SL1600mk2 Gear Repair

The start position is adjustable but it's a little weird and difficult to figure out (but easy to do once you have. If you haven't already, visit the vinylengine site and register (free), go to the "Library" page and find Technics. When you're on the Technics page of the Library, go to SL-1600 under Direct Drive Turntables and look for the download for mkII M/MC service manual (improved scan)". Download the service manual by clicking on the blue hypertext, also free, and then study the section covering tonearm adjustment on page 15, (not page 8).

John

Hey John.

I have already adjusted the start position from outside. There is a hole underneath a rubber plug. And there's a screw to adjust the start position. When I got the table back from service it always started playback a bit in of the first song of the disc. After some adjustment on this screw I got I to start right

But I still starts a little to far on discs sometimes and sometimes to far out on the disc so the are nearly drops beside the platter. That's why I hope the gear change will help here.

I thought that new grease is needed but is there a special grease to this king of plastic gear?
 
Glad you were able to figure out the tonearm adjustment.

I would use white lithium grease.

John
 
Great thread everyone! I am having similar issues with my 1600 MK2. I just ordered the gear from SDP/PI. FYI they now charge a $10 fee on small orders, so the $1.47 gear becomes about $22 with shipping.
My question is, how important is it to trim the excess from the SDP/PI gear? Will it fit as delivered in the space of the stock base?

Bob
 
Hello again :)
Yesterday my gear whell arrived, and today I delivered my 1600 MK2 to my audio workshop, and he told me that he´s able to make the job :) At the same time, I asked him to replace the RCA cables to a better set and also replace the power cord, because it has a lot of paint and nicotin.. So I really hope that a new gear whell will solve my problem of the automatic start postition problem.

I have another question to the SL-1600 MK2 people. If the turntable is a US model, does i have a voltage selector? I maybe don´t think the EU model has a voltage selctor. The powercord also looks like it´s a US cord with a DK plug
 
Great thread everyone! I am having similar issues with my 1600 MK2. I just ordered the gear from SDP/PI. FYI they now charge a $10 fee on small orders, so the $1.47 gear becomes about $22 with shipping.
My question is, how important is it to trim the excess from the SDP/PI gear? Will it fit as delivered in the space of the stock base?

Bob

Have you replaced your gear?
 
Glad you were able to figure out the tonearm adjustment.

I would use white lithium grease.

John

Having used both, I really like Superlube better than white lithium. It's stickier without being too thick and is less likely to react negatively with old plastics. You can get it for peanuts at harbor freight too. :)
 
Hello again :)
Yesterday my gear whell arrived, and today I delivered my 1600 MK2 to my audio workshop, and he told me that he´s able to make the job :) At the same time, I asked him to replace the RCA cables to a better set and also replace the power cord, because it has a lot of paint and nicotin.. So I really hope that a new gear whell will solve my problem of the automatic start postition problem.

I have another question to the SL-1600 MK2 people. If the turntable is a US model, does i have a voltage selector? I maybe don´t think the EU model has a voltage selctor. The powercord also looks like it´s a US cord with a DK plug

Make sure to tell your tech to use low capacitance shielded RCA cables. The capacitance should be below 100 pF (Picofarads) per foot (300 pF/m). And since capacitance increases as a function of cable length. You'll want to limit the length of the cables to around 4 feet or a little over 1 meter. A good source for low capacitance cables is high quality shielded component video cables, the ones with red, blue and green connectors. Just peel off the green one and use the red for the right channel and the blue for the left.

John
 
If he's okay with soldering on nice RCAs for you, Mogami 2965 is excellent and it's about 18pF/ft. Inexpensive from Redco too.
 
Make sure to tell your tech to use low capacitance shielded RCA cables. The capacitance should be below 100 pF (Picofarads) per foot (300 pF/m). And since capacitance increases as a function of cable length. You'll want to limit the length of the cables to around 4 feet or a little over 1 meter. A good source for low capacitance cables is high quality shielded component video cables, the ones with red, blue and green connectors. Just peel off the green one and use the red for the right channel and the blue for the left.

John

Hello John and thanks for your reply.

Yes my tech is a really professional so he's gonna use the best cables for this turntable so I'm not worried about that :)
 
Have you replaced your gear?
Yes, I replaced the gear. It runs smooth now, but it did not fix all the issues. My TT still moves the arm all the way to the center, then the arm lowers, the platter stops, the arm raises and returns to the rest. This happens when I press the auto start. It works fine as a semi-auto. but I am looking for help with getting the full auto working.
 
Well now my gear spur has arrived and been replaced. But there's still problems. Sometimes the arm drops down a little to late (after the music has begin on the record) My technical told that the teeth on the spur don't fit perfectly in the big gear so therefore it will still not always drop at the same place on the same record. He has tested it before I picked it up again and told me that it will drop with perfection inside of a millimeter precision. After playing 20-30 records it being to drop to late sometimes. Other times it will drop like It should

All my own tests is with the same record. I tried another and I got the same results..

I'm on my way to give it up. I don't want a turntable who only works as it should sometimes. But if the gear don't fit like I should then there's nothing to do in my opinion. I just wish that I still could by original parts but I don't think that's an option
 
I wonder if there's anything that could be done to control the gear lash to improve consistency. Thicker silicone based lubricant maybe?
 
My technician is very clever so he knows what he's doing. He told me that he has given it new grease so that should be good.

I don't know why it don't work as it should
 
My technician is very clever so he knows what he's doing. He told me that he has given it new grease so that should be good.

I don't know why it don't work as it should

A high viscosity silicone grease is a totally different animal than the standard white lithium/superlube generally used in these things.

My intent wasn't to question your tech's abilities but to suggest that maybe there could be a somewhat unorthodox approach to dealing with the tolerances that aren't quite right in the new gear. It'd be a shame to toss the table because of this. I'd personally just cue manually before I did that.
 
My problem is that I can't do things by my self and my technician says that he can't do more for it. I have already posted a lot of money in it and I really don't want to go to another who don't know what he's doing and then start all over again to post more money in it again..

I don't think tho problems will stop.
 
Where are you located? I wouldn't be surprised if there was a local AK member who's knowledgable who'd be willing to help out.
 
Hello again

I have been wondering if the the different start position could be a periodic fail in the size detector?

The small gear has been replaced with the one in the link in here.

The cuing belt has been replaced with a new one

All the things under the arm has been cleaned and greased up

The start position is adjusted and in 7 out of 10 starts up's it drop correctly with muting. Sometimes it do drop the arm a little to fast with on smooth cuing. And other times it smooth sets down

Sometimes when I pushed the START button the platter starts spinning and the arm is not moving and after few seconds, it's stops spinning again. And when hit the START button again, it's working normally again. The problem came booth with ore without daylight ore light in my room. My technician told that it could be the light in the room but it happens booth with ore without light in the room so I don't believed this is the reason for the problem but I don't know

Therefore my mistake is no longer in the gear parts, but in the automatic size detector

Anybody else who have got problems like this?
 
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