View Full Version : Vinyl Nirvana
Just spent the afternoon installing my new gear properly, includes an Isotek Aquarius with schuko sockets (no pesky fuses), a temporary pre-amp until my Jeff Roland Consonance arives from being repaired, well you can see th rest from my signature, it needs changing though as a very nice member of the AOS recently pm'd me about his Jelco arm which I had asked some months ago if he was selling, anyway out of the blue the sale was done, I ordered myself an Oyaide headshell as I think they look damn sexy and everything I have used from Oyaide has been superlative, even their solder is bloody brilliant!
Hugo even sold me an armboard and gave me one of his special mounting collars so I was ready to go, I put my trusty Nagoaka MP150 on and finished making up some new mains cables with silver plated schuko plugs on and IeGo IEC connectors.
After using the SME 309 for quite some time and being dis-appointed somewhat (I know now that the SME is more suited to classical music and piano IMO) the Jelco arrived at just the right time, the 309 will now be installed on my Garrard 401 for sure.
So a complete system re-wire does go some way towards the stark improvemenst the system has seen but the standout component has to be the arm and headshell, I say headshell because I listened to the arm with its own headhsell and it was missing that vital emotional engagement one gets with a favouirte song. The Oyaide is a match made in heaven in my opinion and the system has never sounded better, I also moved the PSU away from the TT and even went to the trouble of making a special power lead up for it with a mains filter built in, I think that has also contributed to the overall improvements I can hear.
I have been told by a friend with 20+ years in the trade that Rowland equipment is partnered with Cardas cables when being developed so I am looking for some Cardas speaker cable now to see if he is right!
The only possible thing left to do to my system now apart from cables is bearing and platter, I read elsewhere about an £80 ish bearing from Vantage audio, I may see what that does first before I go the whole hog and get MN's gear.
I never thought The Thompson Twins were any good in the new romantic era when I was a Heaven 17 fan, I just dug one of their albums out of the garage that had not even been cleaned, OMG is the only thing I could say when I put the needle in the groove.
Thanks to Marco for making me feel at home on the AOS and thanks to Hugo for improving my listening pleasure immensely, respect due....:)
Reid Malenfant
09-04-2011, 21:02
I never thought The Thompson Twins were any good in the new romantic era when I was a Heaven 17 fan, I just dug one of their albums out of the garage that had not even been cleaned, OMG is the only thing I could say when I put the needle in the groove.
At least one of the Thompson Twins remix albums is bloody awesome! Can't remember which one it is that i have :scratch: Heaven 17 are are as cool as, love em still :eyebrows:
A man with taste i see :) :eyebrows: ATB Dave :cool:
:worthless:
;)
Nice one, dude. Good write-up. I'm just glad to have been of help in improving the enjoyment of your favourite tunes.
As a valued member of our community, David, you're welcome!
Marco.
chris@panteg
09-04-2011, 21:26
Happy for you David :) its also nice to have choice of TT's eh .
Today i fitted the Vantage Audio modified OEM bearing in place of the Timestep i have been using for nearly 18 months now , and its early days but..... oh dear , oh dear oh dear .
Hehehe... Nice one, Chris. It wouldn't take much to beat DC's effort! Who knows, perhaps all this time that's been the source of your Techy angst? ;)
Marco.
Pics will be posted tomorrow for sure, if only I could gte a MN bearing and platter to try.
Nice one - look forward to having a wee squint-ette at your Techy! :)
With regard to the MN platter, don't forget that you need a Paul Hynes SR5 PSU first before you can use one ;)
Marco.
A few words on the Vantage Audio bearing Chris?:)
chris@panteg
10-04-2011, 00:34
A few words on the Vantage Audio bearing Chris?:)
Hi Andy
Well it sounds very different , what i want to do is listen for another week , then swap back to the TS bearing , but what i can say is that it seems to sound less smeared and more precise with a lighter balance , but as i have invested in the TS bearing ! I need to be 100% sure of the difference's before making any more statements , i must say though i am a wee bit bewildered and also i must confess, i have been looking at other turntables and arm's, etc,etc.
Doubts have been creeping in and i did think i was losing the plot , must be old age catching up with me , but i keep thinking what did i like about this deck to begin with ?
:)
Nice one - look forward to having a wee squint-ette at your Techy! :)
With regard to the MN platter, don't forget that you need a Paul Hynes SR5 PSU first before you can use one ;)
Marco.
No,No,No,No, there has to be another way, you always spoil it for me :lolsign:
Good to know that you're rediscovering the Techie, Chris. I think it reinforces what some of us have been saying, that the bearing is vital for the upgrade process to work. Perhaps you jumped to the SME too quickly and should have gone straight to the MN bearing (although I know all about being emotionally swayed by the lustre of a favourite arm).
I can't speak for the Vantage, but if you have any doubt at all the MN bearing is a must have, no doubt about it.
No,No,No,No, there has to be another way, you always spoil it for me :lolsign:
Hehehe.... An SR3 would probably be enough - make that your next upgrade, whenever it may be! ;)
Marco.
Good to know that you're rediscovering the Techie, Chris. I think it reinforces what some of us have been saying, that the bearing is vital for the upgrade process to work. Perhaps you jumped to the SME too quickly and should have gone straight to the MN bearing...
+1 :)
I do hope Chris realises that our constructive criticism is only designed to help; sometimes when ultimately you've got someone's best interests at heart, one has to be 'cruel to be kind'... ;)
Marco.
chris@panteg
10-04-2011, 10:39
Good to know that you're rediscovering the Techie, Chris. I think it reinforces what some of us have been saying, that the bearing is vital for the upgrade process to work. Perhaps you jumped to the SME too quickly and should have gone straight to the MN bearing (although I know all about being emotionally swayed by the lustre of a favourite arm).
I can't speak for the Vantage, but if you have any doubt at all the MN bearing is a must have, no doubt about it.
Hi Martin
My purchase of the SME , partly stems from my previous experience with the 310 on my Voyd .5 , but i came very close to buying the Jelco i must admit !
If the Vantage Bearing does turn out to be superior to the Timestep , then that'll do for me :) as i think i want that AT33EV , and the Oyaide mat , and the Oyaide phono cable , :rolleyes:
Keep us informed Chris, sounds promising:)
Pics will be posted tomorrow for sure...
Ahem! ;)
Marco.
Chris
are you hijacking my thread....:lolsign::ner:
MARCO
if the MN platter, bearing and Hynes PSU are so gud send me the lot so I can decide for myself then, seeing as you bang on about them every chance you get...:lol:....;)
Ahem! ;)
Marco.
tomorrow is from 12.01 to 11.59 so chill winston.....its only 7.08pm
tomorrow is from 12.01 to 11.59 so chill winston.....its only 7.08pm
:eyebrows:
I'll hold you to that, Daphne!
Admit it, you just kidded on you got a Jelco, didn't you? :ner:
Marco.
Here you go dafteeeeeeeee, poor quaility as lost my camera so taken with an HTC desire...whilst we are on the subject and feel free to move this to analogue section, could we have another photo competition as I enjoyed the last one even though some never claimed their prizes???
I know it's a bit 1 sided but let's have a Technics photo comp. turntables obviously, the best two each win an Isol 8 Isoplug worth £30, is that ok? If so fire away.
http://i622.photobucket.com/albums/tt309/themainsman/DSCF0064.jpg
http://i622.photobucket.com/albums/tt309/themainsman/IMAG0080.jpg
http://i622.photobucket.com/albums/tt309/themainsman/IMAG0083.jpg
http://i622.photobucket.com/albums/tt309/themainsman/IMAG0085.jpg
http://i622.photobucket.com/albums/tt309/themainsman/IMAG0087.jpg
http://i622.photobucket.com/albums/tt309/themainsman/IMAG0088.jpg
Is the stylus ok on your 150? On the 5th pic down, it looks bent out of position and fecked. Must just be then camera angle.......
Nae probs with doing another comp! :)
Marco.
Its a spec of dust, trust you to spot it, have you packed up the platter, bearing and PSu then, when shall I send DHL to collect it?
Lol - aye!
I'm not talking about a spec of dust though, mate... The whole cantilever looks bent away to the one side.... :scratch:
Marco.
Rare Bird
10-04-2011, 19:22
Is the stylus ok on your 150? On the 5th pic down, it looks bent out of position and fecked.
:lol: Your gettin as bad as me, thats the first thing i spotted :lolsign:
Reid Malenfant
10-04-2011, 19:23
That's a hair, dusty thing whatever :eyebrows:
No-one would ever attempt to play anything with the cantilever bent at 45+ degrees innit ;)
Your gettin as bad as me, thats the first thing i spotted
Lol - it does look really strange though, dunnit? :hmm:
Hi Mark,
No-one would ever attempt to play anything with the cantilever bent at 45+ degrees innit...
Yes, I guess so.........! ;)
I'd still like to see a clear pic of the cartridge/stylus from a front-on position.
Marco.
Actually it's a rabbit (get it ....hare)
Seriously, mate, can we please see a clear pic of the cartridge from the front, showing the position of the cantilever relative to the centre of the cartridge?
Something defo isn't right....
What does everyone else think??
Marco.
chris@panteg
10-04-2011, 20:12
Chris
are you hijacking my thread....:lolsign::ner:
MARCO
if the MN platter, bearing and Hynes PSU are so gud send me the lot so I can decide for myself then, seeing as you bang on about them every chance you get...:lol:....;)
Who me :rolleyes: I wouldn't dream of it , me old china :)
I must say the Jelco does look very pleasing on your DJ deck David and a certain synergy with the MP150 , lacking with the 309 ?
Stratmangler
10-04-2011, 20:19
That cantilever looks to be bolloxed from the piccies.
Any chance of a head on view ?
Something defo isn't right....
What does everyone else think??
Marco.
I'm sure it's a hair - a strangely cantilever-plus-stylus-shaped hair...
chris@panteg
10-04-2011, 20:22
It might be the reflection from the vinyl playing trick's on us , it can't be that bent surely ?
I'm sure it's a hair - a strangely cantilever-plus-stylus-shaped hair...
:lolsign:
We await further pics from David, as requested, in order to make final judgement....
Marco.
Stratmangler
10-04-2011, 20:24
I hope it's an optical illusion.
I very much doubt it would even play at that angle if it was the cantilever! Actually, on a Nagaoka at that angle (the photo angle) I don't think you would be able to see the stylus/cantilever - it is set far too far back. I reckon it's a tiny shard of cardboard from the record sleeve - occasionally get the same detritus on records myself... I could be wrong of course, it has happened, once! ;)
Here you go - look how far back and short the the cantilever is - no way could it be sticking out 45 degrees at the FRONT of the cartridge:
http://www.divineaudio.co.uk/images/uploads/products/nagaoka/nagaoka_mp-150.jpg
Just in case you're still here Alex (I can't be a*sed to send an email), the VLM tracks at 1 gramme according to the box and leaflet I found for you... I know you wanted to give it another whirl...
Just in case you're still here Alex (I can't be a*sed to send an email), the VLM tracks at 1 gramme according to the box and leaflet I found for you... I know you wanted to give it another whirl...
Cheers Dave - very helpful. :)
Here you go - look how far back and short the the cantilever is - no way could it be sticking out 45 degrees at the FRONT of the cartridge:
http://www.divineaudio.co.uk/images/uploads/products/nagaoka/nagaoka_mp-150.jpg
Yup - I know where you're coming from, Alex, but it defo still didn't look right in David's photo, so I'd like to see another (clearer) pic.
David, could you oblige please? Ta! :)
Marco.
hifi_dave
11-04-2011, 16:49
I can't believe it's the cantilever. With a kink like that the arm would be jumping across the record...:stalks:
Indeed... What do you think it is then, Dave? 'Cos I'm bloody certain that this:
http://img852.imageshack.us/img852/1909/imag0087d.jpg (http://img852.imageshack.us/i/imag0087d.jpg/)
....is not REMOTELY right! :stalks: :eek:
The cantilever and stylus should be (straight, not squint), parallel to and just behind the small groove, which indicates the centre point (visible under the '1' of the 150), cut out of the front of the cartridge - not careering off at a tangent like that!!
Marco.
We need more pics, as this really does look like a hair or fluff to me...
Where's the hair or fluff in the pic I've just posted, Dave??
That's a stylus and cantilever parting company with the main body of the cartridge and going off west for a wee holiday!!
I can see what looks like hair of fluff here, just poking out at the front of the cartridge:
http://img687.imageshack.us/img687/7889/imag0085sz.jpg (http://img687.imageshack.us/i/imag0085sz.jpg/)
But NOT here:
http://img852.imageshack.us/img852/1909/imag0087d.jpg (http://img852.imageshack.us/i/imag0087d.jpg/)
*That* is not hair or fluff... If it is, it's somehow miraculously moulded itself into the shape of a stylus and cantilever! :lol:
Marco.
£20 to your favourite charity says it is just a bit of detritus... :)
Lol - it's exciting, innit? :eyebrows:
Pity David's too shy to post any more pics......... On another note, the Oyaide headshell looks FAB on the Jelco, which aesthetically is a match made in heaven on the Techy!
Marco.
hifi_dave
11-04-2011, 20:07
Surely with a cantilever so badly skew wiff and a 1/4 inch too far forward, the sound produced would be horrendous ? No one could mistake that - could they ?
He has gone suspiciously quiet though...:scratch:
Stratmangler
11-04-2011, 20:15
Surely with a cantilever so badly skew wiff and a 1/4 inch too far forward, the sound produced would be horrendous ? No one could mistake that - could they ?
He has gone suspiciously quiet though...:scratch:
That's what I'm thinking too....
Dingdong
11-04-2011, 20:20
He's probably searching for a new 150 with a straight cantilever.
Keep taking the pills guys......:lol:..................:ner:
http://i622.photobucket.com/albums/tt309/themainsman/IMAG0093.jpg
He's put the bent one in the bin and photographed his spare! Sneeky.... :lol:
Marco.
Dingdong
11-04-2011, 22:22
That could be a stock photo off tinternet. Could we have one with todays paper?;)
Good point, Mark! :eyebrows:
Marco.
Spectral Morn
12-04-2011, 10:16
Seriously, mate, can we please see a clear pic of the cartridge from the front, showing the position of the cantilever relative to the centre of the cartridge?
Something defo isn't right....
What does everyone else think??
Marco.
It does not look like a reflection but that the cant is bent :(
D S D L
Titter yee not peeps. The whole cartridge is fine and well and it was hair, I will take a better pic if you really need proof although I think you should all sit down and listen to some music, I recommend adele.
chris@panteg
12-04-2011, 11:07
Dave , the guy's only want the best for you M8 that's all .
If it was bent that badly it wouldn't so so good would it?
chris@panteg
12-04-2011, 11:33
Anyway Dave , how is it sounding ? lets hear it :)
Needledrops maybe .
Yes, all joking aside, daftee, the Jelco with Oyaide headshell looks bloody ace on your Techy, and so I'm sure things are sounding very nice indeed! :)
It would be interesting to know how the Roksan cartridge sounds compared with the Nagaoka. Have you got it yet?
After that, there's not much more you can do to improve things significantly, short of the bearing, platter and PSU thing, which I'll be shipping out to you for assessment later today ;)
Marco.
No Roksan yet as it needs re-tipping, there are other things to consider beside bearings and platters which I am getting exceedingly bored with hearing about...:sucks::acid:
until I have heard them obviously then I will probably join the MN appreciation society and buy a hat with dangly bits on and start to learn surfing. :cool:
vinylspinner
12-04-2011, 20:58
Dave,
Where can you buy the Oyaide headshell and how much? Also interested in the Ortofon version for the Kontrapunkt cartridges.
Nigel
Well, daftee, all it'll take is for one of two things to happen:
1) You come round to mine with your deck, and we do a comparison.
Or:
2) I come round to yours with my deck, and we do the comparison there.
Should any of the above ever occur, then your deck will become 'Ozzyfied' quicker than an ice-cold tinny of Fosters on Bondi beach, served by two naked 'Sheilas'!! :eyebrows: ;)
Marco.
Should any of the above ever occur, then your deck will become 'Ozzyfied' quicker than an ice-cold tinny of Fosters on Bondi beach, served by two naked 'Sheilas'!! :eyebrows: ;)
I'll take bets on that ;)
Dave,
Where can you buy the Oyaide headshell and how much? Also interested in the Ortofon version for the Kontrapunkt cartridges.
Nigel
I sell Oyaide young man, pm me for a special AOS price
Well, daftee, all it'll take is for one of two things to happen:
1) You come round to mine with your deck, and we do a comparison.
Or:
2) I come round to yours with my deck, and we do the comparison there.
Should any of the above ever occur, then your deck will become 'Ozzyfied' quicker than an ice-cold tinny of Fosters on Bondi beach, served by two naked 'Sheilas'!! :eyebrows: ;)
Marco.
I was hoping to be the MN ambassador for the North but financial restraints need to be issued due to my progressive spending recently.
What;s this crap about the MN platter and bearing needing a Paul Hynes PSU, he cannot be the only person in the world that makes a PSU for this combo?
Nope, a Timestep SE would probably also do the job.
Basically, ANY appropriate T/T power supply would do, providing that it had sufficient current capacity (to cope with the extra load of the much heavier MN platter).
Any of the experienced DIY-ers here could build you one. Whether or not it would end up sounding as good as one of Paul's designs, though, is of course not guaranteed!
The bearing is neither here nor there - you can use any PSU you want with an MN bearing :)
Marco.
So are you sending me the MN platter then for evaluation? I would only need it for 5 mins wouldn't I, then maybe another 30 to recover from the shock of how good it sounds. :ner:
In answer to a previous request the Oyaide headshell is here (http://www.mains-cables-r-us.co.uk/ourshop/prod_1173112-Oyaide-Headshell-with-Silver-Wires.html), use your AOS discount code don't forget.
vinylspinner
12-04-2011, 21:39
Hi David,
Very nice headshell, may have to wait a while though:(
Nigel
So are you sending me the MN platter then for evaluation?
Jeez, are you deliberately being thick? :doh: :eyebrows:
Listen to daddy: YOU CAN'T USE AN MN PLATTER WITHOUT A 'BEEFY' PSU, such as (but not exclusively) a Paul Hynes SR5, so you'll have to get rid of your toytown stock Timestep one first!!
;)
Marco.
I am getting one built your worshipfullness
Nice one, but you might want to do the bearing first... ;)
Marco.
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