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2020 update : JC Verdier La Platine

A recent encounter with a JC Verdier dealer as well as a recent Audiogon discussion thread led to the start of this thread. He was in my house updating my La Platine which had been in storage for ten years with thread and oil. While he has high regards for the deck, his newer clients nevertheless prefer a Techdas iii than an 'old' La Platine. Given the proliferation of expensive decks in the past dozen years, La Platine has become very much under-appreciated. 

It's clear to me that the influence of the La Platine is everywhere to be found. Specifically, the magnetic suspension system that was employed 30+ years ago. Even SOTA offers their newer decks with mag. lev. features. And if you read this review: https://www.callas-audio.nl/Callas%20Platine%20Mod%20Kit%20Review.pdf, the Continuum Caliburn uses the same concept, which was not acknowledged in Fremer's review, albeit with more sophisticated , and expensive, execution.

It is also clear to me that there is much misunderstanding of the workings of the La Platine. I for one have contributed to this. The motor of the La Platine, for example, has been much maligned. The thread drive is another aspect of the turntable that have been described as inferior. With regard to the motor and thread drive, I have been set straight by Chris @ct0517 and Lyubomir @lbelchev. Experimenting with the different types of silk threads, the tightness to the platter  and a renewed understanding of the soundness of the Philips motor have been rewarded with better dynamics and transparency. 

The funny thing is that during the past two years of re-engagement with audio, I have questioned ownership of every components in my arsenal except the La Platine. It has always been a keeper. I wonder if La Platine owners would contribute to celebrating this 'old' deck with tales, advice, and insights?

Cheers!
ledoux1238
ledoux1238 OP
341 posts
 

@thekong The Terminator is underrated. If you had used it before and liked it, then wait til you hear it with a 150 litre surge tank / buffer setup. It becomes Terminator Se+ version! I run it at 1.30 psi. Members here have operated with pressure as low as 0.5psi. 

A 16" version would be something to see.

Does your friend go by "Daiwok'?

 

phantom_av's avatar
phantom_av
326 posts
 

Stacore stuff is very pricy, MinusK been arround for years and seem to hold better value for money, Stacore seems to market the stuff to audiophile and as a results puts a audiophile price tags on its products.

thekong
217 posts
 

@ledoux1238 , yes, my friend is David, aka Daiwok .

 

@phantom_av , yes, I am always skeptical about these audiophile brand anti-vibration devices! They seem to be no more than basic industrial devices with a better looking casing. I have looked at the Stacore, and it seem to be a passive pneumatic devices in a fancy slate case. The passive pneumatic device is nothing new. Is it better with slate? I am not sure. But if you think the slate makes a difference, you probably can have similar, or better, performance by putting a slate plate on something like a vibraplane, even better on an active vibraplane .

ledoux1238 OP
341 posts
 

@thekong I am wondering if you have a preference between the Kuzma or Schroeder arm? I realize it's more an arm / cartridge issue, but is one arm a better fit for the Verdier? Do you need two different arm-pods for each arm? Any arm height, clearance, or set up issues one need to look out for? 

BTW, I learnt a lot from Daiwok regarding the Terminator. He turned me onto the idea of additional air filtration. I wrote to Vic once regarding filtration, and it appears that he had always been using the generic 1 gallon tank!

@phantom_av Do you currently use an anti-vibration platform, DIY or otherwise?

 

thekong
217 posts
 

@ledoux1238 , I have mounted the Schroeder on the armpod, but yet to align the cartridge. The brass arm column I am using is similar to the one you posted, but with 2 levels, the bottom level is 65mm tall and the 2nd level (you can call it a spacer) adds another 10mm. This is designed to give me more leeway when mounting the Airline, which requires a minimum clearance of 30mm in height between the armboard and platter surface.

 

The buffer system David and I were using for the Terminator was a 2 stage setup, the first stage was an Airtech tank, which was originally designed for the ET, at around 4-5 gallons in size I think, the the second stage was a smaller tank at around 1-1.5 gallon. That worked well, but I suppose a larger tank would be even better if there was no space restriction.

 

Bests,    

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