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VPI Turntable Owners Thread

sberger said:
Thanks but I just swapped in my 3009 so I’m good.
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I'm late to the show, sorry! LOL

I know everyone has personal likes, and dislikes. You touched upon one of yours, and that was a fixed Headshell. Such might hinder versatility, I understand.

I could do like you, no problemo, sure, I might wish a Table/Arm just like such, where I could carry that table and insert it into a full blown Quad System, just reach in the box and pull out one of my AT Cartridges, and go to heaven in the midst of 4 JBLs. LOL

Or, go 2+2, pop the ole Shure V-15 Type III in, with a nice Jico SAS on board, blow my brains out that way! LOL Set the 4 JBL Jubals up ala Jerry Garcia with a wall of sound. LOL

Way back in the day, I used to ask-tell friends, "Hey, what's better than 2 JBLs?" And they'd say what? And I'd reply, "4 JBLs!" LOL
 
Hey, one great thing, it appears you can go back and forth if you should so choose, correct?

I enjoy the chats about the older VPI stuff.

Trust that many moons ago, I came close a number of times of picking up the phone to MusicDirect, get my buddy on the phone, and tell him to order me a new TNT MK-5 with a blank Armboard, but all the other bells-whistles. I'm not a lover of Uni-Pivots.
 
One can certainly tweak to their hearts content with these tables. I'm not that one, however.

I'm very happy with this table as is. I've added the SME 3009 which gives me lots more options re: carts, and I like it's sound more then the Graham's, which I found a bit too neutral. The old SME has more body to it.

I'll have the SDS in a few days and after that I'm done. After all, this is only one of 7 nice tables I have. Have to give all of them equal love:D.
 
VPI apparently had a falling-out with Phoenix Engineering?
Sota picked them up and went to Hurst AC motors afaik, formerly used Pabst planar slotless DC motors.
 
My VPI HW-19 Mark3. I've had it almost two years now and continue to love playing it daily.

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Layla-HW-19-Mk3.jpg
 
sberger said:
It came with the heavy platter?
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The second version with the metal bottom 2/3's. It's important to remember that the TNT platter also has the TNT bearing. When ordering the first TNT, I recall Harry telling me that the bearing was as important, if not more so, than the platter. The switch away from the Hurst motor was #3. Talking about why the TNT was better than the HW-19MKIII.

Pretty sure my 19 is an upgraded 3, which the seller didn't know.
 
AFAIK, there were 4 finishes available for the HW-19 Wood Base, Natural Oak shot with a Clear Finish, Walnut, Matte Black, and Piano Black. The Piano Black was extra cost, which I assume was because of the additional labor required.

What I am unsure of though because I never got to examine one that closely, was if the Walnut Base was merely the same Oak Base with just a darker Walnut Stain applied? I assume that was the case, that the Base was not Walnut Wood. Perhaps someone can correct me if I'm wrong?

I recall seeing the Brochures of the different HW-19 Models and their features. I'd guess those Brochures can still be found on the web. Perhaps VPI's website?
 
Nope, the base on my 2 and 3 were walnut. My 4 is flat black. Grain wise, dark stained oak looks nothing like walnut.
 
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I joined the club this month. Picked up an Aries Extended with the JMW 12.6 ( or 12.7?) and a Dynavector DV20x2 cart. Near new condition. Got a great buy on it. Sounds fantastic. How tight should you have the belt and how can you tell?
 
I see the older, more massive original tonearm! The function of this tonearm is greatly improved with the SoundSmith Counter Intuitive, probably the most useful aftermarket accessory offered to insure proper azimuth. I actually liked that tonearm, but you need a low compliance cartridge for best results and there just aren’t that many choices out there. I was once told by a very smart engineer from TEAC that low compliance cartridges are not so great for your records.
 

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I was fortunate enough to acquire an SDS a few days ago to use primarily with my HW19 MKIII. But I've also been able to use it successfully with my Thorens TD145 MKI, and this morning connected it to my Fairchild 412.

I used to own an SDS years ago that I used with my Super Scoutmaster. So I am familiar with how to use it. But I never used it before with non VPI tables. My question pertains to the different frequency settings necessary to get each table to proper speed. The VPI is 60.28, the Thorens is 59.52, and the Fairchild is 59.04 . What variables would cause this, and are the lower settings on the non-VPI something that I should attempt to improve in someway?

The SDS definitely has made an audible difference with the non-VPI tables, but just want to see if there's anything obvious I'm missing.
 
Maybe it has something to do with the lower running voltage. My VPI Classic sounds considerably better than the direct drive tablets I own. Some people don’t seem to notice the cogging and micro speed variations, but if you record the same track on two different decks, you can compare a short clip, and the inadequacies of a direct drive deck becomes obvious.
 
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