Linear-tracking Turntables!

NorthStar

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Feb 8, 2011
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Before it was licensed to Dennesen, it doesn't look as good without the gold plating, but it sounds the same. These first generation were simpler, but had the key features including adjustable VTA (while playing, of course). I remember showing it around Boston, the Boston Audio Society and local companies. I remember Tomlinson Holman had a collection of oddly warped records chosen to make anything mistrack. This worked with all of them. There exists a stash of parts from the pre-production run. I restore antique telescopes as well as keep and listen to a lot of vintage audio gear. It was a fun experience, going through the patent process while I was still in college doing physics.
Alan Sliski View attachment 5401 View attachment 5402

? Post #112 ^

Long time lurker. First post.

Almost two years ago I saw, in Post #112, that there is “a stash of parts from the pre-production run” for this tonearm.

I bought one as a partially assembled kit.

I made some modifications. Not that it needed any. It’s just more fun.

I added magnetic damping. To do that I replaced the original cueing rail with ¼” square copper bar stock and hung a neodymium magnet from the arm tube so it traveled closely along that copper bar. The Dennesen production version also had magnetic damping.

I lowered the counterweight to lower center of gravity to be pretty much at the pivot point (neutral balance). That had the side benefit of being able to use the arm as a level indicator in the direction of arm travel. Adjust the counterweight for zero VTF and let it go, with the air turned on of course.

I used to have access to a laser cutter that could cut ¼” Plexiglass. I used it to fabricate the damping magnet holder and the thing that lowers the counterweight.

The arm tube I selected is carbon fiber. It’s conductive so I was able to ground it by running a bare 30AWG wire down its length.

The signal and ground wires that exit the arm are #38AWG magnet wire for flexibility.

I added a brass weight at the headshell to adjust the effective mass for the Dynavector XX2-MK2 cartridge. I also purchased a heavier counterweight so it would balance with the extra headshell weight.

Two Medo AC0102 air pumps are used to supply the air. They’re wired so that when one breathes in the other breathes out. They are cooled by a quiet 12VDC computer fan. All of that and a surge tank is enclosed in a box with a pressure gauge on top. It’s pretty quiet.

One of the properties of this tonearm that I think is significant is in the geometry of the airfoil. It allows the arm to pivot slightly so that, for very small horizontal excursions, the cartridge thinks it’s on a pivoted arm. It means that, unlike many other linear trackers, the effective mass of the arm is similar in both the horizontal and vertical directions. That geometry also helps prevent the arm from getting jammed up.

The turntable is made from Empire 208 parts on a PaperStone plinth. I didn’t have the heart to drill holes in the plinth for arm attachment. So I used the cheesier method of some card stock and adhesive tape. The card stock is double-sided taped to the base of the arm and then the card is taped to the plinth. It works well enough.

The ABLT-1 works beautifully and the whole setup sounds great to me.

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? And why not...this is simply superb!
 

zerotrackingerror

Well-Known Member
Sep 9, 2015
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Kudos on the PaperStone work, too! I can appreciate what was involved.

Thanks Win!

But I can't take all the credit for the PaperStone fabrication. I had a counter top fabricator in Delaware do it.

I originally contacted him to get some raw PaperStone. He was curious about what I was going to do with it. Once I explained that I was making a turntable he got exited about the project and was happy to offer to do the fabrication. After he told me that you really need something with the performance of an expensive 3hp Festool router to successfully work the material, I accepted his offer. His price turned out to be very reasonable. Much less than that Festool router.

I'm not sure he was so happy about the project after going through the experience. As it turned out it wasn't so easy.

I sent him a router template that I made to rout out the pockets for the motor and the power switch and also a technical drawing for the overall plinth design. The design was a collaboration to minimize fabrication issues.

Once I got it back I had to do some additional machining on it myself. I drilled the 1" hole for the platter bearing and I drilled and tapped the holes for the screws that hold down the aluminum motor support plate you see to the left of the platter. That's when I experienced how difficult it is to work with PaperStone. It gets gummy when the tool heats up the material. I had to basically peck-drill that 1" bearing clearance hole otherwise the carbide tipped hole saw would get totally gummed up and start burning. Even the 1/4-20 screw holes had to be peck-drilled. So I was happy with my choice to have someone else do the majority of the fabrication. The PaperStone does tap nicely though.

Bob

I saw/heard the Saskia at Newburyport. Extraordinary.
 

Mosin

[Industry Expert]
Mar 11, 2012
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I'm not sure he was so happy about the project after going through the experience. As it turned out it wasn't so easy.

I could have told him so. Plinth work is deceptively simple. What looks like an afternoon's endeavor can quite easily turn into a hundred hours of work.

Price it again. I dare you! :D

I saw/heard the Saskia at Newburyport. Extraordinary.

So, we've met?

By the way, the Saskia you heard wasn't finished when I got there. It was the Model Two prototype, and it didn't even work. Like the Tucker automobile, it was made functional at the event. That was somewhat daunting for me, but I was determined to show up with it in tow. The production ones are far more refined.
 

zerotrackingerror

Well-Known Member
Sep 9, 2015
4
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Price it again. I dare you! :D

LOL!

So, we've met?

Yes. Maybe it was a couple of years ago by now. As I recall, we had a conversation about the yield/cost issues of high specification machining and about the business of high-end audio in general. I may have mentioned that I was dabbling at making my own turntable based on the Empire 208. Colby was there too.

By the way, the Saskia you heard wasn't finished when I got there. It was the Model Two prototype, and it didn't even work. Like the Tucker automobile, it was made functional at the event. That was somewhat daunting for me, but I was determined to show up with it in tow. The production ones are far more refined.

I do vaguely recall that the turntable didn't go online until later in the day. But once it did I remember my attention being grabbed by how good it sounded. The struggle to get it going paid off, methinks.

Surprisingly, I don't think it had an expensive cartridge on it at the time. Maybe a Denon DL-103 or variant?

Bob
 

Mosin

[Industry Expert]
Mar 11, 2012
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Surprisingly, I don't think it had an expensive cartridge on it at the time. Maybe a Denon DL-103 or variant?

True, it was just a 103R, but it had a new tip that was done by the guy in Bellvue, WA. It was still a conical, but one of some exalted status, if I remember correctly.
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,606
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E. England
Linear tracking arm/rim drive turntable, a true giant killer (ie out performed Sme 20-V/TW AC3-Graham/Brinkmann La Grange and Bardo at home demos here), at no money at all, $7-8k, the Trans Fi Salvation tt/Terminator arm.
 

Bill Hart

Well-Known Member
May 11, 2012
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Gorgeous work, ZeroTE. The pump concept is fascinating to me as well. The arm- well, I remember the brand name, but that's about it. One of the mad vinylistas on another forum is of the view that the better the table/arm, the less need for an uber cartridge. (Of course, he uses uber cartridges). Enjoy the fruits of your work. It certainly is beautiful to look at!
bill hart
 

hifitommy

Well-Known Member
it's said that all linears have ti 'find' tangency and as such, i agree BUT the sound on certain ones (maplenoll, walker, etc) have a vivid sound not found elsewhere. tthe yamaha and mitsubishi are also rated highly.

pivoted arns are only correct in two spots in the arc of travel but are always stable in location. the better linears find tangency quiickly and more often. something to be said for both designs.
 

Loheswaran

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Dec 19, 2014
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Isn't the issue of compliance one of the major problems - with a linear arm you are stuck with a significantly higher horizontal moving mass - so one needs to use lower compliance cartridges. Isn't the other thing the fact that linear trackers using an air bearing can introduce noise both from air pressure sounds, and indeed the pump. As far as I have read, the Terminator doesn't appear to have as many issues relating to compliance due to the short arm that is used. I am personally very curious about the Schroeder LT - maybe the best of both worlds - no pump, linear, no compliance issues
 

hifitommy

Well-Known Member
i found that my ADC XLM that was notorious for it's high compliance, became very powerful in my rabco st4 tt. AND it didn;t damage the cartridge. truly the impact was dramatic without being overblown.

i nver tried MC in that arm but i bet it would have been ideal. i only got to MC when i had my pio PLL1000a in service. MCs of which most are low compliance, work well in my sumiko MMT arm.
 

BillWojo

Well-Known Member
Jun 11, 2015
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Well shortly after I last posted on here I drifted away from vinyl and concentrated on my digital play back system. After picking up a rebuilt Audio Research SP8 preamp to go with my Mac MC40 monoblocks I decided to get back into vinyl at the suggestion of a good friend. He kept telling me that the SP8 phono section was phenomenal and I was missing some magic by not using it.
So I decided to pull my Yamaha PX-3 apart and completely rebuild it, after all it dates back to 1983. I took the tonearm/carriage assembly apart, cleaned everything and lubed what needed to be lubed. Flipped the main drive belt and swapped it end to end along with putting belt conditioner on it. Once that was done I turned my attention to the electronics.
A good buddy of mine is a whiz at recapping receivers and such so I had him go through the circuit boards and do his magic. While apart he also cleaned all the touch switches.
I'm a firm believer in recapping the control boards on any of these electronically controlled turntables as the main logic chip relies on a clean 5VDC power. If caps go bad and the chip gets damaged the TT is bricked.
After I put it back together I tested it with a junk cartridge to make sure there were no surprises and it worked just fine. I than put my AT 120e cart back on and hooked it up into my system.
I am blown away at just how good this sounds and it tracks perfectly. All the benefits of a linear tracker and none of the maintenance. I load a record, push a button and close the dust cover. The record sounds perfect from lead in groove to the lead out groove.
My next adventure is to mount a Denon DL103 cart and hook up one of my SUT to try out a MC cart. Seems the DL103 is still a popular and very musical cart.
I don't think you really have to spend mega bucks to get great performance. This Yamaha PX-3 sports a direct drive quartz locked coreless motor and a very simple and elegant tonearm/carriage that just works very well.
It's also super convenient and one that you can show your girl friend or kids how to use without worry. I would never let anyone near an airbearing tonearm or even a conventional tonearm for fear of the damage they may cause.

BillWojo

BillWojo
 

kach22i

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Apr 21, 2010
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......Sitting in a box to be cleaned and serviced is a working Pioneer PL-L1000. As you can see, I am a firm believer in linear tracking TT.
I helped a friend out a few years ago. I was over at his house every weekend for two months and eventually asked about the dormant TT sitting in storage. He said a friend gave it to him, and it does not work. When our project was over he was glad to have me clear his junk out.

It sat at my house for a couple of years as I could not figure out this TT with a mind of it's own that just about nothing worked was all about.

We moved about nine months ago and my dedicated listening room is getting sorted slowly but well.

With a belt drive and direct drive TT already set-up I have my Pioneer PL-L1000 set on a floor amp stand with two more layers of maple butcher block, and it is dead level on carpet, on concrete.

I went though the tonearm setup with the original cartridge that has long lost it's needle. And once I got the hang of all manual operation installed a 32 year old Ortofon OM-10.

This is the second or third best TT that I have ever heard, the best ever in my system even with an near entry level cartridge.

Any minor flaws can be traced to the basic known characteristic of the cartridge.

The test LP's that I've been using for weeks (including Blue Note Jazz/Blues) to compare and tweak the other two TT's sounded new, almost unfamiliar so improved things were.

My face was getting sore from all the smiling.

My neck was getting sore from my head bobbing.

I'm going to install my Grado Sonata from my other table later today hoping to tame the other cartridge's brightness and to help flush out vocals with highly processed Progressive/Alternative Rock.

I guess the lasting impressions are the lip reed of brass instruments and huge increase in soundstage scale.

One LP provided some spooky 3D voices in my head similar to listening with headphones on that I suspect were first reflection points overwhelming my DIY wall panels.

If this experience is what linear tracking tonearms are all about, color me a fan of them.
 
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kach22i

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If you are ready to read some serious opinions about linear verses pivoted tonearms check out this 2010 thread in another forum.

Take special note of posts by 213cobra (Phil) on page one as a double post and at bottom of page two.

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/are-linear-tracking-arms-better-than-pivoted-arms

I have only read the first two pages, and it has taken longer than expected so rich with information it is.

One quick question here, much of their discussion seems to describe air bearing linear tonearms as a rigid stick on a rail with no lateral movement at the arm base.

My PL-L1000 is like a railroad car on tubes with a typical pivoted or gimbal tonearm attached, just a bit shorter than normal.

All the negative comments about lateral stress on stylus cantilevers can be ignored, or are my servos considered even more jarring?
 

BruceD

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Take special note of posts by 213cobra (Phil) on page one as a double post and at bottom of page two.
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/are-linear-tracking-arms-better-than-pivoted-arms

Yes I recall that thread at the time--very interesting and Phil's post was endearing and an informative look at his take on the subject under

discussion.Also it is good to see him posting here--always refreshing to see one who is not afraid to speak some words of wisdom on matters

and not be concerned to stir the pot or upset city hall;)

BruceD
 

Mike Lavigne

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Yes I recall that thread at the time--very interesting and Phil's post was endearing and an informative look at his take on the subject under

discussion.Also it is good to see him posting here--always refreshing to see one who is not afraid to speak some words of wisdom on matters

and not be concerned to stir the pot or upset city hall;)

BruceD

i was part of that Audiogon thread.....and remember it well.

i do think that you simply cannot generalize about linear trackers; or even generalize about more specifically non pivoted linear trackers......or even air bearing linear trackers. my current low pressure, low flow air bearing CS Port linear tracker is quite different from my high pressure high flow Rockport linear tracker i owned back when i was involved in that thread.

as far as stress on a cantilever from a linear tracker i'd repeat what i wrote back then; a properly executed, properly leveled air bearing linear tracker does not cause any issues with a cantilever. never tried a servo-controlled linear tracker so have no opinion.
 
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BruceD

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Yes Mike I recall your posting too--my own ONLY unfortunate LT episode was with the

Rabco SL8 /TD-125/SME /V15 in the 70's -made me grey before my time:oops:!

I'll stick with my Breuers as the sonics I enjoyed the most.

My envy of your system and fortitude I strove for once alas has eluded Moi!

But always great to read of your changes and observations.

Good Listening,

BruceD
 

Mariogert

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Apr 5, 2020
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There exists a stash of parts from the pre-production run.
Dear mr Alan Sliski,
I read about the Dennsesn products of which I imported a few back in the '80s... long time ago but fond memories still.
I read about a possible stash of parts.... Would there be something available still? I would like to built a simple arm like that and am looking for suitable parts.
Please reply, thank you so much.
Greetings,
Mario G Rouwenhorst
Netherlands
 

DasguteOhr

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Sep 26, 2013
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For the money a real good conzept, looks good and sounds good.
Plays 33/45/78 heard with ortofon venice smooth musical a real bargain.;)

504e970bdb83afbf9657015668c03b47.jpg
 
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