The HW-19 III motor should be virtually silent. With the motor cover on, you should hear nothing from it if your ear is more than a foot away.
Your motor sounds like it may have a damaged bearing. How does the turntable sound -- does the motor problem affect what you hear when you play a record?
The motor is replaceable, but getting a replacement could be the challenge. I would ask VPI first. (They might be out at CES this week.) Unfortunately, the motor is probably different from the motors they use in the current product line, so they may have none of these old ones left in stock. Alternatively, I would look for the VPI SAMA (Stand Alone Motor Assembly), which was an upgrade to the HW-19 series.
Elusive Disc lists the replacement motor at $170, but it is out of stock. Music Direct lists the SAMA for $400:
http://www.musicdirect.com/products/detail.asp?sku=AVPISAMA
You should be able to get these used much cheaper on eBay or Audiogon. You could also do a Google search for used turntable parts dealers, who may have these motors for sale on their web sites.
Your motor sounds like it may have a damaged bearing. How does the turntable sound -- does the motor problem affect what you hear when you play a record?
The motor is replaceable, but getting a replacement could be the challenge. I would ask VPI first. (They might be out at CES this week.) Unfortunately, the motor is probably different from the motors they use in the current product line, so they may have none of these old ones left in stock. Alternatively, I would look for the VPI SAMA (Stand Alone Motor Assembly), which was an upgrade to the HW-19 series.
Elusive Disc lists the replacement motor at $170, but it is out of stock. Music Direct lists the SAMA for $400:
http://www.musicdirect.com/products/detail.asp?sku=AVPISAMA
You should be able to get these used much cheaper on eBay or Audiogon. You could also do a Google search for used turntable parts dealers, who may have these motors for sale on their web sites.