VPI rimdrive squeaks

I converted my SuperScoutmaster to Reference with rimdrive when the rimdrive first came out, and have not had any problems with squeaking or noise, it runs silently. My thought is that the contact pressure of rimdrive to platter is too high.

I adjust my rimdrive while the turntable is spinning, and very slowly and in very small increments move it until it has the proper pressure. It can take a while to do this properly. Make sure the body of the motor is parallel to the plinth. There should only be very slight contact of the rimdrive belt to the center metal rim of the platter. You can always call VPI and ask Mike for some pointers. He is very helpful.

Have you examined the o-ring on the rim driver wheel that contacts the platter? If the periodicity of the noise matches the rotation of the driver wheel, there must be some irregularity in the o-ring. If the periodicity matches the platter rotation (i.e., the time it takes for the platter to rotate 360 degrees), then look at the edge of the platter where it contacts the drive wheel. If all looks well, then I suspect you have a defect within your motor, perhaps a bad bushing or something like that. What you describe is unacceptable in such a product, and since your problem is rather unique, I suspect that one of the above is occurring. But you need to do some homework to figure it out.

I auditioned the rimdrive at a dealer, who I think knew how to set it up since he has been doing VIP for twenty years. But, I did hear your squeak a few times during the audition along with some other problems, mainly vibration on the plith. I mentioned all that to the dealer and he seemed to suggest it was the characteristic of design. I passed, as it spelled too much fuzz.