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Help in isolating a TT with spring suspension.

Hello,

I recently got an old Pioneer PL-10 TT at an estate sale. After cleaning it up and getting a new headshell and belt for it, it looks and sounds to be in NM condition.

It sounds great as long as you just sit there, but as soon as you start walking around, even softly with no shoes, etc., it causes the tonearm to skip around a bit. I replaced the rubber feet the springs rested on and leveled it, but it still vibrates when you walk.

Are these types of TT's normally this sensitive? I find this unacceptable. I'd like to keep this TT if I can eliminate this problem. It's original rubber feet are pretty hard and chintzy. Would getting some kind of cone feet help? It is resting on a vertical rack which isn't exactly audiophile quality, but isn't light weight junk either.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated, but please make them somewhat reasonable (no $900 Harmonix feet)!
128x128chris_383
lewm
6,770 posts
 
Depends on how flexible and creaky your floor really is. If you locate the shelving against a support wall of your house, that will mitigate the problem to some degree. After that I suggest a heavy hardwood shelf to go between your existing shelf and your tt. Between the hardwood slab and the support shelf, you might try springs that are available very cheaply from McMaster Carr on the internet. Select the springs based on the combined mass of the upper hardwood shelf and your tt. Dave Garretson has used these springs very effectively. You might search for his posts here and on Vinyl Asylum, under DGarretson. The other suggestions offered above might work but seem to me to be very expensive and time consuming.
jb0194
476 posts
 
Have you verified (with a gauge)that the stylus is at the correct tracking force? If your table uses a "spring" anti-skating system, has its proper functioning been checked?
twilightround's avatar
twilightround
23 posts
 
I don't know this turntable, so this response may not apply. I take it the platter is suspended. You say you've had other turntables that were not that bad. Were they suspension tables? If so, the springs on this table may account for the difference. To the extent that they are adjustable, you could try putting more weight on the platter and increasing the tension on the springs to get less bounce. You could experiment with, for example, a small vase that might weigh two or three pounds. Center it mouth down over the spindle to see how the turntable reacts to the weight. If you can get the platter at the right height, then you might want to consider buying a weight or clamp, or a heavier mat, or even a ring, or some combination of these. Any of these might also improve the sound, and the ring does help to flatten any small warps.
chris_383's avatar
chris_383 OP
15 posts
 
Have you verified (with a gauge)that the stylus is at the correct tracking force? If your table uses a "spring" anti-skating system, has its proper functioning been checked?
The cartridge on the TT was professionally installed. It tracks light at 1.5 grams so increasing it a little might help slightly but the whole plinth jiggles and shakes when walking in the room so the problem is bigger than that.
willfan89
13 posts
 
Chris,
I understand your frustration. I've been there.
I believe that you have 2 choices.
First, use a different turntable. Secondly,
look at the problem from a different perspective ( somehow make it work in the room)
and find a way to utilize one of Nsgarch's suggestions.
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