Rim Drive Mod or how to make it even better

I really like the guys at Gingko. They are honest, kind, and have a very good product. I have their dust cover which makes the Superscoutmaster look like a museum piece. (By the way... if you are thinking of the dust cover, make sure you know your ultimate version of the table you are using. The 9 inch arm requires a different cover than the 10.5) I think however, that the base may not be the best thing under the rim drive. By all means try it - I think Gingko has a try and return policy - if it doesn't work for you, return it.

What Harry told me was that the best sound from the table comes from the most solidly constructed table for the turntable. You might go on line and check out their supporting table. It is excellent and not too expensive. If your Billy Bags table is as inert as the VPI, you will get similar results. (When I got to my new digs just recently in Scottsdale, where the floor here is French limestone and solid, there was a remarkable improvement in comparison to my New Jersey home which had wood floors). To the solidity of the turntable, you should put the felt, or any softer material under the motor assembly. That's what I have and it sounds great.

tfkaudio,

The noise and oscillating 33's are exactly what my rim drive did for the first week or so. The numbers on my KAB strobe now stay about as stable as with the belts. The cyclical clicking is gone but I wouldn't say the assembly is completely quiet. There's a more constant whirring or mechanical noise that I have assumed is normal operation. This is quite low level and no more loud than the motor assembly made with the belts. I'm not sure why your belt hasn't behaved in a similar fashion. It may need more time. It may pay to try a different belt. Make sure that the drive belt is barely touching the platter. I think that really helps to. Mike at VPI told me that when the super platter continues to turn slightly longer than the flywheel on turn off but you still have smooth start up its about right. Don't hesitate to call Mike. He'll probably be a big help. I echo Stringreen's assessment that when you get this thing running right its a definite improvement over the belts. It's just a bit(or a lot)more finicky.

Don't go back to the belts until you're sure you've done all you can to make this work. I think you'll be glad you stuck with it.

In reply to Powerdoctor, I have my rim drive SSM on a BDR Shelf for the Source and it sounds fantastic. I have Nordost pulsar points under the shelf which are in turn screwed into a Target stand on spikes. Haven't had the VPI for long and so I can't say it's optimized yet but Wow....