Some Scratching

Elektronauts Our Music
#41

And you recon pio will deliver a pro turntable? AFAIK their PLX turntable has a rubbish feedback resistance, not exactly convincing IMO

I don’t know if expecting “professional” quality from a portablist deck is realistic at present time. But at least the prices of the decks are in line with the expectations.

#42

Suppose you have point there… :wink:

Just would love a well made portable deck, good fader, built in battery, able to accept good needle etc

#43

I hear you. ATM the 7PS is the only thing even remotely on the radar. More options would certainly be welcome.

#44

Well I finally got my Numark PT01. My initial observations:

  • the “switch” feels terrible after getting used to a proper fader. I can’t even pull off decent chirps with this one lol! Will replace with the jesse dean as soon as it arrives from the mail EDIT: The switch seems a bit less awful after the 2nd day… Getting used to it will undoubtedly help, but still nowhere ideal performance. EDIT2: Ok, getting used to the switch even more now. Getting chirps ok. But flaring still sounds weak due to the switch action, no elasticity…
  • the turntable itself is surprisingly decent! I like the platter, behaves very well for a belt drive and I don’t feel like it needs any more torque. Only thing that I noticed was that there’s some hum when the needle is not on the record, some kinda ground issue? Need to check with batteries…
  • connectivity is on point, I love the fact that both the deck and the input have separate volume controls. Heaphone amp is loud enough for my cans at least.
  • class compliant USB seems to work OK with iOS, at least you can record. The input records only the deck, pre-fader. However, there doesn’t seem to be a way to adjust the input volume to the USB?
  • 7" scratch records feel great under the hand, most likely due to the lesser weight? Need to buy more records though, not feeling the one I got at all tbh
  • You need to be careful with the upper lid connection. It’s a bit clunky and needs to be put back together carefully or it falls off. Numark coulda invested a lil more design effort to the lid locking mechanism IMHO

All in all, given the low price, my verdict is 4/5. YMMV as usual.

Apologies if this is getting off-topic by the way. I just thought I’d share my 2 cents on this thing, and AFAIK this thread is the only active turntablism-related one on this board.

#45

Ordered mine today

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#46

Ooh, look what I found!

Bummer, I can’t seem to find this for sale anywhere…? If anyone knows where to get a bihari tonearm, please let us know!

EDIT: I contacted Mr Bihari and new tonearms will be available soon :ecstatic:
The price seems very reasonable, however the RIAA preamp mod is also required for best results.

Hmm, this mod actually is a bit more difficult, as it is also suggested to change the RIAA preamp of the Numark? Personally I don’t mind the loss of level, unless its more than 6dB…

#47

Yeah, I was strongly considering one I saw, but messing with the soldering needed for the preamp isn’t my forte so I’d have to find someone else to do it. I saw a Jesse Dean tonearm mod prototype a while back. I’d wait for that to drop for sure before deciding. I might just stick with stock though most likely.

#48

Ahh yes, that Jesse Dean tonearm - IIRC I saw it in one of the NAMM2017 videos? Good point, might be better to wait awhile to see that one before deciding.

I’m too impatient myself & know one guy who can do the soldering for me, so I’ll be getting the Bihari tonearm. Never tried a shure M44-7 cart before but AFAIK those are the industry standard among tablists? Went for the Qbert ortfon cart & needle myself because I thought the sleeker aesthetics were more fitting for my Vestax PDX3000 mk II :diddly: For a tech12, M44-7 looks much more appropriate IMO

#49

Yeah, the 44-7 is a standard with a lot of scratch DJs, and was my number one scratch needle of choice for many years. I really do prefer the Q-bert ortofon more now though. The Shure needles get bent super easily and they wobble a lot.

#50

Oh? ok, thanks for the info. I like the Q cart & needle otherwise, but it’s output is too damn loud for my ecler nuo 2.0 mixer - I need to turn the trims way down or the mixer redlines.

The only reason I’d like to mod the tonearm is for reduced tracking weight. My 7" scratch record is wearing down a lot faster than my 12" I use with my Vestax, and I’m suspecting the tracking weight of the stock tonearm has something to do with it (besides the coloured vinyl aspect we’ve discussed earlier). With almost 35€ a pop for a 7" scratch record, the costs can add up in time, and the limited edition aspect of the 7"s is a pain as well - ATM there is very few 7"s in stock that interest me (yknow, out of the 95% full-of-diss-vox varieties that I hate)

#51

Yeah, totally agree about the record wear. Even though I’ve amassed a nice collection of records so far, I only play with 3 of them because the prospect of heavy record wear fills me with anxiety. I’m hoping the Jesse Dean arm has a built in preamp, and something nicer for the tonarm clip than the one sitting on top of the old one with double-sided tape.

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#52

yeah, that tonearm clip strap-on is not exactly pro heh

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#53

A sneak peek of the Jesse Dean tonearm:

Looks like it involves alot of soldering as well? But this one uses the stock locking mechanism for the arm… Carbon fiber, huh? I wonder if the counter weight on the Jesse Dean tonearm is adjustable, if it is that would sway me to wait for it to become available instead. I’m a big fan of adjusting the counterweight to the cart manuf specifications, which always makes my DJ friends cringe :diddly:

EDIT: After some more research, a preamp must be installed for any magnetic cart/needle system to work. Since the original Numark cart/needle is ceramic, no preamp is required (nor present on the unit). The more I read about this, the more obvious it becomes that the ceramic cart/needle system on the Numark is a really good way to wear out your vinyls quickly :zonked:

#54

I’m thinking I’ll wait until they offer services where you can ship the Numark to them for the mods, and have them ship it back. I do really want the superior tonearm/needle, but with minimal effort :grin:

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#55

That’s probably the wisest choice if you value your records :nyan:

I also wonder how the battery life will be affected by the addition of the phono preamp… But I have little to lose at this point so I’ll try to mod it myself (with a lil help from my friends)

#56

My pt01 arrives tomorrow with some 7s. I say I’ll just use my 1210s for anything serious and the pt for fun. Adding pre amp etc seems like bit too much effort. Besides with the popularity of portable turntablism a proper deck is bound to come out soon

#57

This and my sp404 will be a great portable combo

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#58

I use the PO tonic myself. The 404 would be even sweeter no doubt :thup:

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#59

The Jesse Dean fader arrived today. Just finished installing it.

APC_0034.jpg3867×2692 2.23 MB

The fader replacement itself is a piece of cake. Hardest part is removing the capacitor, but even that is easy. However, getting past the golden foil was a bit nerve-wrecking, as the foil piece creaks ominously as you bend it to reach the screw underneath. Also remember that the middle screw under the foil has a washer - remember to put it back in the middle.

What was actually the trickiest part was to get the Dean fader to sit diagonally in the slot like the original switch was positioned. The diagonal fader/switch orientation is the most ergonomic IMO as the platter is so close to the fader. I had to cut down one big chunk of plastic from inside before I could rotate the dean fader to the correct orientation!

Just minutes in with the new fader but I can already say I won’t be missing the switch lol. One thing though - the jesse dean fader pops slightly, just like my ecler eternal fader. It’s not annoyingly loud or anything, just thought worth mentioning it.

@muzka did you get your PT01? How you liking it?

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#60

It’s sitting in ups holding depot as my wife went out to have her hair done and missed my delivery lol i wasn’t happy

Grabbing it tomorrow.