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Back into vinyl - part 1

About five years ago, while I was living nice, quiet, and boring vinyl-less life, I run across some very nice LPs while walking around my local flee market. I got rid of all my records years ago, almost immediately after Sony and Philips promised us all “Perfect Sound Forever”. My music life was easy and simple, few hundred of my CDs were complemented by couple hundred cassettes and only sometimes I was wondering how come some of my cassettes sounded very obviously better than CDs.
But I would not let these thoughts bother me – digital was better, period. Doesn’t every manufacturer of audio equipment say so for 20 years now?
Anyway, the albums I run across were so dear to me and so impossible to find on CDs that I bought them, without even thinking about the fact that I had absolutely no idea how to use them. Did they even sell turntables anymore?
Being a nerd I started searching the Net for information and to my surprise discovered that not only they still sell TTs, but there is a whole range of them, from 50 Presidents all the way to tens of thousands.
I was considering getting me some of those 78s, so three-speed machine was needed. I quickly found a site of KAB Electro-Acoustics, and called the guy.
Kevin was very helpful and knowledgeable. After hearing my pathetic story he very kindly described me current situation on the marked and few days later I was a proud owner of KAB Broadcast Standard, equipped with Shure V15VxMR.
The LPs that I bought sounded amazing. They were almost 40 years old, though in very good condition, but the sound was so real that no CD could even touch it.
Bare in mind, my system was nothing to write home about – middle-of-the-road ES Sony CD player, amplifier and cassette deck and Mission speakers.
And then I found audio forums.
OK, I have to admit – I am always questioning my knowledge. Even when I am 100% sure about something, there will always be a thought buried somewhere deep inside, saying “What If You Are Wrong?”
So I started asking questions and in return heard condolences about my TT and really stupid explanations about why direct drive is inferior to belt drive. Someone even quoted well-respected magazine reviewer stating that DD table is constantly changing speed at a rate of about 3500 times a second, which is quite audible.
I bought it.
I sold my KAB table (surprisingly very close to the original price), in my heart blaming Kevin for selling me this junk, and got myself a … well, I don’t think I should use any more names here – it is really irrelevant. Let’s just say that the table was listed at $750 and at that price point is considered to be a de facto standard in audiophile world.
Well, this is where my problems started. First, the damn thing was running fast. I was trying to get my dealer to fix it with no positive outcome. “The table is flawless” was the answer. Oh and did I mention “No Returns” policy?
Running fast, switching between speeds was a nightmare, and then in 2000 they released an updated motor in which was supposed to fix speed deviation problem (what problem?) which set me back another $150. With no positive outcome.
I had to let it go, losing a lot of money in the process.
What do you think I did next? Correct, I bought another belt-driven table from different manufacturer. It was about twice as expensive as my first one and was coming from the company that is even more respected in audiophile world.
The construction of the table was very unusual. Almost as unusual as one of the first models from this company, shown in one of Stanley Kubrick’s movies.
Built quality seemed to be better, but as I discovered, in order to achieve best results, I needed much better tonearm, special power supply etcetera, etcetera… Oh and did I mention that you can’t really clean the record on this table? Friction between the belt and the platter is too low for it…
I got back to the previous company and purchased their just-released top of the line model. Exotic materials used for platter, outboard power supply, fancy words used in its description… I was not as stupid as I used to be, so I purchased it from Canada, thus loosing my US warranty, but saving about 30%.
Well, what do you know? The table was running fast! The brilliantly engineered power supply did not allow for speed adjustments without knowing the schematics and friendly technical support staff of the manufacturer was too friendly to respond to my request.
Another bummer.
I was getting smarter. No more purchases, I said to myself, before I am sure I know what I am buying.
Very famous and very local manufacturer just released reasonably inexpensive model, which I borrowed from my local dealer. Build quality was so low that I still don’t understand how people can actually mention the word “quality” when talking about this table? Platter bearing was loose, table was running slow and besides the motor was running hot as hell. I called the company with my questions and they responded that bearing has to burn-in (oh really?) motor has high operating temperature and speed can be easily adjusted by using their power generator costing a mere $1000! Thanks!
I tried few more tables. The more expensive they were getting, the more I was shocked by their poor quality.
I got tired. My vinyl collection was several hundred LPs by now but I had no means of listening and enjoying.
Then I called Kevin.
I told him about my experience and my frustration and his simple and knowledgeable words got me back to real world.
I have a degree in electrical engineer for crying out loud, cant’ I do something?
And I did.
To be continued…
alex_yakovlev
qualitymanfc28
17 posts
 
I think we are going off the thread with the room correction thoughts but if you will allow, I have one idea that may be of interest. I promise this will be the last one.

I have an experiement that most people should be able to try at some time that could prove to be quite revealing.

Take a nice warm sunny day when you are at home, your partner is out and the children are at school. The neighbours are at work and all is at peace. The ideal time for a couple of hours in front of the hi-fi with the volume up wallowing in glorious sound. Wait, here is the experiment.

Open the french windows onto the garden. Unplug the speakers and wheel them out onto the lawn. Run some cable from the amp to the speakers (some twin core mains cable will do - nothing fancy). Place the speakers on the lawn, raised from the ground on temporary stands (kitchen chairs will do) place a deck chair at the apex of your listening triangle, put some music on (vinyl, cd or live radio broadcast) and listen. What you have done is remove the influence of your listening room from your system. You are now listening to your system in virtual free space just as the makers intended. I think you will be amazed. I tried it once, some years ago and I still remember the glourious sound of Copelands "Fanfare For The Common Man" soaring over the neighbourhood as if the whole damn orchestra was in my garden, live. I have never been able to capture that accuracy since.

Just a thought and I promise to not go off thread any more.
jphii
485 posts
 
I've done that also. I have to say, if I could get away with it, that my system would be on the deck, with the only walls being the house behind the speakers.

Everyone needs to try this at least once.
psychicanimal
1,738 posts
 
Talk about the 1200's special feet, guys!
zaikesman
3,017 posts
 
Been there done that. I'd rather hear about Qualityman's (sound)garden. The only "special feet" would be my bare ones, on the lawn. A lovely idyll for imagining here on a gray winter's day... (Oh I forgot Psych, you in da jungle now baby :-)
qualitymanfc28
17 posts
 
Here, just for Pyschicanimal is part 2 of the saga of the “posh” feet.

The ideal for a turntable, arm and cartridge is to turn those minute wiggles in the groove into an exact electrical facsimile. That goal has been pursued through the years by some of the greatest minds in science. It makes you wonder if they had turned their talents to something along the lines of research into cancer or crop disease then the world would not be in the terrible state it is in today. Quite often a discovery in one sphere has implications and uses in something completely different. Sorbothane springs to mind.

What the hell is he on about now? Vibration, that’s what! It has been the bugbear of turntable designers since the record was invented. First there is the vibration leading to extraneous signals entering the system and then finding there way into the signal leaving the arm and secondly there are vibration losses, wiggles in the grove that are swamped and lost before they even get to being electrical signals. These new feet have been designed to eliminate the first kind of vibration but as a bonus seem to have a lessening effect on the second type of vibration as well. How can this be and what do I base my conclusions on?

My ears and a few amateur (and quite comical) experiments. I have already mentioned that my system is not ideally placed being on a suspended wooden floor on a smart but not inert rack. I managed to cajole my wife and son into dancing to some Chopin waltzes whilst I listened and made notes. I also recorded the results onto a mini disc. There were three sets of feet (stock, sonic domes and the isonoes). Each set was tried and recorded and the result listened back through headphones.

1 Stock feet – this caused much hilarity as the needle kept popping out of the groove causing my son to step on my wife’s feet leading to several sessions
with the foot spa and threats to sue me.

2. Sonic domes – much improved. My wife enjoyed the dance and even invited me to trot the light fantastic with her.

3. Isonoe feet – the music flowed and my wife and son stopped dancing to listen.

The listening to the three waltzes recorded onto mini disc via headphones.

1. Stock fee - as imagined, unlistenable
2. Sonic domes – good but you could still hear the footfalls.
3. Isonoe feet – nothing but the music.

Last session was just me, headphones and Joan Armatrading “Show Some Emotion” and “Willow”.

1 Stock feet – good steady and all you would expect of a KAB Broadcast Standard.

2 Sonic domes – all the good points of the stock feet with just a little more feeling and presence. The hairs on my arm were standing up.

3 Isonoe feet – Joan was standing in front of me and singing just for me. Goosebumps and shivers down my spine. A quite wonderful experience. It was not one of those never to repeated moments when everything was just right. This has proved to be consistent with all my listening. It is quite possible that I wanted to hear the improvement because I had just spent all that money and it was psychological effect but I don’t think so as that sort of thrill usually wears off after a few days. This is a continuing love story. I can not imagine going back to stock feet again.

Recommended – you betcha!!
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