Ming is a friend of mine. He lives in Northern Virginia. I've heard his physically enormous system many times. I have his contact info, but maybe I should not divulge it publicly. If you can figure out how to contact me privately via Audiogon, I will share his email address.
2020 update : JC Verdier La Platine
A recent encounter with a JC Verdier dealer as well as a recent Audiogon discussion thread led to the start of this thread. He was in my house updating my La Platine which had been in storage for ten years with thread and oil. While he has high regards for the deck, his newer clients nevertheless prefer a Techdas iii than an 'old' La Platine. Given the proliferation of expensive decks in the past dozen years, La Platine has become very much under-appreciated.
It's clear to me that the influence of the La Platine is everywhere to be found. Specifically, the magnetic suspension system that was employed 30+ years ago. Even SOTA offers their newer decks with mag. lev. features. And if you read this review: https://www.callas-audio.nl/Callas%20Platine%20Mod%20Kit%20Review.pdf, the Continuum Caliburn uses the same concept, which was not acknowledged in Fremer's review, albeit with more sophisticated , and expensive, execution.
It is also clear to me that there is much misunderstanding of the workings of the La Platine. I for one have contributed to this. The motor of the La Platine, for example, has been much maligned. The thread drive is another aspect of the turntable that have been described as inferior. With regard to the motor and thread drive, I have been set straight by Chris @ct0517 and Lyubomir @lbelchev. Experimenting with the different types of silk threads, the tightness to the platter and a renewed understanding of the soundness of the Philips motor have been rewarded with better dynamics and transparency.
The funny thing is that during the past two years of re-engagement with audio, I have questioned ownership of every components in my arsenal except the La Platine. It has always been a keeper. I wonder if La Platine owners would contribute to celebrating this 'old' deck with tales, advice, and insights?
Cheers!
It's clear to me that the influence of the La Platine is everywhere to be found. Specifically, the magnetic suspension system that was employed 30+ years ago. Even SOTA offers their newer decks with mag. lev. features. And if you read this review: https://www.callas-audio.nl/Callas%20Platine%20Mod%20Kit%20Review.pdf, the Continuum Caliburn uses the same concept, which was not acknowledged in Fremer's review, albeit with more sophisticated , and expensive, execution.
It is also clear to me that there is much misunderstanding of the workings of the La Platine. I for one have contributed to this. The motor of the La Platine, for example, has been much maligned. The thread drive is another aspect of the turntable that have been described as inferior. With regard to the motor and thread drive, I have been set straight by Chris @ct0517 and Lyubomir @lbelchev. Experimenting with the different types of silk threads, the tightness to the platter and a renewed understanding of the soundness of the Philips motor have been rewarded with better dynamics and transparency.
The funny thing is that during the past two years of re-engagement with audio, I have questioned ownership of every components in my arsenal except the La Platine. It has always been a keeper. I wonder if La Platine owners would contribute to celebrating this 'old' deck with tales, advice, and insights?
Cheers!
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- 209 posts total
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@dracule1 I received a follow up email from Matthew at Pitch Perfect Audio, California. https://pitchperfectaudio.wordpress.com/ He is a dealer representing JC Verdier and was referred by Tone Imports. La Platine - $13,995 US Dollars. |
I’ve tested wow&flutter of lots of high end turntables (each around 20000-50000 USD) and lots of vintage direct drives in the last few years. I used Analogmagik software mainly for the tests but I also used WFGUI, platterspeed and RPM. all of them have different standards and gives different readings but the best and professional one is Analogmagik software with dedicated test record. I also tested some of the test records and found out Analog Productions test record is not very accurate (not related with subject but especially it is not accurate on azimuth either) on the other hand Analogmagik and Ortofon test records are very accurate. I don’t know how Hi-Fi News test record performs. anyway I ended up using Analogmagik software and AES standard. according to my test results most high end decks measure around %0.07-0.09 (AES). vintage high quality direct drive decks measure around %0.08-%01 (AES). La Platine Verdier turntables in good condition measure %0.05-0.06 (AES), better than all of the decks I’ve tested including top models of Techdas, SME, Da Vinci, Thorens, Kronos, Thales, Transrotor etc. one La Platine Verdier even measured at %0.0460 but it’s lower and upper magnets are centered inside their magnetic rings and perfectly aligned to face each other. it uses standard Philips motor and Transrotor large belt. motor is placed as close as possible to platter. additionally platter might be statically balanced to further improve this already good measurement. speed consistency is another issue but you can never get precise readings with strobe discs or other stuff like that. you need Analogmagik or platterspeed kind of program and test record. RPM is also good but needs calibrating with a test record. the main problem with speed consistency is temperature changes in the bearing. when temperature changes viscosity of oil in the bearing changes and so the brake force. if your turntable has an encoder or ac motor the control mechanism will readjust motor’s speed. if don’t you need to check it with a basic tool such as RPM for every 2 hours of playing. in order to get exact speed first of all you need to adjust it with a precise tool. after obtaining exact speed then you can use simple tools to correct it when needed. |
- 209 posts total