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O.K. Fess Up. Come Clean. Sing Like A Canary.

In the last several days I have gotten myself involved in a couple of threads regarding lifting (or forgetting about lifting) the stylus at the end of play. One individual was considering getting rid of his existing turntable, and replacing it with an older semi-automatic model.

He considered himself "lazy & forgetful".

Another individual was very upset with himself because he allowed himself to forget about the stylus for "20-30 minutes" after play.

He considered himself a "moron".

Am I another "lazy and forgetful moron"? Or is this just something that happens on occasion when you choose to endure the world of analog?

As of late, this does not happen to me anymore. I installed a "lifter". Problem solved. But before this point?

I can recall sometime back, arriving home after a weekend in Manhattan with my better half. It was Sunday evening about 11:00pm. We had left the previous Friday evening. We walked through the front door, I put down the bags and noticed something out of the corner of my eye. I looked over at my stereo and exclaimed "Uh-Oh".

Needless to say, I turned on the lights, walked over to the stereo, and as I looked down at the turntable (my head now spinning in a circular motion in unison with the rotating LP), had realized that this phenomenon had been in occurence over the last 50 hours or so.

I then cued the stylus, placed the tonearm on it's rest, turned off the turntable in disgust, sighed, and silently acknowledged the fact my NEW $800.00 Grado was toast.

Alright. I admit it. I can and did admit to such a mistake. Well, the word "mistake" sound a little extreme. Let's call it an "inopportune loss of mental focus". Now..... Let's see who else will step up to the plate.

What is the longest period of time that you have forgotten your stylus in the "rotating circle of death"?
buscis2
consttraveler
250 posts
 
Buscis2, Ed:

I have not drilled anything, and I am not recommending it. However, mounting the lifter in the same manner as the arm (I know, I know, on my Rega it would require drilling the plinth) is my opinion of the "best" installation. Once set-up, the little bugger isn't going anywhere.

Murphy's law ("whatever can go wrong, will") says if I use blu-tak or anything temporary, it will fail to function when the arm/cartridge is directly in the line of fire. Talk about a blood pressure spike! Just the thought of the needle being pushed down and across my Super Session album makes my skin crawl. Compared to that, drilling a hole in my P-25 causes me no worries.

I really doesn't matter any way, the lifter is designed to be mounted on the top of the plinth (my Rega is safe and my Thorens TD-520 lifts by itself). Someday when I'm in the right mood, I may dig it out of the closet and try again, you never know.

Dave
twl
3,251 posts
 
Ed, before I got the Teres, I had a Linn LP12 with a Monitor Audio Stylift installed(the original "Lifter"). Prior to that, I only fell asleep one time while listening, and woke up after about 20 minutes - so no damage. For me it is a very rare occurrence to fall asleep while listening, so it's not a big deal even if there is no safety measure in place.

Recently, I got a Audio Technica "Safety Raiser" from A'gon member Lugnut, and have been using that on my Teres. I like it better than the Lifter or Stylift, but it gets in the way of playing 45rpm singles.
buscis2's avatar
buscis2 OP
468 posts
 
Twl, I remember the "Stylift". They have not been mentioned in years. And, I had always wondered about the performance/compatibility of the A/T model. I ended up using the Expressimo "Lifter" because of familiarity with the rest of Sal's product line.

I have modified my RB900 using the Expressimo Heavyweight (the newest model) with adjustable weighting. I have to say, it made a difference that is absolutely stunning. It increases the compliance of the tonearm tenfold. It is extracting very subtle information I had never heard before. I also installed the Rega/Expressimo end stub. I can't confirm that it does anything.

The "Lifter" actually works very smoothly and quietly. It was a pain in the ass to get positioned correctly but after that, no problems.

Regards and Happy Listening, Ed.
4yanx
1,576 posts
 
I had the AT Safety Raiser but sold it to A'Gon member Sean when it would not work with my 'Not. It worked like a charm with my old Linn. Now I wish I'd have held off selling (though I'm glad Sean put it to good use) as I have figured out a simple "flange" to accommodate one. Once I acquire another, I will fall asleep while listening without fear! :-)
sktn77a
41 posts
 
Am I missing something here???? 48 hours of play time is barely enough to "burn in" the catridge (if you believe in that). What damage occurs to the (diamond) stylus "playing" a vinyl record for 48 hours when they typically last 1000 - 3000 hours of normal play? Yes, I know there's a bit of a "thump" where the spiral joins the terminal circle but c'mon - can't be any worse that the Telarc 1812!!!

Keith
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