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Why does your turntable sound the way it does.

Ok, we all seem to agree that turntables sound different, and there are any number of upgrades to a basic turntable that are offered, up to and over $100k. But what is it that causes a turntable to sound the way it does. After all, isnt the basic principal that the table causes the groove undulations to pass by the stylus at a certain speed, thereby creating the sound we hear. If that's true, then only something that affects that point of interaction should have an effect on sound. Forget of course, differences in cartridge, tonearm, wire or preamp. Just think of the turntable itself.
Now, we hear that idler drives are more impactful than belt drives, belt drives are quieter and release more inner detail, direct drives maintain speed and tempo better, aluminum platters sound different than acrylic or glass or MDF. Platter mats can change the sound considerably. different bearing materials and precision in manufacture can change the sound. but why?
Is there a basic sound to be acheived when everything is perfect, and what we are hearing is actually a distortion of that sound based on resonance or time or torque or vibration or whatever. Is there a means of measuring what a cartridge can do in a perfectly set up system where there is no influence on the stylus/vinyl interface and the cartridge is free to follow the groove undulations without exterior influence. Is this perfect environment found in the cutting head, or is it also subject to the same influences as the playback stylus. And if so, how can we ever account for that effect in our playback systems.

So, fellow Audiogoners, what do you think has the greatest effect on vinyl playback as far as only the turntable itself, and what do you think can be done to ammeliorate those effects.
manitunc
mapman's avatar
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mapman
15,679 posts
 
Audiofiles sure love to ask questions that have no simple answer. I guess that helps perpetuate the breed.

Turntables have been around a long time. There are no unexplored great mysteries here. Do some homework and experiment until done right. Or hire a skilled professional to do it for you. Why spend time debating these things that are well documented over the years and have no simple answer?

I guess if one likes to go on and on about turntables or whatever in general there is no harm but what's the point? The devil is always in teh details. Pick a specific configuration and then maybe there is something to talk about why it sounds the way it does.
stanwal's avatar
stanwal
3,147 posts
 
Why does a car drive the way it does? Air in tires might be wrong pressure; wheels might be out of alignment; ignition might be malfunctioning and so on. Complex mechanical systems can be out of alignment in many ways. When the Hale telescope on Mt Palomar was built it was slightly out of alignment; this was fixed BY STRETCHING A SPRING LOADED FISHING SCALE over the bottom of the scope. Decades later a new user took it off and it went out of alignment again; putting it back fixed everything. This story is from a history of the telescope; its weight in in the hundreds of tons. When someone asks me a question like this I channel my inner Rogers and Hammerstein 'Who can explain it, who can tell you why, fools give you reasons, wise men never try" LOL
marakanetz's avatar
marakanetz
5,473 posts
 
hell yes. the fish swims because of water.
tonywinsc
583 posts
 
It sounds exactly how I want it to sound. I accomplished that by sheer willpower.
actusreus
733 posts
 
So, fellow Audiogoners, what do you think has the greatest effect on vinyl playback as far as only the turntable itself, and what do you think can be done to ammeliorate those effects.

To answer the first question: a perfectly concocted vodka martini, with good Scotch close second. To answer your second question: another vodka martini, or, in the alternative, more good Scotch.
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