I recently ordered a Goldring 1.2 turntable with Rega rb251 tonearm and acrylic platter. I have a few concerns about it that Google searching has yet to answer for me. I have yet to receive a cartridge yet, so these might not be problems, but I wanted to see if any of you could put my concerns to rest (or, less preferred, verify my concerns). My first concern is that the turntable won't start without a push, and it slows down very easily with any friction on the platter. I am concerned that it won't be able to maintain speed. Will a speed box help with if this turns out to be an issue? My second concern is that the rb251 tonearm has no ground wire. Was it supposed to have a ground wire? All the images I have found on Google of either the tonearm or the Rega P2 table show cables without grounds. This seems wrong, but hopefully it is correct for the tonearm? If not, would a tonearm rewire be in order? Thanks in advance for any help, Charles Waite
Perhaps a new belt would fix the speed consistency problem? or maybe some sort of belt dressing? On start-up the motor spindle is spinning and the heavy acrylic platter refuses to start rotating.
Just a though, I might have no idea what I'm talking about...
There are tables that require manually applied inertia to initiate rotation and they usually get up to speed fairly quickly.
Stop touching the platter once it is moving. There is no up side to doing so.
I would not worry about not having a ground wire until you can determine it causes a problem while playing music. Have you been getting a humming type of background noise while you had it turned on?
Rega tonearms are grounded through one of the RCA wires coming out of it. If that causes problems, I think there's a way to attach a different ground wires.
To the best of my knowledge, Goldring tables are made by Rega. Its just a re-badged deck. I don't think the Speed Box will work with it.
Even if the Speed Box works, I don't think that's the root of the problem. The Speed Box sends electricity to your motor. It sounds like the motor is getting power.
Is the platter sitting on the sub platter properly?
Best bet is to try playing a few albums before trying to change/diagnose anything. After playing a few albums, if you're having problems, get a hold of your dealer. He/she should be able to help you out.
CW, you must have more money than patience. A table manufacturer has the choice between high torque motors and low torque motors. High torque designs will apply good start up speed but, due to their high torque and how an electric motor goes about achieving torque, they are noisy at running speed. Low torque motors offer quieter running speed while sacrificing good start up torque. Very expensive tables have controllers which adjust torque for the needs of the motor. You purchased a less than "expensive" table so your table was designed with trade offs in mind. Considering the amount of time the table runs at speed vs the amount of time the table spends getting up to speed, the trade off has worked for most people for the last fifty years or so.
A motor controller would not solve this issue as the Rega based motor is not capable of high torque. The controller is effective at speed and is a worthwhile purchase when the table itself reaches the point where utra-fine speed consistency is an issue. Your table is not at that point.
The most important issue in a table is speed consistency. After that, all other motor/platter considerations are secondary. A new belt on a new table? Why? If you do not understand how a table works, why would you even think of changing anything before you've heard the table play a single LP?
Get in the habit of not turning the table off in between discs, just pull the old one off and plop the new one on. Since you're not considering adding a platter clamp - you're not, are you? - you will quickly get into the groove of how this works with a Rega or a clone. If you need to start the platter spinning more quickly, just give it a nudge when you hit the start button. Then forget it and all the things you could buy to add to it and just listen to some music.
"All the images I have found on Google of either the tonearm or the Rega P2 table show cables without grounds"
Then you'd kinda get the idea this is how the arm works, eh? As suggested the Rega arms are grounded through the existing cabling. An arm rewire? No. If you have any grounding problems with the Rega based arm it is not the arm that is at fault, that has been proven over the last three decades to be true.
You've purchased an entry level deck, don't get yourself caught up in how to dress it up. You'll find the table is good at what it is and will suffice for many listeners. However, the table proper is at the top of the heirarchy of importance in analog playback. Before you begin to dress up an entry level anything, you should consider why the company offers higher priced and more sophisticated options in design. Should the time come when you want more table than the Goldring can offer, you should do nothing more than purchase a better table. Putting more money into a baseline product isn't money you would see returned should you try to sell the Goldring. Think of putting a wine cooler in a walk up efficiency apartment and then apply that logic to your new table.
If you have your heart set on spending more money for this table, do so in items that will transfer to the next table you buy without issue. Things which fit into that category include isolation platforms and record cleaners. Both will pay you back in better sound and will also be worth using if and when you upgrade. No need for $250 stylus force gauges or fancy mats. Check to make sure the belt is consistent in its position around the subplatter as the platter spins and you're good to go. If you use the table on a day to day schedule, you'll need a new belt in about one year's time. Otherwise, spend your money on music and not on this table.
I think I should clarify one thing so I don't sound like an idiot. Sometimes if I turn it on the platter won't spin at all. The motor spindle will be spinning and not gripping the belt at all. When I switch to 45 rpm the belt has more tension --> more grip --> no problem starting at all. Since the motor has to do more work to start at 45 rpm and yet has no problem doing so, I am left fairly convinced that the problem lies with the belt-motor spindle interface.
Hopefully this makes more sense and possibly makes me look like less of an idiot.
To begin, you're confusing torque with (horse)power. If your car had 500 HP but had 5 pound/feet of torque, it would take all day to get up to 100mph but your horsepower would allow you to cruise at that speed all night and the next day. If the course were perfectly flat, torque would not enter into the picture again. Torque is what does the work just as current is the analog to torque in amplifiers. Power/voltage merely represent the potential for work to be done, torque and current do the actual work.
The motor on your table must do the same amount of work to get to either 33 or 45 since it is the mass of the platter that is providing resistance to movement. Once the platter is moving at all getting it to a higher speed is less a function of torque than is the intial burst of "power" required to move the platter at all. Once the platter moves its inertia takes over, the platter would rather continue to spin than stop and the motor has to work less hard - which is why some expensive tables often step down their torque once the platter begins to spin. What you are changing by moving the belt to the 45 RPM groove is the gear ratio between motor and platter which provides higher "apparent" torque to the platter by way of a more efficient transfer system. Again, the same as a car with a manual transmission, you wouldn't want to get the car moving from a dead stop by using fifth gear, the car will most likely stall or you will need to seriously slip the clutch while gassing the engine to move it into a higher torque band.
That out of the way, your suggestions for power conditioners and so forth are still unwarranted. When this problem occurs in a Rega type table the problem is often traced to one of two issues. Either the main bearing is dry and requires lubricant or the ball bearing which supports the main shaft of the spindle is missing from the thrust plate/bearing well. You can check both items by using a Qtip to check for oil and feeling for the ball bearing or by doing a visual check. Of course, if you pull the spindle from the bearing well, you should be able to detect a thin film of lubricant on the bearing shaft. If the bearing is missing, the subplatter will ride somewhat close to the plinth of the table. If you're missing either oil or the bearing, the dealer should be able to supply one or both.
Just got my Shure V15 type III and hooked it up. Table worked fine but it was slowing down in bass sections like I thought it would. I rinsed the belt and now it works fine. I love this table, and I really love my V15. Thank you all for your time and help.