Direct Drive vs. Idler Drive vs. Belt drive

your first reaction to a good direct drive is that it will sound somewhat digital, in that it won’t have any character of it’s own. of course, it can sound perfectly natural yet the lack of coloration will require an adjustment. it will have more slam, but not quite the drive, of your idlers. lower noise, blacker backgrounds, wider stage, a bigger, spacious type sound, not quite as focused. it might be more speed steady than your belt drive.

Rock music will soar with direct drive. large scale will hold together. maybe slightly less sexy than the belt drives, maybe a touch less liquid. the contrast will depend on the quality of your three choices for drive types and their level of condition and set-up and ancillary gear.

as you go up the food chain for each of these drive types they all get very quiet and there are fewer downsides of their drive types, just attributes to enjoy. better bearings, heavier platters, higher mass plinths, better motors....matter in each drive type. no replacement for displacement. music loves to be grounded solidly.

Apologies for going somewhat OT.

@ atmasphere:

A good platter pad will simultaneously damp the platter and silence the vibration in the LP; this has to be done with a platter pad that has the same hardness (durometer) as the vinyl. In that way energy from the LP is absorbed and not reflected back the the LP.

I must confess that I don’t really get this, as I don’t see how a mat can simultaneously be an effective and non-reflective absorber of energy and have the same hardness as the vinyl record.

Is there some science available on this subject that I can read? If so, links would be much appreciated.

Mike, you brought up an interesting point...better bearings. IME, this is actually what matters more than the drive type. I think this attribute is one of the most overlooked aspects of turntable design, and yet I think it is one of the most important factors to great SQ!

I replaced the bearing in my 401 idler and the improvement was transformative. So much so, that anyone with an original is not hearing what the table is capable of.

Is the Technics SP10 enough for me to experience many of the qualities direct drive has to offer?

Mike
How are all your new turntables comparing to your reel to reel? I'm on a similar journey with reel to reel as I am with vinyl. 

noromance
link to the bearing you're using would be much appreciated.