I'm going to join the advocates for vacuum here. I have the 2800 with vacuum (in another room!). Working flawlessly for years. I'm pleased with the sound I'm getting.
However, I do note that L. Walker, whose products consistantly impress me, is emphatically not a fan of vacuum hold down. |
Hello Fjn04
I have the Debut with vacume & Graham 2.2 arm. I use 2 wands 1 for mono 1 for stereo. I find the sound with the vacume on has a much blacker back ground and better definition. What is great is about having the vacume is if you find you like some records better without it just shut it off as I do when I play acetates. The best thing about the vacume is when a record is warped it takes care of it, better than those inner outer ring they now sell. I myself am finding more and more of the records coming out, 180 or 200 gram especially the 1 sided 45's have slight warps or a cup effect to them. This could damage the cartrige, but with the Debut vacume this is never an issue. I have my vacume set at 1.25 and that handles most records regardless of the record thickness. You can set the vacume too high and that can imbed dust from your tt to the record so you should start off as low a setting as possible. You should also brush off the platter with a natural brissel brush. A womans blush makeup brush is best and easy to get from a beauty supply house. Make sure the platter is clean no matter whose TT you are using before you place a record on it. Go with the vacume is my opinion. I also have my pump in another room. |
I have the Debut with the vacuum "clamp." A friend has the 2800 without the vacuum. With respect to the difference between the tables, the 2800 is a much lighter table with a "lightly sprung" suspension. It is quite sensitive to footfall and bounces quite readily. The much heavier Debut is less bouncy, in much the same way that heavier cars are more immune to disturbances.
The vacuum clamp acts very much in the way Raul describes. At first, one may think the sound is too damped and lacking in life, but, after adjusting to the sound, one realizes how much purer the sound is with the vacuum, and what seemed like a little more "zing" to musical transients without the vacuum is really more like noise.
Care must be taken in the location of the pump. I think it is noisier than some others have described. I have not made a direct comparison, but, my impression is that it is noisier than the SOTA pump.
Another thing to consider is that some people have raised concern over the possibility of damage to records from the vacuum -- either from the vacuum causing gas to "bubble up" from the vinyl or from dirt being ground into the record from the high downforce. The recommendation is to use as little pressure as is necessary (adjustable) to hold the record down. I found that a record can be effectively clamped with a force that barely registers on the pressure guage, but at such low pressure, some records with edge warps become hard to clamp. With these records I have to either increase the vacuum, or I have to "assist" the pump by pressing down on the edge of the record until the rubber lip seals the record and allows for effective clamping. |
Dear Fjn04: +++++ " in the past I have heard it's not as lively of a sound with
vacuum " +++++
Other than the advantages that others already posted about is that with the vacuum the distortion is a lot lower: what the people think like a more " alive " sound it is only a higher distortion with the vacuum that " false alive " sound disappear and the real sound comes natural/neutral.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul. |
Although I have the 2001 Signature, I do have the calibrator base which made a significant difference. I also have the new Vector 4 tonearm which I love and would suggest for any upgrade or new table. |
Thanks all. Right now I am leaning toward Debut over the
the 2800. I was told it would be better having the Debut's
suspension over my 2500 or 2800 on my suspended floor. I
already installed floor jacks in the basement to avoid my
origonal foot fall problem. Maybe with a Debut, this may not have been necessary, but regardless is a good thing.
I am still on the fence on the vacuum as I figure I can always add it. I havent heard any negatives yet, although
in the past I have heard it's not as lively of a sound with
vacuum. It seems like that even if this is true, the positives outweigh the negatives. Also saw the Debut with
dual Vector arms on their website. It not only looks awesome, but what would be wrong with Dynavector on one arm and a Koetsu or Benz on the other. Not too much !! |
I don't have a Basis table but I have had two vacuum TTs and I would not want to go back to a table without the vacuum, unless I found a truly great table that did not offer the option.
The biggest differences I noticed were in bass presentation and fine detail reproduction. I also noticed the soundstage and imaging were much tighter and focused. Vacuum platters are a good idea when properly exectued. The Sota is dead quiet...
O
o
. |
John - The vacuum pump does make some slight noise depending how high you set the vacuum. I have mine underneath a leather sofa in the same room. With music playing at quiet levels, you cannot hear the pump. Some prefer to put the pump in another room.
With the vacuum, bass is improved, the background is 'blacker', and there is some improvement in spatial orientation of instruments. It may have something to do with the vacuum decreasing resonances on the surface of the record. Check with A.J. Conti, the creator. He can best explain its advantage. |
What differences do you hear? Would you say the difference is similar to the difference using the Calibrator base makes?
Does the vacuum pump make any noise? Does it need to be placed in a seperate room?
I'm also interested. I have a 2500 Signature that has the platter cut out for vacuum, but I'm not using vacuum at this time.
John |
I have not listened to a 2500. But I do own a 2800 Signature. I can tell you the 2800 Signature sounds fantastic to my ears. The Vector is a great arm also as you already know.
The vacuum has worked flawlessly in my system. Never an issue.
Put a record on the platter, place the vacuum clamp on the spindle, and turn on the vacuum controller. Any record whether it is 180 gram or 200 gram or anything else now becomes a 25 pound record!! Record and platter are now one large spinning mass.
I think you would be thrilled with a 2800 or a Debut with vacuum. |
I second Thomas's reply. I also have a Debut Signature Vacuum. I can easily hear an audible difference between playing with the vacuum on or off. The Basis vacuum is built like a tank, is easy to adjust, and works like a charm. I highly recommend it. |
My Basis has the vacuum option, it works perfect for years and I don't want to miss it. You hear the difference. |
