Dustcovers.. on or off...

Rfj, remember we're only talking here about during play. I have a dust cover for my Basis Ovation which I put back on after listening. Of course, it is a pain with some turntables with hinged dustcovers, I guess, but I think most of them can be reattached with a little work. If not, one of my friends (Plato, actually) has built himself, for less than $100, a clear acrylic dustcover which is larger in width, height and depth than his turntable, so he just places it over the whole TT. Looks great, too. Worth considering as a practical alternative.

hmmm. are your floors packed dirt or clay? ;^)
seriously, if you take the record out just before playing and return it to its sleeve afterwards,very little contamination will result.
Use the dustcover or place an old beater record or mat on the platter when the table is not in use.
Ken

I have to disagree. Perchance California is a dustier place than most but the dustcover keeps the dust out. The finest phono equipment sounds like crap when a piece of dust attaches itself to the stylus. Keeping the dust cover on keeps the dust down quite notably. If you don't have a dustcover how do you prevent dust build up?

now, now, those wild highlanders again, but I definitely do agree....off with it and not even a hat left on!!

Take it off -- take it all off!!

NO dustcover ever, for the above reasons, I now have gone even so far as having the turntable and the first chain of amplification in a different room to where the speakers are.

This is an easy issue for me, the Walker turntable does not offer the option of a dust cover. When I last owned a table with a cover (Basis MK5) I removed it and put it on the dining room table.

I've heard it both ways on a SOTA turntable, and the sound was clearly compromised by the dustcover. Ken's post is correct, in my view.

I am lazy, but I do leave it UP when using the TT. The annoying vibrations I get is mainly the dust cover against the base when there are outside vibrations, so leaving it up stops this. I suppose there are other low level vibrations, but I admit I am not a hard core vinyl listener.

Whenever a black biscuit is spinning the dust cover is conveniently lying on the floor. Thanks, Doug

dismissal
(i sure wish an edit feature were available)
ken

Off.Not only does the dustcover create a collector for airbourne vibrations, it also adds energy storing mass to a sensitive system,creates a resonant chamber with its own panel resonance characteristics which obscures and smears information.The dustcover is one of the few areas where I am in disagreement with Regas Roy Gandy, the other being his dismal of the value of record cleaning.

Best,
Ken