Birthday Present from jtwrace

[Satch]

Man, I thought the Scheu Analog Cello sounded like the Kitties-Titties. Today a small box that was very heavy arrived in the mail. I opened the box and pulled out what looks like a race car piston! A solid aluminum cylinder that feels like it weighs 5 lbs maybe more.

O.M.G.!!! I was thinking no way the TT was going to be able turn that heavy thing with that little thread... Well, I trust jtwrace's judgment so I pulled out an album I was listening to last night. The Japanese pressing of Eric Clapton's 461 Ocean Boulevard, zapped it with the Milty, placed the centerweight over the spindle and flipped on the switch for 33 1/3. The thread Didn't Break... O.K. so far so good. Next I cleaned any remaining dust with the A.Q. dust brush and cleaned the needle with the Onzow Zerodust.

Side two of E.C.'s 461 starts out with a cool version of Elmore James' "I can't Hold Out"... HOLD THE PHONE!!! This can't be the same TT ??? I listened through the whole side, stunned.

Hmmm? Maybe its just this or that, try that same side without the weight... I barley got through the first song and realized the difference.

Its a beautiful day outside, pretty girls walking past my house in bikinis on their way to the beach... Lets see how this 180 gram 45 rpm "The Red Hot Ray Brown Trio" sounds... Dang!!! I forgot to eat lunch, Gotta hear John Lee Hookers "Burning Hell" now without the centerweight...

The difference that the centerweight made was a dramatic increase in dynamics, tightness (Ray Browns Upright Bass), texture and feel and I guess I would say just an incredible Presence.

Thank You Jason for this wonderful birthday present!!!

Satch

 

[jtwrace]

Ray,

You are VERY welcome. I was going to make it prettier & go crazy but time is not on my side. I figured I would send it so you can enjoy. Glad you are happy & YES I did make it.

 

[twich54]

Satch, interesting........ if it is as heavy as you say, have you checked your platter speed for any variation ?

I know when I changed my VPI to the Super Platter and perif ring I needed to recalibrate the SDS settings.

Also you may want to check with Clearaudio regarding your bearings load integrity.

 

[TrumpetDoug]

Also you may want to check with Clearaudio regarding your bearings load integrity.

Satch does not have a Clearaudio, but I agree maybe a check of the bearings to be safe. Good call.

Satch, awesome to hear that the sound was so improved. Where can you purchase one of these?

Doug - out

 

[Satch]

Doug,

You'll have to ask jtwrace to make you one of these beauties... Some of the members here use the over-sized rear spikes he made for Summits to bring the rake forward.

Yes, the first thing I did before I put the record on was run the Shure speed tester at 33 1/3 and 45 rpm. Dead on.

The bearing in the Scheu Analog Cello is the same bearing that comes with the more expensive models with the super thick platers.

A question for jtwrace: Do you know the exact weight is on this? I don't have a good scale.

Satch

 

[jtwrace]

A question for jtwrace: Do you know the exact weight is on this? I don't have a good scale.

Satch

I think it was ~3lb. I put it on a gram scale at one point but I really can't remember the exact number.

 

[Satch]

Jason,

3 lbs. Thats close enough. I was just curious.

What else are you working on and can I get one of those too?

Satch

 

[jtwrace]

Jason,

3 lbs. Thats close enough. I was just curious.

What else are you working on and can I get one of those too?

Satch

Funny. I just read the post about how tonepub was going to re-make the CLS electronics. I was thinking how cool would it be to modernize the box behind the speaker? Make it out of Carbon Fiber.....

Anything can be made. It just takes two things....

 

[Joey_V]

Dang Jason.... what a nice gesture! SOO happy for you Ray! I can see the tubes from my former Cary pre peaking out in that photo....

 

[jtwrace]

Satch, interesting........ if it is as heavy as you say, have you checked your platter speed for any variation ?

I know when I changed my VPI to the Super Platter and perif ring I needed to recalibrate the SDS settings.

Also you may want to check with Clearaudio regarding your bearings load integrity.

The load with the same bearing on the top of the line table is no problem. The Cello uses the same bearing and the more expensive tables platter is 14lbs more. The extra 3lbs is no big deal at all.

 

[Satch]

Hey Joey,

That Cary SLP is a fantastic preamp and I've been using the phono stage a lot lately. Thanks again for holding on to it long enough for me to scrape the dough together. Sorry you had tough time with your TT experience.

Jason,

That centerweight elevated an excellent TT onto another level altogether. Pure and simple genius! When is your birthday?

Satch

 

[jtwrace]

Thank you but it really is nothing earth shattering. Just really simple frequency dampening. It's amazing what you can see with an accelerometer. I've thought about making my own platter as that's what is all about. People just love the real fancy looking tables. The Scheu is one of the few that do it right imo. I could make that clamp better even....maybe I will when I have time. Whenever that might be.