Platter Upgrade for VPI HW MK lll to MKlV


I own a VPI HW MK lll with the 1" acrylic & lead platter and would like to upgrade the plater to MKlV. I think all that is available new right now is the 1.5 " all acylic Scout platter w/inverted bearing. Or should I look for an older TNT lead and acylic platter without the inverted beaaring which was the older true upgrade. Could anyone give me some suggestions.
Thanks
opal

Showing 1 response by sdcampbell

I have the older TNT acrylic and lead platter,with the original bearing, on my Mark 4, and think it's the way to go. As noted above, you will also need the bearing shaft that goes with this platter, as well as the heavier springs.

I replaced the springs on my Mark 4 with the Sorbothane pucks used in the last production runs of this TT, and they made a distinct improvement. Previously, due to my old flooring, the TT was very susceptible to footfalls (even light ones), but the Sorbothane pucks have essentially eliminated this problem. I also think the bass sounds tighter. Changing over to the pucks requires a minor modification to the TT base, but it's not difficult. You can send me a private E-mail if you want more detail.

I also replaced the small, rubber feet with the aluminum cone feet used on the Scout and Aries series of turntables, and they provided a small but useful incremental improvement.

The Sorbothane pucks and the aluminum cone feet can be purchased from several sources, including directly from VPI. I bought mine from Elusive Disk - here's the link:
http://www.elusivedisc.com/prodinfo.asp?number=HW-19FU

With the heavier Mk4/TNT platter, bearings, Sorbothane pucks, and cone feet, you will notice a real improvement in the performance of your HW-19 Mk3.