A little upgrade I've been meaning to do for a while, but for whatever reason got postponed a few times.
SOTA Audio Condor Eclipse tt motor/controller upgrade, now linked to previously purchased Roadrunner speed tach.
I've been spoilt by recent massive upticks in my sound, incl magic trick of simple inexpensive elimination of a major bass suck out, noise floor minimising Bocchino upgrades to Sablon Elite pwr cords, and the sheer tonal color flowering of my sound via NOS 6DJ8 preamp tubes change. So, not sure what I was expecting here, since I don't seem to be particularly sensitive to speed variations/resultant pitch instability.
Sure enough, my Roadrunner that was showing +/-0.3% running fast/slow with my stock motor, is now way more accurate, closer to 0.005%.
I would like to say it's as dramatic as previous changes, but it isn't, at least not yet. There is a greater sense of ease and air. Suspended notes waver less. Basslines and piano are more resolute and pertinent. But I can't say it's night and day.
A few reasons for that. The motor and pulley/drive wheel (custom 20mm diameter Delrin wheel instead of stock SOTA piece) need likely 50 hours running time to open up; the motor pod is not ideally isolated (my custom Symposium Svelte pad is a few mms too thin, and the slate coaster I've used to make up the difference needs a little finagling); my stock motor was powered by a bespoke Peter Downs LPS...this new motor uses a lowly cheap as chips SMPS wall wart (new LPS, Farad or Peter Downs to come); and the mainly hollow motor pod rings like a bell and needs internal damping/mass loading (my friend is IsoDamp strips).
So, an inauspicious start. In many ways at least as good as my current stock motor (only behind on verve and energy), and with massive potential to up the ante, as I sort isolation, LPS to it, internal damping, and natural performance boost after that 50 hrs mark.
I'm particularly looking fwds to those aspects of music reproduction off LP that most benefit from super stable speed...piano generally, acoustic music where correct pitch is critical, and highly rhythmic music where bass timing is paramount.