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Review: Teres Audio Pulley Upgrade

The Teres Pulley Upgrade consist of the FF:

1.) A Mylar tape to replace the Silk string.
2.) A wider replacement pulley to accomodate the Mylar tape.
3.) A piece of fine sanding paper to clean and polish the shaft once
the old pulley is replace, and
4.) Instructions on how to change from the existing pulley to the new one. The instruction provides information of what type of pulley (there are two pulley-generations; motor shipped after and before 29 June 2003) removal technique should be employed.

Following the instructions religiously (Mr. Chris Brady wrote the instructions in a way that it is very easy to comprehend) on how to extract the kind of pulley you have, it will take not more than 3 minutes to install the new one. After the new pulley is inserted to the shaft, the only thing left is to align the Mylar tape hugging the platter to the motor.

In my system, the result of this upgrade is a very positive one. Immediately, the platter's rotational stability is evident since the sensor (green LED) locks to the specific speed (33 1/3 rpm) faster than when I am using the Silk string. It can be attributed to less slipage from the Mylar tape on the platter because of bigger area of contact than the string during initial start. As a result, the platters stability maybe improved dramatically.

Listening to familiar records, I can detect that improvements are present because of the upgrade. The music of has more vibrancy on the highs, focus on the midrange, and definition on the bass. Attacks are more natural, and extensions seems to be more precise.

In my system, the pulley-mylar tape upgrade really works. At $28 for the total cost of this upgrade, any Teres turn-table owner (series 255 and below) should consider this upgrade a necessity and cannot be ignored. Or else, it is your loss!

CAVEAT- Be careful not to creased the Mylar tape. Doing so will produce a ticking sound once it passes the pulley. Once this happens, allowing the Mylar tape to stretch for a while (motor running for 45 minutes, the duration when the motor ceased to its power-off mode) will decrease the ticking sound considerably.

The upgrade is available by contacting Chris Brady through the contact info as provided in the Teres Audio website.

SYSTEM:

Martin Logan Ascents
Teres 255
Benz Ace M Cartridge
OL Silver Tonearm
Wright Sound Phono preamp
MAD Octal 6A triplex tube preamp-modified
Odyssey Audio Monoblocks
IC's are upgraded OTA from NEAR SOTA Cables
Acoustic Zen Hologram MKII and Satori speaker cables.

Abe R.
amandarae
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Abe, great review. Glad to know you heard exactly the same benefits we did when we A/B'd string vs. tape on our 265. There are no sonic downsides, just better speed stability. I'd guess that Teres TT's without lead-loaded platters would benefit most, since a lighter platter is more easily slowed by stylus drag. Nevertheless, the benefits on even a 265 were immediately apparent. It's a super upgrade for virtually no cost.

The only risk, as we both discovered the hard way, is crinkling the tape. I replaced mine after I mangled it and got tired of hearing that little "crunch" at every revolution. I also made the new tape an inch or two longer, so it's easier to slip over the pulley.

I unplug the motor when installing/adjusting the tape. That way it won't start up and eat the tape when I move the platter.
musicdoc
320 posts
 
thanks for the review. i've been using a clearaudio round section rubber belt to good effect with my cocobolo 245, having too many thumbs to tie the thread correctly. i think i can handle the tape well enough--just need to find the time and opportunity to do it!
amandarae OP
512 posts
 
Dougdeacon and MusicDoc,

You're welcome! I made a few belts from VHS tape using a thin sheet of aluminum tape(cut into 1/2 inch X 1 inch length) to hold the ends together symmetrically. The results are positive too. Yes, a bit longer belt than the 42 inches circumference makes it easier when placing it to the pulley and the platter to avoid the "crunching sound". What I've done to prevent the motor starting during this processs is to cover the sensor with a regular bond paper. I then manually rotate the platter to see if the pulley and the tape are of the same level. After a few revolutions and adjustment, and noting that the tape does not slide up or down from the pulley, you're done.

Kidding aside, I am contemplating in using a XXX tape for the belts. Although I am sure that it will provide "velvety" sound and tremendous "slam", I am worried that the background will be dull and out of focused most of the time. Not to mention that vocals (especially moaning sound or close to it) will be dramatically emphasized. Also, I do not want to lift the needle after one song to move to the next(fast forward) every now and then too.

Abe
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