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Question regarding JA Michell/Transcriptors Hydraulic Reference use with acrylic platter upgrade...is it safe?

I have a few technical questions regarding my JA Michell “Hydraulic Reference” turntable. Due to some concerns I had about preserving my software, I decided to purchase an acrylic platter for the table to place on top of the brass pods. My reason for doing this was because I have observed that if I play a record that has a dish warp or other inconsistency, there is nothing to flatten the record or clamp it in place. Therefore, during playback of slightly warped records, my azimuth adjustment is essentially moot and I theorize that there is going to be some mis-tracking.

The remedy for this, I figured, was to purchase this acrylic platter that an ebay seller is offering regularly. I also purchased their “spindle extension” because the spindle on my deck is not long enough to go through the platter. Much to my dismay, their “spindle extension” is a little plastic pellet that sits in the hole. I cannot use a record clamp because there is nothing for it to hang onto. The other option at this point would be to use a weight instead of a clamp to hold the record in place.

This brings us to my questions. Essentially at this point, I am treading into the territory of using this machine other than in the way it was intended to be used. Again, the only reason I am looking at these options is to maintain accuracy and consistency in terms of the position of the vinyl in relation to the tonearm during playback.

1) The acrylic platter is heavy. It’s not incredibly heavy, but it’s definitely got some weight to it. With a record weight, I am going to be adding even more weight.
A) Will the motor tolerate this extra weight or am I going to burn through motors?
B) Will the bearing under the platter tolerate extra weight, or will I eventually damage it as well as the shaft?

2) I’ve also been told that one of the issues with the Hydraulic reference is that the long and skinny belt doesn’t work very well with the heavy platter and that during playback, the platter will sometimes get ahead of the belt and cause speed fluctuations. If this is true, it seems that adding the extra weight of a platter and clamp would make it even worse in this way. I have never personally been aware of my table having speed variation problems, but it does make me think about the hydraulic fluid and the fact that it was probably designed to work well assuming a certain platter weight.

As you can see, I’m lost here. I’m hoping to get some advice as to whether my platter/lp weight upgrades are a good or bad idea.



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Topic - Question regarding JA Michell/Transcriptors Hydraulic Reference use with acrylic platter upgrade...is it safe? - Mr Blue Sky 00:55:46 06/14/05 (4)


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