Search results

  1. sombunya

    Audio feedback

    People here have some amazing systems. I'll assume they take their sound seriously. When I was digitizing some vinyl once, during a very quiet passage I could hear people in the room talking. It was coming through the cartridge into my headphones. In an earlier thread I related steps my father...
  2. sombunya

    MFSL inner sleeves

    I've placed pretty much my entire collection in these, 2700 or so discs. When I pull a disc out to play it I see a sort of haze on it. It isn't smooth over the entire disc, it looks like a wrinkled sleeve "off-gassing" for lack of a better term. It cleans right off when I use an Orbitrac and a...
  3. sombunya

    Periphery and spindle clamps

    The periphery clamp weighs 2.6 lb. and the spindle clamp weighs 1.7lb. It securely grabs the spindle. I've been using them on my Music Hall 9.1. I'm curious if there's any one here who doesn't use them or believes they don't offer much improvement. I only ask because some here have the very...
  4. sombunya

    Cork mats

    Both my TT's have what I can describe as a fibrous mat that sticks to the record when I lift it. Are cork platter mats any good? What do the experts here recommend? I use peripheral and spindle clamps.
  5. sombunya

    Record stamper life

    I believe I read somewhere that the life of a stamper is about 800 pressings before sound quality begins to degrade. If this is true or false could someone more knowledgeable about this confirm or deny it? And if this is indeed true, is a disc produced early on more desirable that one...
  6. sombunya

    How to properly listen to a record?

    I mostly read and glean here and have very little to offer. I was once digitizing an LP to listen to in the car. With headphones on I could hear my voice coming back through when a silent groove was playing. I was close to the TT but not talking too loudly. Back in the sixties my father...
  7. sombunya

    33 1/3 vs 45 rpm

    This is in regards to new, 12" vinyl platters. I recently acquired an album with two discs that play about 4-5 minutes per side. Is there any gain in fidelity? I've seen some 12" singles have or had deeper grooves that I would presume gave more "sound pressure" or in the magnetic tape world...
  8. sombunya

    Vinyl warehouse

    Has anyone seen this before? I stumbled upon it in another forum and if this is true, it's amazing. Abandoned Vinyl Warehouse
  9. sombunya

    Vintage McIntosh stuff

    I recently sold a C22 and an MC225. Last time I used them was at least 15 years ago. Powered them up slowly with a variac and ran them long enough for a listening test. They seemed to work very well and sounded good, at least I thought they did. The fellow that bought them restored an old...
  10. sombunya

    Another question on vinyl record lifespan

    Seems I read somewhere that when the stylus tip contact area and tracking force is calculated out, the actual pressure figure is some incredible number over 200 lb/sq.inch. And the heat generated at the actual contact point was also quite high. That being said, is there any guess at how many...
  11. sombunya

    Vinyl record lifespan

    What made me wonder was this; I picked up a 45 rpm from a flat surface and my fingernail accidentally scratched the record lightly. Compared to a diamond stylus a fingernail is as soft as cotton ball, yet records can easily be scratched with one. So I'm wondering how a record can be played...
  12. sombunya

    Stylus speed inside the groove

    I was perusing another forum and the subject of stylus speed, inner groove distortion etc. came up. A person mentioned how the stylus travels faster through the groove on the outer tracks than it does on the inner tracks. Being the simple person I am I asked why a 5 minute track isn't the same...
  13. sombunya

    Music Hall drive belt won't track straight

    I have a Music Hall MMF9.1. I bought it used but with low mileage I presume and it looked great. The drive belt keeps flipping 1/4 of a turn. I've tried moving the motor around to change the tension, roll the belt another quarter turn thinking maybe it will find its own "sweet spot", and...
  14. sombunya

    Static and felt mats

    I was wondering if there's anything better than a felt mat to support a vinyl while it plays. Now, a company manufacturing $2000 TT's would probably be supplying it if there was, but then again, maybe not. I have some thin (.030 inch) soft rubber sheeting used in the aircraft industry. I was...
  15. sombunya

    Pops, ticks and artifacts

    I've read how a good cleaning can remove some of these but have never really experienced it firsthand. I seem to remember long ago of reading about the incredible temperatures generated at that tiny point of styllus/vinyl contact. I also believe that once they are "burned in", things like...
  16. sombunya

    Static, how to get rid of it?

    I use a Zerostat 3 and have had decent results, I think. I do notice that after playing one side of a 12" vinyl most of the time the felt mat on my Music Hall sticks to the disc when I go to turn it over. A pal of mine suggested putting a dryer sheet or two under the mat as they are supposed...
  17. sombunya

    Goldring Eroica LX Cartridge

    I have one of these on my Music Hall. It's a low output unit. They are available in low or high output configuration, as everyone knows. What I wonder is what are the advantages and disadvantages of each? Why buy a low output that needs a preamp when a high output, at the same price...
  18. sombunya

    Colored vinyl vs. Black vinyl sound quality

    I was wondering what the consensus here is. I've heard people say that if the colored vinyl is opaque, no difference, translucent doesn't sound as good as black vinyl, it's all the same because black dye is added to the vinyl formula, and on and on. It's nice to unseal a record and see...
  19. sombunya

    Stylus life vs program info on vinyl

    I was wondering if the program info on a record has an effect on stylus life. I listen to primarily loud, noisey records. That means there are some big, heavy groove modulations that the needle tracks. Will these types of groove modulations erode a stylus quicker than, let's say softer...
  20. sombunya

    Dust on records

    Just curious, does anyone here use any of the devices that pick dust up from the vinyl as it is playing? I know Rega discourages the use of such devices and even says that a small amount of dust is of no concern. The stylus will push it aside. I use an Orbitrac to pick up debris before I...
  21. sombunya

    Audio feedback and Turntables

    I'm new to this forum so if I ask questions that have been covered before, I apologize. Way back in the early 1960's my father had a sound system in the living room of our home. However, he had the Garrard in a closet in a hallway nearby. It's now obvious to me why this was. My pal and I...
  22. sombunya

    pressing quality vs. system quality

    Not sure if there's an easy answer here. At what point does a turntable sytem surpass the quality of the cutting and pressing of the vinyl? I enjoy seeing all of the amazing equipment out there. I don't know a lot about the cutting and pressing of vinyl but there must be a point when...
  23. sombunya

    Using a Variac

    I have a McIntosh C22 and a 225 power amp. The last time I used them they worked great, but they've been sitting idle for well over 10 years. I have heard estimates on powering them up with a Variac from one hour to 2 days(!). I was wondering what the braintrust in this forum would suggest?
  24. sombunya

    Stylus lifespan

    First post here. Looks like a great forum. I was wondering how many hours I can expect out of my phono stylus before it starts to wear, damage my vinyl etc.? I play new or very lightly used vinyl, mainly 33 rpm's. I'm using a Rega P3-24 with an Elys 2 and I think it's tracking at 1.7 grams...

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