Hi All,
I have a pair of rare "Austral Argo" Transcription turntables. I think they may be very similar to the Presto 10-B which is also obscure but less obscure than the Argo which I find absolutely no information on. I also have 2 x Audio technica At-1503 (14") tonearms that it the TT's came with.
These turntables were originally used by the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) for radio broadcast.
So I want to build a plinth and mount this suckers in there. Can a 14" arm be used with a 16" turntable? Shall I just use the typical mounting details for the AT-1503?
Also If anyone knows anything about these turntables please let me know.
Cheers.
I have a pair of rare "Austral Argo" Transcription turntables. I think they may be very similar to the Presto 10-B which is also obscure but less obscure than the Argo which I find absolutely no information on. I also have 2 x Audio technica At-1503 (14") tonearms that it the TT's came with.
These turntables were originally used by the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) for radio broadcast.
So I want to build a plinth and mount this suckers in there. Can a 14" arm be used with a 16" turntable? Shall I just use the typical mounting details for the AT-1503?
Also If anyone knows anything about these turntables please let me know.
Cheers.
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I am afraid you will not have a great succes with these .... they are probably too noisy ... at the time they were OK but records did not have same dynamic and the noise of the machine was below minimum recording level .. does not mean you cannot make them work .... for the tonearm the most important is the distance betwen tonearm pivot and center of the platter to optimise angle betwen cartrige axis & record groove
Have you checked over on www.vinylengine.com for information.
A table like this would work best in a massive plinth made of something that is lossy such as multiple layers of paperstone or plywood. You'll probably need to do something with the motor mounting bushings. With some effort you should be able to get pretty decent results with one..
Schick, SME and Ortofon 12 inch arms are popular with 16 inch transcription tables here in the U.S. (They are typically about 14 - 15 inches from end to end if that was what you were thinking about in terms of arm when you mentioned 14 inches)
I have several friends with Fairchild belt driven 16 inch tables. They work quite well IMVLE. RCA, ARGO, PRESTO, Commonwealth, and Russco all built 16 inch machines - most could be candidates for restoration and use with some care and possible improvements to get rumble down to acceptable levels. (Think machine shop work here)
A table like this would work best in a massive plinth made of something that is lossy such as multiple layers of paperstone or plywood. You'll probably need to do something with the motor mounting bushings. With some effort you should be able to get pretty decent results with one..
Schick, SME and Ortofon 12 inch arms are popular with 16 inch transcription tables here in the U.S. (They are typically about 14 - 15 inches from end to end if that was what you were thinking about in terms of arm when you mentioned 14 inches)
I have several friends with Fairchild belt driven 16 inch tables. They work quite well IMVLE. RCA, ARGO, PRESTO, Commonwealth, and Russco all built 16 inch machines - most could be candidates for restoration and use with some care and possible improvements to get rumble down to acceptable levels. (Think machine shop work here)
Ouch this is discouraging. Oh well thanks for the honesty. I'll give it a go regardless, even just to restore something beautiful and old. I have the orginal tonearm mounting drawing so I have the correct pivot to platter center dimension.
Thanks for the info. ok Plywood sounds do-able. Firstly I'm going to mount it to a thick sheet with the tonearm to just get everything working. Then I'll transfer it to a nice plinth. So Have you heard of ARGO before? I can't seem to find any info on it anywahere
I never saw Argo but as you wrote it is very similar to presto ... the presto had a full rectangular casting original paint was a grey crackle paint .... and 50 years ago I had 2 of these and as the time I made a rebuit ... but the TT I had has only 2 speed 33 /78 ...no 45 RPM.
Ah yes i think that was the Presto 10-a very interesting that yoi had them 50 years ago
Yes, and I've seen at least one, but they are pretty rare. Idler driven Australian transcription tables are popular with a small contingent of New Englanders, why exactly I don't know..
You have the makings of a pretty good table with some effort being required.
Youve seen one Argo before? I guess it may be the commonwealth that is popular with some. Its quite popular here too. Perhaps beacuse they are so well built.
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