dougdeacon
Responses from dougdeacon
| Brighter, livelier than benz lp The cartridges Jmcgrogan2 listed would provide more of what you're seeking, though I have my doubts that the money they cost would be well spent. Your tonearm would not let you hear everything a UNIverse or Titan i can do. Not sure about your phon... | |
| Tracking down cause of distortion on vinyl A dirty stylus can sound a lot like you described. Before you spend significant money on a fix which might be only guesswork, try properly cleaning your stylus. The key word in the previous sentence was, "properly". I've saved a dozen "worn out" o... | |
| MC cart, can I use MM phono preamp? Opaceo, Your supposition is correct. If you compare several manufacturers' recommended phono input impedance settings for their LOMC's, you'll notice two things:- recommended values are all over the map (ranging from 10 ohms up to 47k)- recommende... | |
| Strobe question I use a cheap GE light stick, an under-counter flourescent fixture that's small enough to hand-hold. Cost me $10 (at most) from Home Depot.I emphasize cheap because, as others have noted, the light must flicker with the mains frequency (60 Hz in t... | |
| Twisting wire on VPI for anti skate? Thanks for clarifying, Captain w. I'm not much familiar with VPI arms and wasn't aware that the A/S device *could* affect azimuth. Given that unexpected "feature", checking crosstalk seems like a prudent step. | |
| Twisting wire on VPI for anti skate? 1. Anti-skating does not affect crosstalk. Checking crosstalk because you adjusted A/S is like checking the oil because you adjusted tire pressure. ;)2. The HFN&RR test record makes a handy dust cover for the platter when the TT's not in use. ... | |
| Twisting wire on VPI for anti skate? With no anti skating, all was well except one album that skipped on the first track. A/S is intended to balance stylus pressures against the opposing groovewalls during play, not to prevent the stylus from racing down the angled slope of most lead... | |
| Replace VPI TNT rubber belt with nylon thread Ah... cryo treatment. Another great tweak! | |
| Upgrade for users of 1/2" mylar belt Tim,I just noticed the question at the end of your last post. The LP I described above (which Paul calls my "la-dee-dah record") is this one:‘Les Plaisirs de la Renaissance’ (Harmonia Mundi, HMU 963) There are many such recordings on the (French) ... | |
| Replace VPI TNT rubber belt with nylon thread Mylar tape (even without the special treatment I described on that thread) performs far better than rubbery belts, silk thread, dental floss, recording tape, vcr tape, spiderweb fibers or anything else we've tried.BUT, the motor's capstan and the ... | |
| Remove your bias for better sound What I hear is a "freedom", and suspect that the constant force of the anti-bias is damping the stylus. Bingo. A concise distillation of the long-winded explanations I've been posting for years, including my first post above. | |
| Remove your bias for better sound Dover, Thanks for the alternate view... very useful insights on the competing forces at work here. I'll defer to anyone with a real understanding of physics as to how the forces net out. In anecdotal terms, I've played with zero A/S on my Triplana... | |
| Remove your bias for better sound Almarg,First, a correction if I may: playing with zero A/S will not cause a cantilever to deflect toward the outer edge of the record. Think about it. Groove friction pulls a cantilever along the line of its own axis (subject to minor variances in... | |
| Using the VPI threaded clamp and azimuth change I DON'T have a VPI but I DO use a washer and a threaded clamp! <;-) | |
| Review: ZYX UNIverse II Cartridge Albert, I know you had some time with the original UNIverse (Cello's, I think). You've also had the UNIverse II in house?Good input in any event and good advice on auditioning both (preferably in the same system). This is indeed expensive territor... |