2. analog
  3. 185832-9627

What is turntable “liveliness”.

I have listened to turntables for sixty years. I bought my first high end TT about thirty years… it was revelatory. I do not swap tables often. I do a huge amount of research and then stay with one for fifteen years or so. My most recent upgrade was from a VPI Aries (heavy mass) to a Linn LP12 (light weight, sprung)…very nearly the very top level. Could we please not turn this into a religious thing about Linn… mine is an outstanding TT which compares favorably with any other $45K analog leg (TT, cartridge, and Phonostage)

The term lively comes up in descriptions. One of the differences in character I noticed between the VPI and Linn… which I thought might be considered liveliness was to me a bit of what I perceived as the images very slightly jumping around… the kind of thing you would think of when you see films of “The Flash” maybe vibrating in place. While I found this gave me the feeling of the notes wanting to jump out at me, I found it a bit disconcerting. I attributed it to a relatively light weight rig, that is really good at rejecting low frequency vibrations (it is a sprung table… known to be lively sounding) up to a relatively high frequency… but beyond that not. Something a really heavy rig would not be effected by.

 

To test my theory, I had a Silent Running Ohio Class vibration platform constructed for my turntable. The image smear, as I called it disappeared. There is no smear and it has great solidity.

Is this attribute “liveliness”?

ghdprentice

Showing 3 responses by terry9

terry9
2,238 posts
 

All turntables make noise to varying degrees, and we can hear it. That noise, however small, excites the stylus.

How small in practical terms? Well, I can hear the bearings in my 1.8W precision AC motor, whether the motor is energized or not. That’s with a 45kg platter.

As I understand it, ’lively’ is the opposite of ’dead’. I hear ’dead’ as resonance free, dull, which is bad in a piano and good in a turntable, I hear turntable ’liveliness’ as accentuated high frequency which makes everything sound sharp, as in jagged.

Every time I’ve made a big jump, like conventional bearings to air, or MM to Koetsu, the most obvious thing is a ’loss’ of high frequency. Then I notice that voices sound more like people I know, piano concerti sound more like the piano upstairs, and so on. It sounds ’dead’ for a few hours, and then I realize that it’s more natural.

But then again, that’s just my usage of the term, which may be idiosyncratic.

terry9
2,238 posts
 

@lewm

Classical music was most mutilated on RBCD, as opposed to other genres. Massed brass or string passages sounding like the crumpling of cellophane.

Exactly.

terry9
2,238 posts
 

As for cost, you may not get what you pay for, but you certainly don't get what you don't pay for. As someone else said.

If your turntable does not have a frictionless cushion of compressed air or mag-lev, in 3D, that friction is causing noise and you can hear it. Vanity - no. Money - yes.

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