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Tables That Feature Bearing Friction

I recently had the opportunity to audition the DPS turntable which, unlike most tables, has a certain amount of friction designed into the bearing. This, when paired with a high quality/high torque motor, is said to allow for greater speed stability--sort of like shifting to a lower gear when driving down a steep hill and allowing the engine to provide some breaking effect and thus greater vehicular stability. I am intrigued by this idea and was wondering what other people thought about this design approach. Are there other tables which use this bearing principal? One concern I have is that by introducing friction you may also be introducing noise. Comments?
dodgealum

Showing 3 responses by mosin

mosin
410 posts
 
I know of one. ;)
mosin
410 posts
 
Hey Doug,

Call me Win. I'm trying to outlive the "mosin" moniker, but without much luck. ;)

Anyway, Chris did give a great explanation, and there are various implementations of it. Even sheer mass at the platter can help when the bearing arrangement is designed with braking in mind, but there are other implementations. Properly used, the motor itself can go a long way to controlling the spin. Also, Garrard (as you already know) used a grease bearing very effectively as a dynamic brake. The list goes on, but the most important thing is to make sure the turntable has no runaway effect, or that it is not bogged down anytime during its operation. Free spin equals loss of control, in my opinion.

Best,
Win
mosin
410 posts
 
Lew,

Yes, there are direct drives that do it, although it may be a happy accident for some. By centering mass in the platter, some direct drives avoid excessive noise from their motors. As a result, they also introduce a better way to handle inertia. By my way of thinking, using inertia properly is key to the conversation, so in that sense, a lot of direct drives succeed.
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