Dialing in Fun


I just upgraded from a Thorens TD 235 to a VPI Classic 3. After dialing it in, the sound is extremely engaging. It has an older Benze Micro LP cart that has been re-tipped.

I started with settings of 68db for Gain and 47k ohm for Load. I found that 68db of gain was too much. It was causing distortion in the preamp. I plugged the cart data into the KAB gain calculator. It said 60db gain was optimum for the cart. A load of 475 ohm worked best with 60db gain. The cart specifications show a load range of 500 – 47K ohm. I figure that 475 is close enough to 500 ohm, so it should be OK.

After getting the gain and load set, I was able to dial in the VTA. At first I thought the VTA was more of an extra feature that wouldn’t do much. By listening to extreme VTA settings, I was able to dial in to get the best sound.

The new TT does bring out best in my system (Classic 3 > Sutherland Hubble > Bat VK-32SE > BAT VK-75SE > EgglestonWorks Rosa). I haven’t use the CD player since getting the TT dialed-in.
bigby
Bigby...I'm thinking of getting reacquainted with vinyl after 25 years and just bid on a used td 235. What was your opinon of this table.
Dan
I want to compliment you, Bigby, on finding out what VTA actually does, rather than trying to use it to correct other problems.