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The Official SOTA Turntable Thread

Maybe someone here can help me out, I picked up a Saphire Star MKII table with Vacuum and Mag Lev bearing upgrade. When I spin the platter I can plainly see that the platter moves up and down I think its the whole platter and not just 1 side I will have to set up a test to see more precisely. Just looking to see if anyone has experienced this andd perhaps has a solve

Thanks
 
Hello,
I just checked during '' start up '' the current being drawn will be around 500 mA for a split second. So i guess there is some room to '' create '' an extra 2 or 3 volt dc extra. OF COURSE i would like an expert point of view if i should raise the 18 volt now being given to the Condor. Thanks in advance, Eduard
 
joespride said:
Maybe someone here can help me out, I picked up a Saphire Star MKII table with Vacuum and Mag Lev bearing upgrade. When I spin the platter I can plainly see that the platter moves up and down I think its the whole platter and not just 1 side I will have to set up a test to see more precisely. Just looking to see if anyone has experienced this andd perhaps has a solve

Thanks
Click to expand...

The platter and tonearm mount are attached to a chassis that is suspended from the wooden plinth by springs. The two are connected and will bounce if you push down and release the pressure, but if the springs are good, that should end in after a few cycles of up and down. During regular record playing, the platter and tonearm mount should be steady. I can sometimes see movement up and down when I remove my tonearm from its lock, but that ends immediately once the pressure of the tonearm lock is released.

joespride said:
When I spin the platter
Click to expand...

Are you spinning the platter by hand or does this happen when you turn the table on and let the motor spin the platter?
 
dcmfan said:
The platter and tonearm mount are attached to a chassis that is suspended from the wooden plinth by springs. The two are connected and will bounce if you push down and release the pressure, but if the springs are good, that should end in after a few cycles of up and down. During regular record playing, the platter and tonearm mount should be steady. I can sometimes see movement up and down when I remove my tonearm from its lock, but that ends immediately once the pressure of the tonearm lock is released.



Are you spinning the platter by hand or does this happen when you turn the table on and let the motor spin the platter?
Click to expand...
It does with the motor running, I leveled the table very close to perfect and watching the bottom of the platter in relation to the motor plate I & wife can see it moving up & down. It does not seem to get any better. I have to set up a test platform so I can see if it only on one side of the flatter or if its the whole platter. It will take a couple days to find out

Thanks Joe
 
joespride said:
It does with the motor running, I leveled the table very close to perfect and watching the bottom of the platter in relation to the motor plate I & wife can see it moving up & down. It does not seem to get any better. I have to set up a test platform so I can see if it only on one side of the flatter or if its the whole platter. It will take a couple days to find out

Thanks Joe
Click to expand...

There are two set screws on the bottom of the turntable - are those fully backed out and not interfering with the platter?

They'd be on the center of the table on the bottom.

1727752071515.png

Also, make sure none of the feet are contacting the sub chassis. You should see a gap between the top of the feet and the sub chassis.

Failing that, give SOTA a call. Phone is better than email and they're good to work with.
 
dcmfan said:
There are two set screws on the bottom of the turntable - are those fully backed out and not interfering with the platter?

They'd be on the center of the table on the bottom.

View attachment 3309520

Also, make sure none of the feet are contacting the sub chassis. You should see a gap between the top of the feet and the sub chassis.

Failing that, give SOTA a call. Phone is better than email and they're good to work with.
Click to expand...
Appreciate you, When they do the Mag Lev conversion those screws are no longer used. At least they are not in my table

Joe
 
Hello,
I guess there are not many users of the Condor here and if there are they will probably use the 24 volts recommended and/or sold by Sota. I am not sure where i read or heard that using a lower voltage would be an advantage and that the 24 volt is only needed when using 78 RPM. Maybe i heard this info from Phoenix engineering. Maybe i read on a VPI forum where some people replaced the VPI motor/supply by a Sota unit.
I can imagine once everything is turning correctly '' giving '' it a higher voltage will not improve anything. I guess it is not like a power amplifier that would '' have more energy ''
Kind greetings, Eduard
 
Hello,
After i posted the question i found a slightly dented manual device, but still working without any issues, first available in the eighties as a reward for a well wriiten answer but it seems nobody has a clue. Kind greetings, Eduard
 
Hi everyone,
I just picked up and OLD Sota Sapphire in very good shape. It will need new springs, but $250??? Dammm.
Has anyone found an alternate source for these springs other than buying them from SOTA?
 
Hello, Of course they are available There is a reason that there such a big number of springs available. All springs have a kind of optimum load. A big advantage of the Sota is that you will have to add lead shot in the reservoir under the tone arm to create an equal load on each spring. There will probably be a 'perfect time '' for the subchassis to stop moving once it is touched. Maybe one could use Taica from Japan. Which uses a kind of gel/silicon to dampen the vibration. They have products made for different loads and different vibrations ( frequencies) to tackle. Available at Mouser.
Greetings, Eduard
 

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Hello,
I think using these Japanese insulators could work well if you will ask someone with some( physics) knowledge which one to use. The movement of the subchassis will even small if there is a big truck passing by. Probably you will need to focus on vibrations coming from your loudspeakers. Your cartridge/tone arm should be able to focus on the information on the record. Maybe the information in the Taica brochure will be enough to help you make a choice.
I think it will quiet easy to make something that will protect your '' vibration killers '' from being stressed to much because when not being stressed the subchassis will always be/return to the same position. Very easy to limit the maximum downwards movement to 3 mm or so.
Taica also makes a product that uses both a spring and a gel. Not exactly cheap but i think it is more '' high tech '' and still cheaper than the basic springs Sota is selling.
Greetings, Eduard
 

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ok, $250 for springs to a $3k tt! it's a damn bargain. remember, two are coiled clockwise, two are counter-clockwise. think about it. i noticed my mistake saying $55 instead of the $250.
 
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hifitommy said:
ok, $55 for springs to a $3k tt! it's a damn bargain. remember, two are coiled clockwise, two are counter-clockwise. think about it.
Click to expand...
Hello, If Sota is asking 250 $ for a set of springs these Taica parts if they can be used for that turntable they are not that expensive. If that will give you the best solution possible it will have a good return on investment. I think the best spring available will be a key element in a turntable like a good bearing or well balanced platter. Greetings, Eduard
 
joespride said:
Appreciate you, When they do the Mag Lev conversion those screws are no longer used. At least they are not in my table

Joe
Click to expand...
So here are a couple of possibilities - one is the top portion of the platter has delaminated. Another is the rubber lip the record hits may be deformed (I had one that was a good 3/8” lower in one section which made the platter look like it was warped). What does the platter look like with a sealed record on the platter?
 
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