VPI TNT 3

Quick follow-up on this thread regarding my VPI TNT Mk3.  Since my last post when I got the PLC unit repaired, it has been working flawlessly! 

Couple of other upgrades, searching through some of my boxes of old turntable accessories, I found a cartridge box, with an old Koetsu Black cartridge that I bought used back in the 1980’s and it only lasted about a year, then it’s cantilever suspension could not hold itself any longer. So I boxed it up and completely forgot about it!  After making this great find… I consulted a number of local audiophiles and found that there are a number of companies that can repair cantilever suspension, etc.  I choose VAS which was located directly next door to the VPI office! I spoke to them and they assured me they have performed this service on Koetsu cartridges many times with great results!

So I shipped my Black off to them and in no time they sent me sound files and video’s with the cartridge fully repaired, new suspension, cantilever and stylus. They did a head to head comparison with a variety of $1000+ cartridges and preferred the updated Black!  Not that I could tell from the digital sound files, but I took their word for it that it was in good shape!

When I got it back, I installed it and took extreme care to get all of the alignment parameters as exact as I could. And OMG, now that is an upgrade!!! It was like I had a whole new record collection (again).  The bass was rich, deep and smooth… stunning! Everything was better, soundstage, clarity in the mids and highs.  What can I say, but VAS did a great job!

I remember noticing you originally were using a Sumiko BPS. That’s one of the HOMC cartridges that convinced me I don’t like HOMC cartridges. Good move to the Koetsu.

@bhenry91 congratulations on fulfilling your dream VPI TNT.  Great move to get your Koetsu Black up and running.   I’m a fan as I own both brands 

As I illuded to in my latest update, I had made a “couple of upgrades”, first being the Koetsu Black refurb.  The second being one that is not directly on the TNT itself, but in the path of the phono signal.  It was the addition of a SweetVinyl Sugar Cube Mini.  And what an upgrade it was!

For those who have not heard of the Sugar Cube, it is essentially a “pop and click eliminator”.  But nothing like the devices of decades ago that would simply chop off anything in the signal path over 10kHz (which included mostly pops and clicks)… but also included some of the music and the sense of the aire, space and soundstage, etc. so those old devices were never that good.  The Sugar Cube is completely different.  It uses sophisticated software that is capable of distinguishing the difference between “music” and physical flaws in the record surface that cause pops and clicks, it isolates those sounds and then removes them from the signal path. 

Now a point of contention is how does it do this on an analog signal?  Well, to be able to analyze the signal, it must convert it to the highest resolution of a digital signal possible (194/24) so that the software can detect and remove before it returning the “repaired” signal to its output and convert it back out to your analog line level preamp connections.

Since my pre-amp has its phono stage built into the pre-amp internally, I simply put the Sugar Cube through my tape loop, which works great / easy to bypass if I felt the need to do so. 

But let me tell you that I almost never bypass this device as it does not take anything away from the “aire” and “space” of the music… soundstage is left completely intact and now completely silent with no background noise! Completely incredible.

I have a fairly significant Classical record collection (mostly purchased from the used record bins) that I so rarely played in the past, mostly due to how distracting pops and clicks take away from the beauty of the silent segments of the music.  But now with the Sugar Cube I have completely revitalized my Classical record listening… as I find myself not thinking about the noise and clicks in the background, but just becoming immersed in the sheer beauty of these amazing compositions!

I whole heartedly recommend the Sugar Cube as a “must have” device!  The most fun feature of the Sugar Cube is the “monitor” button, which changes its output from the “repaired” music to what it’s actually removing!  It’s quite astounding, I have some records that are scratched beyond belief, and now they play like a brand new record!  Wow.

@bhenry91 

+1 on Sugar Cube, or maybe more accurately +2 as I have an SC-1 on my system in FL and an SC-1 Plus on my system in NH.  Now if I could just figure out how to update their software.  Have you updated yours?  I can hear a slight effect when I switch mine in, so only use them as needed, maybe because I don't have the latest program. If so how did you update?  BTW, we also share a like for VPI, I have HW-40 in FL and HW-19 MK III in NH.