VPI Aries vs. VPI TNT III

I have owned both these tables in various applications. The TNT has the capacity to sound better if its considerable variables are attended to regularly, which I might add is a major undertaking. The Aries' utter simplicity of design and carefree maintainence often resulted in a clearly superior sound when compared to the TNT in most real world applications. Just something to consider.

Martin, I found the spring towers on the TNT loosened up regularly requiring frequent level adjustments. My dealer even came out once to adjust the springs. Also I found the tension on the pullies from motor to platter and flywheel seemed to slacken frequently requiring adjustment. The TNT is a bear to keep clean and dust free. I also seemed to need to adjust the arm (Graham 1.5) more frequntly. And the space requirement of the TNT made it much more susceptible to bumps from errant arms (human). All I can say is that I was constantly fiddling with the TNT (maybe because I could?) whereas the Aries just sat there and always sounded great.