Some thoughts on dust covers
Over the course of time there have been many discussions concerning the subject of dust covers. They tend to revolve around the central question: Should the dust cover be down or up while playing records? Some of these discussions have been nasty, consequently I have refrained from participation. It is hoped that I can provide some common sense that was given to me by someone of unquestioned authority many years ago. During college and after, from 1970 to ~1980 I worked in HiFi retail, selling high end lines of audio equipment. One of these lines was Thorens. Sometime around 1977 or 1978, if memory serves, Thorens introduced their new TD126, as a top of the line TT with their own arm and I sold the first one at our store to very good customer. He came back very unhappy after the first night of frustration with it. The problem was that with the dust cover closed some of his favorite records were hitting tangentally on the very back were the platter came closest to the dust cover when it was in the closed position. I called the manufacturer's rep and he set up a three cornered phone call with himself, the Chief Engineer of Thorens at the time, and me. I don't recall the man's name, but it doesn't matter, it is what he said that matters, then and now. The Chief Engineer explained that the problem was caused because the hole in the offending records was slightly off center so there was an eccentricity as such a record rotates about the spindle. The solution was simplicity itself, the dust cover should be removed always when playing records. That the intent of the cover is to protect the turntable when not in use. I pointed out that we lived in a semi-arrid environment (San Diego, CA) which is dusty to which he replied that if the environment was too dusty for records it should also be considered unhealthy for people to be breathing the air. He recommended are filtration, not dust covers to address environmental concerns. The rep asked about air bourne feedback from speakers and the Thorens guy laughed and said that if that was a problem in a given system, relying of the dust cover was a very flimsy and ineffective solution and that proper measures should be instituted to provide meaningful distance and isolation to ameliorate the problem. So the often offered extremes: a) Always play your records with the dust cover down, or b) put the dust cover away in it's box and never use it, should both be recognized for what they are are - not solutions at all. First principles: Identify the problem(s), seek solutions and alternatives, prioritize.
@tablejockey I think you have completely missed one of the most important and appreciated aspects of playing vinyl records, and that is the visual, tactile, organic and emotional aspect of handling physical media. Beautiful album and gatefold design, liner notes, lyrics, … To walk over to your shelf with records, peruse by flipping through the bins or shelves, and pull out something to play that strikes you right then and there. |
"Convert all your LP'S into files- they will sound exactly like the LP." Now here is an honest man's assessment of the state of his hearing! Both of my turntables still out perform files to my aging ears, although the gap is definitely narrowing. I also have to admit that the latest Redbook CD is sounding remarkably good. I have been listening to a lot of those lately comparing two CD players, my long standing Luxman D-10X against a freshly acquired Marantz SA10 slated for our second home, but for now both residing under one roof. Anyway in the FWIW department I remove the dust cover on my SL1200 GAE when playing records, but out of sheer laziness lift it and leave open on the hinges on my HW40. But I believe lewm has the right approach. |
It's obvious, to me, that this Chief Engineer of Thorens, at that time, was doing nothing other than damage control, to cover up a significant engineering design fault. If the tolerances between the platter, record and TT dustcover were so tight so as to not allow for an extremely miniscule variation in the diameter of a spinning record with dust cover down (e.g. micron? micrometer?) because a record's hole might not be perfectly on center, that is an engineering design flaw. Surely, a company like Thorens and TT engineers, in general, should have accounted for record pressing & manufacturing flaws, especially in the 60s & 70s! I wonder how much longer that Chief Engineer worked for Thorens after that fiasco! As for playing records with the TT dustcover off, since the late 50s & early 60s, to date, even though I have lived in relatively "dust-free" environments, so to speak, I have always played records with the dustcover on and in the down position and never noticed any deleterious sound quality consequences, as a result, even at high decibel levels. Of course, this presumes quality components and good system set-up. Unless you have your audio system set-up in a scientific research or industrial production cleanroom, there is always dust & dust motes in the air. I suppose using a good HEPA equipped air cleaner near your TT might make sense but only if it's a very, very quiet unit. I'm considering using one (i.e. HEPA equipped air cleaner) in my record cleaning system. |
