Spinning Today - What Are You Listening To Right Now? (Part 3)

[struth]

TAPESTRY.

[AJSki2fly]

A band that should have made it big, they had a cult following including me back in the day. They released 9 albums, I know the first three very well, they used to bang out of my Panasonic car cassette player in my split screen VW camper on my regular surfing trips down to Croyde in Devon from London. I would describe their sound as a mix of Joy Division, early U2, with a Bauhaus feel on some songs, and a tinge of Simple Minds. Great stuff!!

Rather please, their albums on vinyl can be hard to pick up in good condition, and came across this NM/NM copy yesterday for a sensible £12.

The Comsat Angels – Sleep No More
Label: Polydor – POLS 1038, Polydor – 2383 614
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: UK
Released: 21 Aug 1981

[Pigmy Pony]

Poor Mrs. P has a bit of an ear infection going on, so I thought a bit of 'easy listening' might be the thing. So starting the day with this.

[AJSki2fly]

Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin III
Label: Atlantic – 2401002, Atlantic – 2401 002
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Gatefold, First Pressing
Country: UK
Released: 23 Oct 1970

[Pigmy Pony]

This should cheer her up. On with the white suit, the black wig, and this on the CD player.

[Pigmy Pony]

Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin III
Label: Atlantic – 2401002, Atlantic – 2401 002
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Gatefold, First Pressing
Country: UK
Released: 23 Oct 1970

So how does the SQ of this compare to the remastered version you played earlier this week?

[AJSki2fly]

So how does the SQ of this compare to the remastered version you played earlier this week?

Well I would say it is hard to tell the difference, with the exception that the re-release is quieter on run in. There is the odd crackle on the 1st press, but nothing to affect the listening enjoyment.

[Pigmy Pony]

Well I would say it is hard to tell the difference, with the exception that the re-release is quieter on run in. There is the odd crackle on the 1st press, but nothing to affect the listening enjoyment.

Your 1st press will be noticeably thinner vinyl than your 180g remastered one - have you found it to have an audible effect on your VTA? I know you have put a lot of time and effort into getting the setup just right.

Given the choice I would always prefer to have the originals, but getting decent copies is always a bit of a lottery. Even pricy examples which the seller claims to be NM can be a disappointment.

[Us-&-Them]

A band that should have made it big, they had a cult following including me back in the day. They released 9 albums, I know the first three very well, they used to bang out of my Panasonic car cassette player in my split screen VW camper on my regular surfing trips down to Croyde in Devon from London. I would describe their sound as a mix of Joy Division, early U2, with a Bauhaus feel on some songs, and a tinge of Simple Minds. Great stuff!!

Rather please, their albums on vinyl can be hard to pick up in good condition, and came across this NM/NM copy yesterday for a sensible £12.

The Comsat Angels – Sleep No More
Label: Polydor – POLS 1038, Polydor – 2383 614
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: UK
Released: 21 Aug 1981

I remember that band back in the day. I'm cant be sure but, they may have done a gig with that obscure band I like, The Victorian Parents.

[AJSki2fly]

Your 1st press will be noticeably thinner vinyl than your 180g remastered one - have you found it to have an audible effect on your VTA? I know you have put a lot of time and effort into getting the setup just right.

Given the choice I would always prefer to have the originals, but getting decent copies is always a bit of a lottery. Even pricy examples which the seller claims to be NM can be a disappointment.

Hi Steve,

From my understanding all this business about VTA issues between differing vinyl thickness is a bit of a red-herring, although getting it right in the first place is pretty important.

I generally setup my cartridge using a mid thickness lp, weighing in around 140gm, I set it up with the tonearm/head shell parallel to the record and then I dial it in adjusting up or down until I hear the sweet spot , for me anyway, by listening to very well known track. I then try a 180gm and the a well know 120gm and if they sound good then leave well alone. Its all about the SRA(stylus rack angle) which governs the angle of the stylus in the groove, assuming that the stylus is correctly fitted to the cantilever and is at 90 degree to it. Stylus rack angles vary depending on manufacturer and I think stylus type.

As I have said elsewhere getting the azimuth right is also very important as this determines if the stylus is equally hitting each groove wall equally, if off at an angle it will sound odd and may even distort or possibly track badly. Most people use the mirror under the stylus method to check the cantilever is not at a weird angle and is set up correctly, I find this quite tricky to do well, it is easier with some carts than others IMO.

Along with getting the headshell at 90 degrees to the record surface(in both planes), one of these or another make are a simple tool to help the process https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hudson-Hi-F...ps%2C80&sr=8-2, but it is usually best to also check the stylus using a usb digital microscope - something like this https://www.amazon.co.uk/Microscope-...ps%2C97&sr=8-6 to check the stylus is not on the piss on the cantilever, not all manufacturers quality control is that great on this, even with some quite expensive cartridges.

Going back to the VTA adjustment, this can be quite limited with certain arms/TTs, shims under the mounting post or even under the cartridge to head shell are not unheard of solutions, neither of which I would choose to live with unless I loved the TT/Arm combo and was not going to change the cartridge much. If you have a fixed head shell or an all in one arm, this has its benefits - more stable and rigid, possible better sonically, but it can limit correct Azimuth set up, although there are some solutions out there that allow the cartridge to be canted on the head shell, effectively mounted it on a shim with a central fulcrum, not something I would be that happy with personally.

From London Jazz Collector

"Assuming the (VPI) tonearm to have a 300mm effective length, to get a one degree change of Stylus Rake Angle we need to alter arm height by 5.23mm. A 1.0mm change in arm height changes SRA by 0.19 degrees."

see https://londonjazzcollector.wordpres...ta-adjustment/