2. analog
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Cueing it up...

Since analog is an analogy, I've developed a mental picture when cueing up on a rotating record. And that is the film we've seen of airliners landing, and those bazillion-ply tires instantly accelerating from zero to 200 mph, and, I've heard, leaving something like 20+ pounds of rubber on the runway in a cloud of smoke.

My gut tells me that rotating cue-up isn't so cool, enforced by how noisy most lead-in grooves are, and a lot of spacing grooves between tracks.

What do you do - rotating or standstill - and is this overly anal(og)?
shasta
sean
6,231 posts
 
I never let my stylus touch the record. This keeps vinyl in pristine shape and you never have to re-tip the cartridge. This also explains why i hear so much more "air" than i do with a digital rig : ) Sean
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zaikesman
3,017 posts
 
Well, if you're using the lead-in groove or between-track spaces, I guess it wouldn't really matter either way. But I often do cue up with the record stopped, if for no other reason than because if someone crashes their car outside my window and my hand slips, at least that way I won't get a longitudinal scratch mark concentric with the grooves. But then again, I've been known to back-cue when making recordings, so what do I know?
xiekitchen
821 posts
 
I would be way too afraid of the platter accidently moving backward, even a mm or so, ruining the whole delicate cantilever assembly in a 1k+ moving coil rig. why take that chance? also diamond is not rubber..doubt you will leave diamond dust skid marks in your record grooves.
twl
3,251 posts
 
The vinyl is a resilient media, and will recover well from small, damped impacts like a cueing drop from a normal cueing lever.
4yanx
1,576 posts
 
I have, in the past, used the stopped platter method, which my father swore by. I can go either way, myself, but agree with Twl that the force is negligible, at least with a good cueing device. Heck on my Spacearm, I can trip the lever, walk to my seat, use the remote to release the preamp mute, and take a long pull of my beverage before stylus meets vinyl. Pretty soft landings.
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