” Teres. I just wanted some more heft. The other thing I did was to make sure the top and bottom surfaces were parallel. I mean parallel within .005” using a surface plate and dial indicators. I about crapped when we tested that, because on top of the sanding, I used a scraper for a better finish. I did use a machine sander to do the first rough sanding, but only down to 220 grit. I ended up with 800 grit & the scraper. Watching that needle not move was one of the most satisfying moments of the build.

Now I have steel templates to use for the next ones I build. There are a couple going now, out of various materials. I also bought 2 acrylic plinths from Chris. Why, I don’t know, but they were only $150 shipped. I may make some cool stands out of them!

If I ever get time to revise my site, I’m going to include a quite lengthy Word document that details what I did, complete with sarcasms and my bombastic wit!

P.S Now that I found out how to do pics, I'm going to have fun 'till the mods put an end to it!

Jphii,

Wow! Wow! Wow! What else can I say? You have done a fantastic job! And you make it sound so easy, which of course it is not. You have much to be proud of, and your turntable is just gorgeous! Congratulations! Thanks for sharing.

>>The quality level I was shooting for is probably a little less than what Chris sends out.<<

It looks the same to me. I can’t tell the difference, and it seems perfect to me.

>> Layout holes, drill holes, fill holes with lead, plug holes, making sure that the curly end grain on each of the teak plugs lines up exactly, then sand.<<

How did you sand the plugs when it looks like the grain of each plug does not go in the same direction as the reset of the base?

>>Many coats of shellac, using steel wool in between each coat.<<

What type of shellac did you use? Did you brush or spray?

>>Final polish with pumice suspended in paraffin oil using a felt pad.<<

Is there any source I can turn to for more information about this polishing technique? What grit of pumice did you use and how did you suspend it in paraffin oil? Where did you get the felt pads?

>>The other thing I did was to make sure the top and bottom surfaces were parallel. I mean parallel within .005” using a surface plate and dial indicators.<<

Incredible! Great job!

>>Now I have steel templates to use for the next ones I build. There are a couple going now, out of various materials.<<

You’re going to build more turntables?

>>If I ever get time to revise my site, I’m going to include a quite lengthy Word document that details what I did, complete with sarcasms and my bombastic wit!<<

I look forward to reading it! What a great story!

What does ROFL mean? Is it like “ROTC?”

Rolling On Floor Laughing, which I'm now doing again of course. Now you have to work out ROFLMAO.

I think it’s fairly obvious that Twl is very knowledgeable, but I don’t know how he came by that knowledge. Some amateurs are quite talented. Maybe Twl is one of them. But apparently he is not an amateur so it would be interesting to learn about his background as well as yours. So start talking… : > )

Not me!

And thanks for the very informative experiment you ran this week. But the very things you described missing in the expensive turntable/tonearm combination used with a cheap cartridge – “no highs, not much bass, kinda slow and sludgy” – are some of the attributes of the Koetsu Tiger Eye/Denon setup, except I didn’t really hear slowness and sludge. Hmmmm?

Well, that's probably the 25 year old cart and 10 year old suspension. It was musical though, with no extraneous noise from the TT of course. How was the Koetsu/Denon setup in that respect?