@syntax -Syn- did you ever use the Vibraplane with your Airline arm? My big concern was that when reinflated, it would require readjustment of the arm and that was what drove me away from the Vibraplane. Currently using the big MinusK bench top with an HRS platform, thusly.
Showing 7 responses by whart
@tomic601 - was just listening to an old Jackie Mason routine on jews and gentiles-- hilarious. As a member of the tribe, we typically had no mechanical or other manual labor type skills- we'd call a guy. Now that I'm in the post-career phase of my life, I'm learning stuff about HVAC, plumbing and electrical around the house, but I always think about that Jackie Mason routine. He was a very funny guy-self-effacing, and got laughs by mocking his own. |
@syntax -thanks, noted. I remember the Kuzma Reference- had one, very easy to set up, sounded good, had a Triplanar on it at the time. @mijostyn- I had the HRS in NY and was able to isolate the high mass table through a combination of mass loading and judicious placement of other equipment. There were some old photos of the system there I could dig out that show the table placed on a huge old Asian prayer table- we added huge chunks of sorbothane to the prayer table legs, but it was a kludge work around at best. In my NY set up, the HRS alone could not isolate footfalls and in fact, I think that some of these isolation platforms do not do that very effectively. The Minus K does. The MinusK was purchased when I moved- to a restored Victorian house in Austin with springy wooden floors. As to adding the HRS, I didn’t like the idea of the metal turntable coupled to a metal top on the MinusK. I did speak to the owner of HRS and as I recall, he didn’t indicate any issue when I discussed using the HRS with the Minus - he did suggest I send the HRS back for a newer footer, but I didn’t bother. You are welcome to visit if you come to Austin. PS: on the spec of the Minus K, it takes the HRS into account and also provides me with just enough load capability to add a second arm pod (at 30 lbs). I had never ending problems trying to balance the Minus K with both arms, though. See here. Have no present plans to add the air bearing platter to the XL, but thinking about some different horns. That’s a whole other discussion! |
@Mijostyn- yeah, there’s something on the bottom, but I also was concerned that the metal top of the Minus K would have a sound and liked what the HRS brought to the package, having used it for some years before getting the Minus K. The one downside is that the HRS winds up distributing the weight across its surface, to its contact pads compared to the naked parts of the TT being in direct contact, with their mass less "distributed" (ala the HRS platform). I think that made it harder in some ways to balance with the two arms. I’m not sure what other Minus K owners are doing, but most don’t have the XL so it’s hard to compare notes. I will say that anybody contemplating a table like this better have a good set up plan in place-- when I had the Kuzma Reference it was set and forget- the internal suspension was quite effective and no need to go to extraordinary lengths. With the XL you have a lot of weight/mass and must isolate it effectively. Maybe less of a problem for folks on a concrete slab, but for situations like mine-- you can’t easily hang it from a wall (I had a structural engineer look at it when he was here for other work) and any placement on a springy floor is going to be "exciting"-- especially with that air bearing arm, which is in some ways less tolerant of things like edge warps (or footfalls). FWIW, Franc Kuzma is one of the best people I've dealt with- responsive, fast turn around, and he likes dealing with customers. I will visit him next time I'm in Slovenia! I’m not really contemplating a different table, but we will see. Focus next is on speakers, but that’s not going to happen overnight. I need to do some traveling and listening. |
@speakermaster- normally, I would agree that a wall shelf is usually a good alternative and cost effective. I'm dealing with a turntable that is about 170 lbs with one arm, add another 30 lbs for 2nd arm pod (not in use right now) and the HRS plinth adds around 50 lbs, I think. I had a structural engineer here (I thought I mentioned that in this thread, maybe not), but I had the idea that they could mount a steel ledge from the wall in combination with the brick fireplace flue (unused as a fireplace). The house, which is an 1880's Victorian, was completely restored, from foundation to roof, but the engineer said the walls would move in conjunction with the floor and nixed the idea that a wall shelf would work for my heavy table. Not all turntables are this massive, though and the wall shelf approach should be explored as a first option, at least if the problem is potentially footfalls. When I had a brownstone in Brooklyn Heights, using a much lighter table, the wall shelf worked extremely well. |
Thanks, mijostyn. I learned to listen on stats. I'd love listening to a big pair. Getting me to come back to the NE is a whole other question, but I used to love autumn in New England. Gorgeous- the Adirondacks, Maine, Vermont, all of it. Used to drive competitive sports cars non-competitively -- that was one of my other passions for many years-- just a few days on the B roads with obligatory stops for coffee, cigarette breaks (stopped smoking) and the occasional query from the local constabulary. What a beautiful part of the world that can be. |