VPI Rim Drive vs. belt drive sound files

Hi Gents,

Very glad you like this thread. Thanks for the description Stringreen – interesting that you like the piano tones and are not finding them harsh.

As for the signal path, in addition to the HRX with Super Platter and Rim Drive, I’m using:

Shelter 9000 cartridge
NBS Omega Extreme 2 cable
Pass Xono Preamp
Apogee Electronics Rosetta 200 analog-to-digital converter
Apogee Electronics Mac Pro based Symphony system with Ben master clock
BIAS Peak PRO 6 software
Exact Power EP15A and EDPS power conditioning

Regarding using 96K or 192K sampling rates ----sigh. We (or at least I) live in a 44.1Khz world. Therefore my goal in capturing is to optimize for 44.1 KHZ. I’ve done MANY experiments digitizing at higher sampling rates and then down sampling to 44.1 KHz. My findings are that if, and only if, the final product from my turntable (not true for live recording) is to be 44.1 KHz than the best results are obtained by sampling at 44.1Khz / 24 bit and using the Apogee hardware bit mapping to convert the files into 44.1 KHz / 16 bit files when recording. YMMV :-)

I do NOT apply any noise reduction software or EQ. I’ve tried a bunch of these and, in summary; they are not remotely worth the trade off in sound quality. I will, however, occasionally paint out a big glitch in the waveform by hand.

Regards,
Dean

I listened to Epuipoise. Rim Drive wins by a wide margin. Individual notes occupy their own space in a way that the other version just doesn't accomplish.

I'm actually struggling with this upgrade myself, at the moment. I'm trying to get the same speed stability that I had with the belts, but it's not there yet.

However...

The record I've been playing while going through this whole excersise is "Appalachian Spring" on RCA Living Stereo, Boston Symphony w/Aaron Copland conducting. This piece will drive you mad if speed stability isn't there, especially at the beginning and end of the piece. But I'll tell you something... Every note just jumps out of the speaker like never before. It's pretty awesome. In spite of the speed issue, I think I've listened to the record about 6 times this week, and the speed problem is taking a second place to the sheer immediacy of the performance in my listening space.
I'm gonna keep working on the speed stability battle, but the rim drive has already won the war.

Cheers.

Tom

I have the same Copeland recording. Keep the turntable going...it will get better and better as the belt around the rim drive seats...or maybe it just wears evenly...anyway, it does become ever better.

of course this is VPI table thread. I wouldn't go so far as to make it a rim drive vs belt vs dd thread.

Dean, thanks for the excellent information. I have several thousand vinyl discs and am preparing to archive as much of it as I have patience for...

I definitely prefer the sound of the rim drive...even through an older iMac DAC and IEM's I can hear that the chord overtones are much more present on the rim-drive file. wow.

Have you considered the Morg MR-1000 reviewed in TAS 180? It makes files in DSD, and then you can down-sample to whatever format you want. But, as you say, in a 44.1 world, it may be preferable to sample at something lower.

I am curious about your experiences in arriving at your preferred sample rate, as the Apogee Duet is the other A/D that I am considering. Could you comment further on this? Or should I start another thread?