Sorry - a couple more newbie analog questions

It really depends on the type of turntable Tooter. A high torque direct drive turntable is not going to suffer no matter how often you switch it on and off, but a low torque, high mass turntable is going to be doing a lot of extra work (read extra wear) if you are constantly starting it from rest.

The following is from the Planar 3 Instruction Manual:

"Leave the turntable running during a record playing session. Switch on before the session and only switch off after you have finished playing."

Mike

Mike - that's interesting. My Goldring GR1 is made by Rega and is basically a P2, slightly different plinth I believe, but the instructions it came with mention nothing about leaving on/off. I guess my worries are two fold - extra wear on the motor, damaging the lp. I think I will contact the maker of my mat and see what they say. The mat I'm using is rubbery and really grips quite well to the record.

A great deal of stress that the motor undergoes is in getting the platter up and spinning from a dead stop. With a belt-drive table 99% of that stress can be alleviated by simply give the platter a light spin with your finger prior to switching the motor on.

I agree with the previous post that picking up from a moving table is “an accident waiting to happen” as well as the issue of static build up.

Concerning your distortion issue: what phono pre are you using and is it set up correctly for your cartridge? Couldn’t too much gain or the wrong loading be contributing to your troubles?

Best regards.

Well, I spoke with the maker of my Herbie's mat. He claims that it is perfectly safe to change records while the table/platter remain on. I have decided however after considering all the posts above to just go ahead and turn it of each time. I live in New York City and with winter approaching, dryness/static become a major problem here. Also with Slate1's suggestion of helping the platter along when I turn it on will hopefully allow me to save the motor, avoid an accident, reduce static...

Vvrinc - my phono pre is a Creek OBH18. It is MM only and from the specs should work well with my Goldring Elektra. Since I started this post I have become more convinced that the distortion is a software issue. I've bought some new vinyl, all of which play quite well.

Thanks to all. I am amazed at how close this cheapo table comes and in some ways surpasses my Meridian CD player. I feel like in terms of soundstaging and imaging my Meridian still betters analog but in terms of tonal accuracy the Goldring is more "real". Rhythmically it's a draw.