New Air Suspension Footers for VPI TNT

I received my kit about a week ago. No instructions supplied so I put it together. I was worried about very little clearance bewteen the cradle and the corner cups. Frankly the upgrade did not sound better, it was leaner in the bass and seemed to emhasis the treble slightly.

I was talking an audiophile buddy of mine yesterday and he mentioned he had also upgraded to the ball suspension but VPI did not send out the black foam inserts that go up inside the corner cups so it stops the suspension ball from going up where the valve stem went previously, so he was waiting for some to be sent out. he told me to look at elusive disc web site to explain what the black foam inserts were, see link.
http://www.elusivedisc.com/prodinfo.asp?number=HW-A1111

Guess what, I did not receive the foam inserts either, I guess if some instructions like the one on elusive disc web site had been sent I would have realised that I had not received the full kit.
Well I dismantled the ball suspension and re installed the air bladders. The paddle balls had big circle cuts into them where it had been pressing against the small opening at the top of the inside of the cup. Well it sound a whole lot better now back with the air bladders.

I guess something as simple as black foam inserts can stuff up the sound of your TT and that also explains the lack of leeway between the footer and cup.

Anyway, this is a word of warning for anyone upgrading their air bladders to the ball suspension to make sure they receive everything before installing.

hopefully when I receive the replacement stk I will be able to advise if it was a positive change.

Got my suspension "upgrade" a month ago or so. Had to insert a stiff felt pad above the foam inserts as otherwise there was not enough clearance. This may be because my platter is the original TNT platter, which was heavier. Mike was good about sending out more of the foam inserts, but turns out I didn't need them after putting in the felt.

Is this really an upgrade? Hard to say. More of an upgrade IMO was removing the tripulley assembly, which I finally got around to doing after Mike sent the plugs for the holes in the table. This produces a quieter, more stable sound. But the suspension upgrade is worth it just to avoid having to fiddle with pumping up your bladders every month!

Randy

I have a TNT V HR
& My Original Air bladders have been leak free for
3 months since installing a 2nd set of O rings in the
bleeder caps. (dual o rings per cap).
BEFORE installing the extra o rings, The caps would
bottom out on the threads. & there would be no preassure
against the o rings for sealing.

The Bleeder screws WILL leak over time at the rubber seal, So it is important to have the caps act as a secondary seal. I also applied a small amount of silicone
spray to the bleeder screws (rubber seal) & I think this
will help them seal a little better.

I used to have to refill my TNT with Air every 2 weeks,
so far they are holding and it's been 3 months! total
cost for the remedy is under 5 bucks.
a little cheaper than the VPI upgrade.

Socoaste, Could you please provide a little bit more information on how you did this.

What do you mean a 2nd set of O rings in the bleeder caps?.
I know you can replace the tire valve cores.

thanks Shane

My TNT has Metal caps (like the ones used on tires, but
made of metal not plastic).
Instead of just a single o ring inside of the cap, I use
two o rings per cap. Before with just 1 o ring, the threads would bottom out before any pressure could be put
against the o ring. Also applying a rubber conditioner to
the bleeder screw seals should keep them fron drying out &
hardening which would make them prone to leakage.

The main reason I like the stock TNT air suspension is that
it is adjustable. The height can be matched on all 4 legs
AND the amount of air used can be set as needed.