circuit bored records Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 So to not flood the new purchase thread with updates on this, I started its own thread for updates on this endeavor. For those not in the loop, I got a bunch of points for a work anniversary and basically had free money to spend. We had an open box Debut Carbon Espirit SB model which I was able to pick up for pretty cheap, so it came out basically for free with the the points used. Actually, it was missing the anti-skate weight (the reason why it was returned) so I did have to buy one of those for about $15 shipped in order to make it functional. The only problem is it's a Beatles edition turntable that's ugly as hell, so I'm going to end up giving it a new face. I honestly haven't decided what it will ultimately look like although I am thinking either going with a wood veneer or possibly having one of my buddies who is an artist paint something custom on it. Naturally being a $15 overall investment, I won't be too upset if I completely botch this thing so I guess we'll just have to see how it goes! Here is the before: randomfortunepa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circuit bored records Posted February 16, 2017 Author Share Posted February 16, 2017 (edited) Day one was generally disassmeby, which went pretty smooth. All phillips head screws for the most part, and two electric connecters that link the power supply to the "speed box" which in turn connects to the motor. Also needed a set of alan wrenches and a pair of precision needle nose plyers as well. Everything came out very smooth and seems to be pretty straightforward to put back together as well. Here is one of the connectors going into the board that the power supply plugs into. Same type of connector is used coming out of the motor The speedbox that controls power and switching between 33 and 45 rpm (indicated by the blue LED lights) Here everything is off except the tonearm, which understandably proved to be a bit more challenging than anticipated (but still not too bad) Edited February 16, 2017 by yanquiuxo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circuit bored records Posted February 16, 2017 Author Share Posted February 16, 2017 Day two was tackling the tonearm. The issue I ran into is it would appear that the wires running out of the bottom are soldered after the tonearm is installed on the plinth, which means there is no way to pull them back through without unsoldering them. Exhibit A Without unsoldering them, you would have to pull that entire box through the plinth due to the RCA connectors not being able to pull out of the box itself due to size. Also, the screws that affix the tonearm to the plinth are the two on either side of the tonearm in this picture, and they were kind of a pain. This is where you need the precision plyers to get them unscrewed (or a really tiny socket wrench, which I don't own) So, it was time to get soldering! It's only necessary to solder 4 out of the six wires because the negative leads are soldering to small rings which will fit through the plinth. Tonearm is off! So this is where I am at right now. Everything has been removed and it is safe to start sanding the finish off. Tomorrow I am meeting up with a buddy who actually has a woodshop who is going to be my consultant on the sanding / re-finishing portion of this project. I will keep updating this thread as it goes along for the couple of people who are potentially interested in it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parkinglot Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Holy shit that thing is ugly. Good luck. Even if you fuck up it's guaranteed to look better than stock. GreatGreenOne77, batnoises, Darren W and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daegor Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 Posting for that star, curious to see the end result AND how easy it is to put back together. Definitely would be a fun project if you were of the artistic type, or knew someone who was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
batnoises Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 Hope this goes well for you- that Beatles graphic has got to go circuit bored records 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sad Heart Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 It'd be cool if you got a really nice piece of maple and make it like a butcher block or something, or even a chunk of reclaimed wood, and made an entirely new plinth. allenh 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 I'm with that nice Mr Grohl, you've got a friend who has a woodshop and a template so you could make something really nice out of this and sell the original plinth to a Beatles obsessive on ebay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexicondevil Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 Yeah, I was thinking it might be a mistake to "ruin" the ugly Beatles plinth. Seems like people who like them might pay money for that someday. I would get your buddy to make a new one out of some nice wood. It's cool to see the table taken apart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 (edited) Might not be too hard to find somebody with a hobbyist level CNC machine that could knock it out relatively easily. Edited February 22, 2017 by Tardcore Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circuit bored records Posted February 17, 2017 Author Share Posted February 17, 2017 From an engineering standpoint, I would assume it would be ideal to have the plinth be as dense as possible. For that reason, wouldn't MDF beat out a slab of wood in terms of sound reproduction? Honestly don't care about "ruining" the Beatles plinth or the potential to flip it down the road Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stl_ben Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 As a Beatles fan DOH! I would have gladly traded you my yellow bodied pro-ject for the Beatles one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circuit bored records Posted February 17, 2017 Author Share Posted February 17, 2017 18 minutes ago, stl_ben said: As a Beatles fan DOH! I would have gladly traded you my yellow bodied pro-ject for the Beatles one! I didn't think there was a turntable design I could have desired any less than this Beatles one, and then you said yellow. Ew. Metal Mike, vinyl addict, Darren W and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stl_ben Posted February 17, 2017 Share Posted February 17, 2017 Looks great on my red shelf (IMO)....but it's not even the turntable I am using currently as I have a been using a Beogram 1800 I picked up at a yardsale last year: Anyways, can't wait to see how yours turns out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 12 hours ago, yanquiuxo said: From an engineering standpoint, I would assume it would be ideal to have the plinth be as dense as possible. For that reason, wouldn't MDF beat out a slab of wood in terms of sound reproduction? Honestly don't care about "ruining" the Beatles plinth or the potential to flip it down the road It's not a box and I doubt the Project plinth really lends anything major to the original sound so in this instance you can go for aesthetics, something solid and thick should do it but yes the harder and therefore denser the wood the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 11 hours ago, stl_ben said: Anyways, can't wait to see how yours turns out. Don't wear that stylus out they are an expensive nightmare to replace. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 9 hours ago, allenh said: Don't wear that stylus out they are an expensive nightmare to replace. Yup, even the soundsmith ones are expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monastic_mike Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 Was the graphic silk screened on there or a vinly decal? I was thinking of doing a vinyl decal on mine (since I have access to that). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinyl addict Posted March 16, 2017 Share Posted March 16, 2017 I liked the Beatles plinth. How did everything turn out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circuit bored records Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 (edited) It's still disassembled sitting on my work bench next to my kitchen table. Work and life priorities took over and it's on the back burner. It'll still happen though... in due time. Edited March 17, 2017 by yanquiuxo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinyl addict Posted March 18, 2017 Share Posted March 18, 2017 Did you decide what direction you are going with the plinth? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RSand Posted April 1, 2017 Share Posted April 1, 2017 (edited) Here's one I made from an old and ugly AR deck using ply, ebony veneer and yacht varnish. It was time consuming but came out quite well. Pictures at the end of the thread https://www.vinylengine.com/turntable_forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=90580 Edited April 1, 2017 by RSand circuit bored records and vinyl addict 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinyl addict Posted April 1, 2017 Share Posted April 1, 2017 27 minutes ago, RSand said: Here's one I made from an old and ugly AR deck using ply, ebony veneer and yacht varnish. It was time consuming but came out quite well. Pictures at the end of the thread https://www.vinylengine.com/turntable_forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=90580 Wow fantastic job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted April 2, 2017 Share Posted April 2, 2017 18 hours ago, RSand said: Here's one I made from an old and ugly AR deck using ply, ebony veneer and yacht varnish. It was time consuming but came out quite well. Pictures at the end of the thread https://www.vinylengine.com/turntable_forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=90580 That's really nice work. The two biggest flaws in the UK EB101 over the US one were the piss poor plinth and the stamped steel sub chassis, the stamped sub chassis isn't such a big deal but you really fixed the plinth, top job. I still think you need to explore the bouncy side of the turntable question a bit more but if that sounds half as good as it looks then you're on to a winner. Now do you fancy making another plinth? I've got a very scruffy looking AR XB here that could benefit from that sort of work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RSand Posted April 2, 2017 Share Posted April 2, 2017 Thank you both. I added some damping to the stamped steel sub chassis, not sure if it had any real effect? However, the TT does sound better than it did, not sure if that's because of the more rigid plinth, damping, that it got a good service, all of this or its all in my head? "I still think you need to explore the bouncy side of the turntable question a bit more" Can you expand on this? "Now do you fancy making another plinth?" I would but it took the best part of 2 months and cost £100 just in parts, that varnish alone was £30! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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