Project RPM-4 upgrade

[Haselsh1]

http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab240/Haselsh1/ProjectRPM4No1.jpg



http://i867.photobucket.com/albums/ab240/Haselsh1/ProjectRPM4No2.jpg


Here are two shots of my secondhand Project RPM-4 turntable with standard tonearm and Ortofon OM-30 Super cartridge. The first shot shows the cork mat which was bought first and the second shot shows the fully decoupled motor, upgraded aluminium pulley and round section drive belt. The Ortofon cartridge has been with me for around ten years now as I have so far failed to find anything to beat it up to around three hundred pounds. The sound it creates is totally stunning especially the cymbals and treble. Bass is excellent especially on the Quantic Soul Orchestra recordings. There is just so much control in the lower frequencies however the midrange and vocal could be a touch warmer and more realistic.

[Haselsh1]

My current Project RPM4 incarnation sounds a helluva lot better than the bog standard SL1210 I owned during 2010 which was fitted with my trusty Ortofon OM30 Super cartridge. I am still toying with the idea of fitting a Dynavector DV10X5 but love the OM30 so much I may not take the risk. During 2009 I bought and fitted a Denon DL160 but quickly found I had wasted my money when comparing it to the OM30.

Decisions, decisions...!

[freefallrob]

Smart, as you have found the Super OM30 is VERY good, wish I hadn't sold mine.....:doh:

[Haselsh1]

Having now tried the turntable with the upgrade kit fitted, I would like to add that listening to Phil Collins' 'Face Value' there are now many more vocal layers to the album that I have never heard before. On the track 'In The Air Tonight' for example, there are vocal pieces that are so quiet I have missed them in the past but now they are so obvious. I am not sure how much of this is down to the cork mat but the complete isolation of the motor from the plinth must have done something to uncover previously masked sounds.

I shall soon be trying the turntable out with a few Quantic LP's and as these are very modern and fairly abrupt I am expecting a very different outcome. I much prefer older, more quiet type of recordings. I guess these recordings tend to push things a little less.

[Haselsh1]

Smart, as you have found the Super OM30 is VERY good, wish I hadn't sold mine.....:doh:

Rob, 175 quid for a new stylus on such a superb cartridge. I find that a bit of a bargain as a DV10X5 is now three hundred quid and has a helluva lot to beat.