I haven't tried it but I don't think it would work, (at least not well). The motor spindle is tapered so if you're talking two belts and one motor I think that you'd have problems as the belt on the larger groove would be turning the platter faster than the one on the smaller groove and I would guess buckling or slipping would ensue. I could be completely wrong though. |
Why would you feel you need to? |
Just experimenting. I've seen multiple belts on other turntables and thought that it is a cheap enough tweek that somebody may have already done it. By the way on my Scout the pulley is not tapered. |
Oh, I thought it was to allow fine adjustment of the speed. It's been a while since I've owned one. The Scoutmaster pulley is tapered for that purpose. I suppose it should work then. I've seen some other tables do that although I'm not sure what the expected benefits are.
What the heck, it's not like it's a bad idea to have a spare belt around so you might as well try it and see what it does. Good luck |
I have found this works well, but then I also wear two belts on most of my pants. You know the audiophile motto, If some is good, more must be better. |
If you want two belts get a Rega P-9! |
Why don't you try e-mailing Mike at VPI. He's a great guy! He's always answered my questions. |
VPI dual belt update....adding a second belt to the VPI scout made the following changes in sound and platter speed stability.
1. The sound stage image becomes more focused.
2. There is an improvement in anti skating. That is, when the tonearm tested via test record (omni disc)the cartriage tracks the record for a longer period of time before the left or right channel breaks up.
3. The bass improves...that is it becomes more solid.
4. The pitch of the turntable changes...That is, I had to decrease the frequency of the SDS from 60.60 hz to 60.30 hz. in order for the platter rotate at 33.33 rpm. |
Thanks for a very neat confirmation that belt creep in the VPI "Scout" is approximately 1%. When you duplicate the belt you halve the effective compliance so the belt creep also halves. |
Since you have a SDS for your Scout, I would suggest replacing the VPI belts with a thread belt. I tried mono-filament fishing line (Spiderwire) and silk thread. I preferred the silk thread using a blood knot as I can get the knot to reduce to a smaller size.
The Scout motor pulley is tapered on both the 600 or 300 RPM motors. You can verify this on yours by using one belt and setting the speed, then move the belt to another pulley grove. If the speed changes, the pulley is tapered.
If I were to use two belts, I would ensure both are talcum powdered so I did not have too much noise introduced by buckling or slipping due to the different diameters of the pulley groves. |
If it is the case that the pulley is tapered then my observation is moot, the speed differential would be due to the tapering. Etbaby originally reported that his pulley was not tapered.
An interesting experiment would be to try the dual belts on all possible combinations of grooves. |
AFAIK every Scout pulley is tapered. It is not really noticeable with the naked eye, but it is there. I think this explains his speed differences.
With that in mind, I cannot see how this would lead to positive results as it would seem the two speeds would be "fighting" with each other. |
More is not better in this case. Stick to a single belt and stop trying to reinvent what Harry spent years optimizing. |
I have a spare belt for my Scout. I added the belt to the 300 RPM motor pulley and adjusted the platter speed. Everything was flat and dull sounding with the two belts. Popping one belt off restored the energy and dynamics.
Even if there wasn't a degradation of the sonic characteristics, I would not recommend using two belts on a tapered pulley. |
Hi Audiogon Members, I have not weighted in on this issue in a while so I thought I would add an addtional 2 cents to the discussion.
1. The pulley that I have on my scout turntable is not tapered. When I upgraded from the 600 RPM motor to the 300 RPM motor I replaced the tapered pulley.
2. I got the original idea to add a second belt from the VPI web site. Take a look at the super scoutmaster and HRX photo gallery. Both tables use twin belts.
3. If I view the motor pulley from the top I notice a very slight wobble. I have tried to adjust the pulley to minimize the wobble, but a small amount is still there. The table could probably use a machined metal pulley like the one on the vpi flywheel.
4. I installed two new black vpi belts at the same time.
5. I stick by my orginal statement that the sound is improved in the following ways: better image focus, better bass, more resolution, and better pitch control.
6. I will try adding talcum power to the belts to see if there is any additional improvment. |
Soon VPI will have a rim drive to eliminate the belts |
