Say it aint so--- Teres quality question

Chris,

I only wish that I could post the photographs that I have taken of the QC issues and the emails and photos forwarded to you. On THIS 265 with the VTA set at the minimum the cartridge body is, at best, level. If the VTA can be correctly adjusted on your trip to Boise then something else has been changed since January.

Look at it from my point of view. I recommended this combination to my friend based on a lot of research and communications with other Teres owners. I agreed to set this up as the owner didn't have any experience. Assembly of the parts is not difficult and the only nervousness I had was with handling the delicate arm and cartridge more times than was necessary. Initially, the arm wouldn't even mount because the bottom hole was too shallow. Yes, I chose to buy a $12 forstner bit and do this myself because the shipping/insurance to you exceeded the price of the bit. Then, I had to provide clearance for the VTA collar as the top hole was drilled for an arm without VTA adjustment. It's my understanding that you were informed at the time the order was placed which arm was to be mounted. After final mounting of the arm and listening while adjusting VTA my ears told me it needed to be lowered more even after minimum VTA adjustment was acheived. Those are the facts.

I also communicated with a few other members here who own either the cartrdige, arm, table or a combination of the above and forwarded them the same photos I sent you. Everyone that saw the cartridge body photos agreed that proper VTA had not been acheived.

Per your request I sent the armboard and VTA collar to Oregon which was where you said it was manufactured. I enclosed correspondence detailing my experiences to date and strongly suggested that the correct diameter holes and hole depths be drilled in the future as well as the QC issues I described above. Unkown to me, it was your father who manufactured the armboard and based on your last email to me he was offended and in turn, you were too.

Early on I offered to send to you the parts that are in your posession now. On this end the problems could have been the result of three different manufacturers, Teres, Origin Live or Shelter and I have no way of knowing. I talked to the supplier of the tonearm/cartridge and compared my minimum VTA settings with his proper setting. He provide me a measurement of tonearm to record clearance in the middle of a record. I wasn't even close to the setting he was using and again, there was no further adjustment.

Phone calls and emails to you went unanswered for which you apologized for in an email dated January 11, 2004, referring to a server problem. Interestingly enough, the unanswered emails prompted me to have another friend inquire about a new table before I finally heard from you and he received an immediate response. Perhaps there was a server problem on your end but unless it also controls your voice mail my phone calls were not responded to either.

I made one mistake in this thread and corrected it as soon as I read it online. I couldn't edit that post because someone else had already posted another comment.

I stand behind my remarks about the tolerances of the Cocobolo 265 that still sits in my music room, running out of VTA adjustment and your lack of communication during a much too long period of time. Negative post? Until today, in spite of the many Teres owners who have contributed to this thread, nobody accused me of making negative remarks. I posted today what I came to believe and you have confirmed it to the community.

I would have thought that this was settled a long time ago.

...I don't imagine Patrick will be satisfied to stay away from his friend's house when Chris comes to do his thing - and well he shouldn't be. That'll be an interesting day - here's hoping that afterward, they can turn to the 'table's owner and say "We're taking you out to dinner", as opposed to "We're taking this out in the alley"...

Having been in sales for many years with a very well run company, it seems that about once a year I get a "transaction from hell". It starts out with a problem and each time I fix it, it seems to get worse! The only solution is to "over-manage" the situation and wrestle it to the mat. Virtually everyone I know that's in business has the same experience and Chris is probably no exception.

Patrick, I think you'll realize that Teres reputation here is pretty solid and that your situation is likely an aberation- honey will probably work better than vinegar in these situations. And Chris, keep 'raslin'!

Good Luck!

I debated on whether to post to this thread again because I suppose it is really none of my business. However, I will share what I have seen only because I don't want it to seem like Patrick is off his rocker, here, or anything. I was one of those to whom Patrick sent pictures of his friend's Teres setup. Patrick had inquired of me initially because I, too, owned an OL Illustrious and he had some questions about VTA adjustment. As it turned out, I had a similar situation with the Illustrious on a 'Not table (not being able to achieve an adequately low "ass-end" VTA setting). Actually, I could get just a hair under, but no more. My problem solved itself after I began using a Mat1 and its thickness allowed me to set VTA just right.

From the pictures that Patrick sent, it appears that Illustrious is as low as it can get, with the bottom of the pillar smack dead against the VTA collar and the VTA collar smack dead against the armboard. In this position, a picture of a lined index card shows that the headshell is just a bit lower than level (meaning up in the back). OTOH, Chris Brady says that it works fine on another 265 in his shop. This would seem to indicate that the 265 Chris is using is different than the 265 owned by Patrick’s friend. Is his plinth/platter overall thickness different? I dunno. I do know that looking at Patrick's pictures would give the impression that the only way to rectify the situation would be to lower the armboard in relation to the plinth/platter. But, I also see where Joe has his armboard up on cones whereas Patrick's friend does not. A significant difference? Again, I dunno. Again, I bring this up not to point the fickle of finger of fate but, rather, to explain that Patrick is not formulating bogus claims without what appears to be reasonable and logical evidence.

I sincerely hope that this gets solved to the satisfaction of everyone. If I were the friend I'd have been having seizures of withdrawl long ago! :-) I assume he has another table! Ha! And, as an aside, I must say that it is above and beyond the call on Mr. Brady’s part to personally fly out and get the table right. However, should it not be the owner’s decision with respect to who is in attendance at the “fixin”?