Vinyl Warm Up Time


Curiously, I am finding it’s only after a few vinyl albums into a listening session that my system starts to sound convincingly good. 

For instance yesterday, I started off with a couple of Billy Cobham albums, Spectrum and a live one. This was followed by Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe. All three albums sounded quite harsh in places, although good sound shone through in others.

It wasn’t until I got to a fourth album, Yes’s Tormato that the sound became really convincing. Then with the fifth album, Yes’s Drama things started cooking. It sounded absolutely superb.

This seems an inordinate length of time for the system, presumably the cartridge to warm up particularly in summer. It has been fairly humid recently.

I have returned to vinyl last year after a gap of five years. I don’t remember this ever being an issue in the past. In general,  I am getting a much better sound than before due to various upgrades to the turntable and the rest of the system.

I am using the same model of coil cartridge, a Linn Kandid that I used for many years previously. I bought the current one used, so it may well be getting towards the end of it’s life. The turntable was rebuilt and upgraded towards the end of 2024.

Maybe, it’s just me who takes a long time to relax and get into the listening zone. I don’t get the same issue with streaming, but then I never reach the same heights as I do with vinyl.

Is this typical of other members’ experiences? Any advice will be much appreciated. 

newton_john

Showing 5 responses by noromance

@bdp24 Yeah, I was never a fan of the London Jubilee aesthetic either! I do like the Decapod and have them on my SG and two Golds.

@bdp24 The Zeta arm/Townshend Audio Elite Rock is a robust combination. I’ve shied away from the Mk4 over the years as I was always waiting to grab a Jubilee/Reference at the right price. I passed up on a Reference some years ago for $2500 because the 600GBP stylus replacement was too expensive. Man, who knew things would go bizarre-o-land?

@bdp24 Thanks so much for all the info. After dealing with JW for decades, I find the new company disappointing. Not answering emails, and stratospheric pricing is hard to chew compared to what they were before JW closed. 
Did you have to send the cartridge to UK yourself? 

Adding to the conundrum of warm up times, don't forget the turntable bearing. My grease bearings take 20 minutes. You can literally hear the depth in the soundstage increasing during that time.