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Every day I see another turntable recommendation...

After digging into this topic, I am convinced now I need to go a bit higher on this first vinyl set up. I think all in, I am prepared at this point to go up to $5k, for the table alone, not including arm or cartridge.

But frankly, being on this forum is like drinking from an information firehose. I have learned a bunch and yet somehow, I am less convicted than before.

With that in mind, to narrow down the decision, I am want to restrict myself to things I can buy, hear and, if necessary, service locally. My local dealers stock, AMG, AVM, Basis, Clearaudio, Michell, Musichall, Pro-ject, Rega, VPI, so I am likely restricted to those brands. I am certain my view will change by the end of this thread.

saulh
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,253 posts
 

@cleeds , always a pleasure. Having owned two Linns I can certify that the AR XA is more stable than the Linn. The Linn is not tricky to set up at all. You set it up just like any other turntable. You just have to put it in a bullet proof situation, a very stable platform. The problem is that there is no reasonable platform stable enough. I sold the first Linn in frustration but back then I did not know near as much as I do now. After several other turntables it became obvious that the Linn sounded better than other turntables of the day so I wound up getting another one. I sold #2 in 1980 or so when I got my first Sota. What a breath of fresh air. 

There are plenty of videos showing an earthquake wave traveling along the ground. Obviously seismology is not your subject. Earthquakes are not happening on a continuous basis but they are happening all the time. Most of them so mild you do not feel them. Really big earthquakes, above Richter 5 are fortunately not frequent. 

Many audiophiles tap around their turntables to determine the level of isolation. Michael Fremer does this occasionally. Is a hammer excessive? Not if you want a turntable that is totally immune to everything. You may not want this but I do and there may be a few other nut jobs out there like me who want it also. I mention it just to let people know it is possible. I can bump into my turntable, drop the dust cover, run into the cabinet, etc and not only will it not skip but you can not hear a twitter through the system with the volume maxed out. The result is a dead quiet turntable. Is this excessive? Given that the background noise on the record is magnitudes higher, it probably is.  It certainly is for you.

 

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cleeds
5,729 posts
 
mijostyn

Having owned two Linns I can certify that the AR XA is more stable than the Linn. The Linn is not tricky to set up at all.

That you think the Linn turntable isn't tricky to set up - especially given that you're talking about its older models - certainly explains why you also claim "they have to be the poorest suspended turntables made." Because, if improperly set up, that's exactly what they can sound like.

Obviously seismology is not your subject. Earthquakes are not happening on a continuous basis but they are happening all the time. Most of them so mild you do not feel them.

As usual, you double-down on your science fantasies. That's why I included the link to NASA in response to you because earthquakes are not "happening all the time." If you disagree, take the issue up with NASA. Here's the link again for you - you might want to read it since you claim expertise in seismology. Here's how it starts:

What Is an Earthquake?

An earthquake is an intense shaking of Earth’s surface.

Many audiophiles tap around their turntables to determine the level of isolation.

Of course. It's a good test.

Is a hammer excessive? Not if you want a turntable that is totally immune to everything.

You don't need to hammer your turntable to make it immune. There's no cause and effect there at all. But it's a cool parlor trick. VPI's Harry Weisfeld has done it and he wasn't the first.

What's especially odd about your claims about constant earthquakes and delight in hammering your turntable is that you've previously insisted that any system with true LF performance (around 20 hZ or so) will require a rumble filter, including yours. So you obviously have some LF issues there that I hope you can resolve, because they aren't caused by constant earthquakes.

pindac's avatar
pindac
2,506 posts
 

I know that individuals who attach materials to measuring devices to check for Damping and Dissipation properties, will usually use a hammer to tap a suspended material or drop a steel ball from a pre determined height on to the material under test.

Is it possible the hammer seen to be more scientific as used in the above methods.

When using the hammer as a instrument for striking and using it in conjunction with the stylus resting on the LP?, would this be considered the best method to detect audible sound being generated through vibration, especially when striking the local structures with a a steel material.

It would be good to know why the hammer is seen to be so important for the test in place of a knuckle wrap which is quite a common method.  

slaw's avatar
slaw
20,526 posts
 

In my experience of trying different materials to tame resonance, I have become a big fan of springs. I've put much time and money into it.

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cleeds
5,729 posts
 

slaw

In my experience of trying different materials to tame resonance, I have become a big fan of springs.

Same here. I can't imagine trying to get good LF performance with an unsuspended turntable. The SOTA that @mijostyn uses has one of the best, imo.

There are active isolation platforms that you can use under an unsuspended turntable, but that seems a bit too Rube Goldberg-ish to me.

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