Hi,
I have aquired a turntable in working but untidy condition. It has a hollow wooden plinth and suspended table and arm. One option I am considering is a slate plinth but have read it might change the character of the table. The model I have (an AR The Turntable) had sufficient virtues for for me not to want to do to much to alter its strengths. Does anyone have any experience or opinion on this? To be honest, it I could find somewhere in the UK who could re-veneer the original plinth I would be happy.
I have aquired a turntable in working but untidy condition. It has a hollow wooden plinth and suspended table and arm. One option I am considering is a slate plinth but have read it might change the character of the table. The model I have (an AR The Turntable) had sufficient virtues for for me not to want to do to much to alter its strengths. Does anyone have any experience or opinion on this? To be honest, it I could find somewhere in the UK who could re-veneer the original plinth I would be happy.
replinths....
as I'm pretty much all thumbs I'm kinda useless in a practical sense.
But even I did a replinth, and still have all my fingers intack..
or simon, perhaps a friend is a carpenter? Solid Walnut or similar in the UK would look the part. Even some "exotic" woods are reasonably priced and not in danger...
and of course Dave's replinth is very nice.. I made mine to fit my 14" (effective length) DIY tonearm
as I'm pretty much all thumbs I'm kinda useless in a practical sense.
But even I did a replinth, and still have all my fingers intack..
or simon, perhaps a friend is a carpenter? Solid Walnut or similar in the UK would look the part. Even some "exotic" woods are reasonably priced and not in danger...
and of course Dave's replinth is very nice.. I made mine to fit my 14" (effective length) DIY tonearm
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Thanks for the response guys, and I do have to say Nanook yours does look pretty. I have had some thoughts and am leaning towards sourcing a solid hardwood slab and getting the correct hole cut out of it. I like the look of the metal subframe you use. My biggest issue is that if I went for wood, a finish that matches my speakers would be the best but they are maple and an usually white maple at that. Also, exotic hard woods are not that easy to come by in the UK and I don't know what issues would be involved importing. The subframe would also support use of a circular or triangular plinth (with power dismounted to a separate box) but I would like to stick with square.
Any views on the effect of a slate plinth?
Any views on the effect of a slate plinth?
simon
my slab was a cutting boartd I bought at a discount shop. 1-1/2" thick, and square. it is a hardwood, and unstained. I may finish it with teak oil (one of my favourites)
I paid something like CAD $12 to $15, (I can't rmember but it was cheap), so under 8 quid for you. Check out Ikea or Habitat or similar in the UK.
The aluminium was sourced at a local hardware stor, 1" square tubing. The feet are from the cutting board.
The "split plinth" was required because of my DIY 14" (effective) length tonearm. A nice side effect was a little isolation from the motor assembly.
Dave's table may represent something similar in dimensions to what you may need. Also have you checked out vinyl nirvana ? AR specific stuff there..
my slab was a cutting boartd I bought at a discount shop. 1-1/2" thick, and square. it is a hardwood, and unstained. I may finish it with teak oil (one of my favourites)
I paid something like CAD $12 to $15, (I can't rmember but it was cheap), so under 8 quid for you. Check out Ikea or Habitat or similar in the UK.
The aluminium was sourced at a local hardware stor, 1" square tubing. The feet are from the cutting board.
The "split plinth" was required because of my DIY 14" (effective) length tonearm. A nice side effect was a little isolation from the motor assembly.
Dave's table may represent something similar in dimensions to what you may need. Also have you checked out vinyl nirvana ? AR specific stuff there..
I have a Technics SP-15 that I got free from a local radio station. After making a couple minor repairs, I built a plinth, since the turntable had been mounted into a hole in the radio station countertop. I used two pieces of scrap kitchen countertop MDF material, laminated together and edged with solid oak strips. It's 17 1/2" x 21" x 1 5/8" thick and provides excellent support for the turntable and tonearm. This setup is dedicated to 78 rpm/historical recordings playback. Here's a picture.
The biggest problem with using slate would be difficulty in working with it, cutting holes etc....
The biggest problem with using slate would be difficulty in working with it, cutting holes etc....
Attachments
Hi,
FWIW the plinth of a subspended subchassis turntable should not
affect the sound much (unless its flimsy), the fundamental tonality
coming from the platter / subchassis / arm combination-interfaces.
A slate plinth would be fine - you could try my preference to solidly
mount the motor to the plinth rather than the usual decoupling.
Having said all that it is usually a lot easier to tidy up a tatty plinth
and add some extra mass, better bottom plate etc, rather than
starting from scratch.
I've seen some pointlessly over-engineered suspended plinths.
The EB101 plinth is a bit cheap, the real wood veneer of The AR
should clean up very nicely.
/sreten.
FWIW the plinth of a subspended subchassis turntable should not
affect the sound much (unless its flimsy), the fundamental tonality
coming from the platter / subchassis / arm combination-interfaces.
A slate plinth would be fine - you could try my preference to solidly
mount the motor to the plinth rather than the usual decoupling.
Having said all that it is usually a lot easier to tidy up a tatty plinth
and add some extra mass, better bottom plate etc, rather than
starting from scratch.
I've seen some pointlessly over-engineered suspended plinths.
The EB101 plinth is a bit cheap, the real wood veneer of The AR
should clean up very nicely.
/sreten.Thanks for that sreten. Had the plinth been in good general condition I would have had no problems restoring it. However it has suffered with the veneer lifting in places and on the front corners the veneer has been chipped. There is some talk on Vinyl Nirvana that over damping of the box 'deadens the sound'. I am trying to walk a line between restoring a turntable to sufficiently good cosmetic appearance to want to have on display with my gear while not killing the character that made the particular model so popular. If what you suggest is correct then the slate plinth is looking like a possible option. Oddly enough also an easier option to find than solid hardwood.
Right, I have found 2 different places that will be willing to work with the existing plinth, one in the US and the other in the UK. Their quotes are pretty similar so ease of shipping wins the day. I should be able to do the whole restoration (including replacing the arm and cartridge) for around the cost of a slate plinth so the slate project will be shelved for the time being. Thanks for your input Guys.
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