VPI Enthusiasts: Going Backwards?

Not sure there are any current mods-parts available currently off the shelf that would significantly take the HW-19 beyond what Harry W. done 12 years ago with the HW-19 MK-IV Model, with SAMA-TNT/MK-IV Platter.

Virtually any Arm your heart desires could be mounted up on a MK-III/MK-IV Model, with a new Armboard made. Or a new MK-IV one Piece Acrylic Plinth, with Steel Subchassis can be bought from VPI, and drilled for an Arm of choice.

Question is, how deep are your pockets? Let's take this to the extreme, with the TriPlanar Arm as an example. A gorgeous, and fantastic Arm, as its price commands, but some would probably say placing an Arm such as this on a HW-19 might be akin to placing a silk hat on a pig? Not that it wouldn't work, I'm sure the combination could be fantastic, just that others would probably correctly say the HW-19 in any iteration may be a lacking platform for such a world class Arm.

One could easily slap an 18lb Classic Platter onto any HW-19 Table, and same with the 25lb Super Platter if, and when they pop up for sale. (which isn't too often lately)

All sorts of custom 3rd party work can be done to such a Table without too much cash outlay, such as I've done with my own HW-19, but I think there comes a point where the Table may sound "different", but is it substantially "better"?

An example, is my HW-19 now uses a solid 1.00" thick sheet of Black Acrylic as a Plinth, the underside was of course routed for Motor Clearance, and one has to wonder, is/was this actually better than a 1.00" thick MDF Plinth?

Not that the HW-19 is a bad table, but some may say as you've commented, that you're taking a step backwards.

After the smoke clears, you may have invested an amount of money that could've placed you into a better table? Since any HW-19 you may consider will of course be a used Table, one may be wiser considering something else instead? Mark

I agree with much of what you say Islandmandan, the tweaks, attention paid to great set-up (BestTractor) does help. I think I'd be correct saying that every Table Harry W ever made was "tweakable", and ole Harry must be a tweaker at heart, never resting to find different, and more ways to extract fine sound.

I certainly don't see the Classic as the "end all", and wouldn't surprise me in the slightest, that in time, Harry will be selling a "Super Classic", or "Classic II". Only a matter of time, and perhaps part of that driving force is a natural desire-commitment to continue on in business, so that VPI as a company-brand will prosper, not wither.

I think my "forum fathers" here would tend to agree with me, that a great Table-Arm-Cartridge combination, and the sound it can produce usually doesn't come from a hit and miss guess.

That good design logic, high quality parts, the proper combination of parts-materials help vastly to hopefully combine to achieve hamony, and synergy with any given Table, whether it be a Linn, SME, Galibier, Clearaudio, VPI, etc.

There's lot of nice Tables to play with out there, and many from the VPI line that I'd be proud to have-own. I for many years was quite enamored with a Table such as the VPI TNT Mk V. And I always liked the original Aries 1. Mark