Pro-Ject Acryl It Platter on a Debut III

DaveHo
DaveHo Posts: 3,536
edited February 2014 in 2 Channel Audio
Worth the $129 or have I reached the point of diminishing returns? Vinyl rig is as follows:

Debut III, not the carbon
Audio Technica AT440mla cart + heavier counterweight
Cambridge Audio 640p phono pre
Pro-Ject Speedbox S, coming soon, thanks Paul!

The 440mla was a huge step up & I hear the Speedbox will be a substantial improvment as well. I've read mixed opinions on the platter. Don't currently use a clamp, but am considering the Michell clamp to tame minor warps with some of my collection. I'm thinking the clamp will be better suited for use with the Acryl it than the stock platter & felt mat. True?

Aside from the cart & counterweight all of the pieces have been bought used, but I'm still into it for $465 not including the phono pre. I'm not sure if tossing another $180 on top of that for the platter & clamp really makes sense on this entry level table. Opinions?
Post edited by DaveHo on
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Comments

  • TNHNDYMAN
    TNHNDYMAN Posts: 2,145
    edited February 2014
    Nice setup you have going so far. I'd say the platter might be a small incremental step up and for non perfect records, the clamp makes a lot of sense. Enjoy the new speed control and wait for a used platter and clamp to come along would be my route.
    2-ch System: Parasound P/LD 2000 pre, Parasound HCA-1000 amp, Parasound T/DQ Tuner, Phase Technology PC-100 Tower speakers, Technics SL-1600 Turntable, Denon 2910 SACD/CD player, Peachtree DAC iT and X1asynchorus USB converter, HSU VTF-3 subwoofer.

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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,593
    edited February 2014
    Eh, at this point why not spend the extra coin? Your already basically as upgraded as you can get (w/o) the platter, so do it, if you dont like it, return it lol...
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • jeremymarcinko
    jeremymarcinko Posts: 3,785
    edited February 2014
    I have considered the upgrade as well, but I have read some reviews on the acrylic platter, many saying the speed box made a much larger improvement than the platter. As the effects of the platter was minimal at best. I would think the sensitivity of the cart would come into play here though. I could see the the platter making a significant improvement with a decent cart.
    Are you still using the stock felt mat?
    Oh, Listen here mister. We got no way of understandin' this world. But we got as much sense of this bird flyin in the sky. Now there is a lot that bird don't know, but it don't change the fact that the world is happening to him all the same. What I am tryin to say is, is that the course of your life, well its changing, and you don't even see it- Forest Bondurant
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  • SCompRacer
    SCompRacer Posts: 8,507
    edited February 2014
    +1 to mat upgrade for stock platter. If you don't see yourself upgrading the table, the acrylic platter could be a good investment for you. IIRC you lose some platter mass with the acrylic platter but it doesn't ring and you don't need a mat for acrylic. You have any Dynamat lying around? Some folks use that to deaden the OEM platter.

    I had a 440MLa, nice cartridge.
    Salk SoundScape 8's * Audio Research Reference 3 * Bottlehead Eros Phono * Park's Audio Budgie SUT * Krell KSA-250 * Harmonic Technology Pro 9+ * Signature Series Sonore Music Server w/Deux PS * Roon * Gustard R26 DAC / Singxer SU-6 DDC * Heavy Plinth Lenco L75 Idler Drive * AA MG-1 Linear Air Bearing Arm * AT33PTG/II & Denon 103R * Richard Gray 600S * NHT B-12d subs * GIK Acoustic Treatments * Sennheiser HD650 *
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  • DaveHo
    DaveHo Posts: 3,536
    edited February 2014
    Yes, still using the stock mat. Since the stock mat is so thin & the Debut has no VTA adjustment, what would be a good mat to upgrade to? What about clamping with a mat? OK or better with a hard surface like the acryl it? I had given thought to dynamatting the stock platter & upgrading the mat, but since I have no dynamat on hand buying it plus a mat probably puts me half way to the platter cost anyway.

    Like Dan said, I should probably just buy it & see what I think. Though I'd wait until I have a chance to use the Speedbox first.
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  • SCompRacer
    SCompRacer Posts: 8,507
    edited February 2014
    Check Herbie's. He is the only one I am aware of that has quality mats in various thicknesses.

    http://herbiesaudiolab.net/ttmat.htm
    Salk SoundScape 8's * Audio Research Reference 3 * Bottlehead Eros Phono * Park's Audio Budgie SUT * Krell KSA-250 * Harmonic Technology Pro 9+ * Signature Series Sonore Music Server w/Deux PS * Roon * Gustard R26 DAC / Singxer SU-6 DDC * Heavy Plinth Lenco L75 Idler Drive * AA MG-1 Linear Air Bearing Arm * AT33PTG/II & Denon 103R * Richard Gray 600S * NHT B-12d subs * GIK Acoustic Treatments * Sennheiser HD650 *
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  • strider
    strider Posts: 2,568
    edited February 2014
    DaveHo wrote: »
    Yes, still using the stock mat. Since the stock mat is so thin & the Debut has no VTA adjustment, what would be a good mat to upgrade to? What about clamping with a mat? OK or better with a hard surface like the acryl it? I had given thought to dynamatting the stock platter & upgrading the mat, but since I have no dynamat on hand buying it plus a mat probably puts me half way to the platter cost anyway.

    Like Dan said, I should probably just buy it & see what I think. Though I'd wait until I have a chance to use the Speedbox first.

    If you'd like to try it, I used automotive undercoating on the bottom of the stock platter on my Debut. I don't have the table any longer, and I think the undercoating helped with the ringing. I like the acrylic platter better, though. Like you, I was hesitant to try a different mat because of the lack of VTA adjustment.
    Wristwatch--->Crisco
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  • voltz
    voltz Posts: 5,384
    edited February 2014
    I glad I bought the acrylic platter, that clanky metal platter just sort of bugged me on my Debut carbon. I got the speed box S also and a heavy puck/weight. I think they all help but isn't a must. but why not :)
    2 ch- Polk CRS+ * Vincent SA-31MK Preamp * Vincent Sp-331 Amp * Marantz SA8005 SACD * Project Xperience Classic TT * Sumiko Blue Point #2 MC cartridge

    HT - Polk 703's * NAD T-758 * Adcom 5503 * Oppo 103 * Samsung 60" series 8 LCD
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  • DaveHo
    DaveHo Posts: 3,536
    edited February 2014
    Well, looks like the stars aligned today. Came across an opportunity to pick up a platter & clamp from a forum member & made the deal. Once all this stuff shows up my Debut III will be upgraded to the max!
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    edited February 2014
    FWIW I replaced the stock steal platter from my Music Hall MMF2.1 with the acrylic, and noticed a marked improvement. Also after trying a couple mats I ultimately decided I preferred it without a mat.
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • Tardcore
    Tardcore Posts: 11
    edited February 2014
    I really like the Acryl-It platter I got for my Debut Carbon. If nothing else, I do not have a staticy mat sticking to every record I pull of the platter.

    I think you will enjoy the upgrae.
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  • Gollum
    Gollum Posts: 1
    Dear gentlemen, may I ask you for advice - I put a Pro-ject Acryl-It platter onto my Pro-ject Debut III DC (no mat of course) and the tonearm went up just a bit, no longer parallel to the record but maybe 99%; the cart (original premounted Ortofon Om 5e) not touching the record with its belly at all. Sound is great. Should I worry myself with inserting a VTA adjustment too they have called VTA-It (a nightmare to install) or forget it and enjoy the music? Or in other words what do I risk if the tonearm is just slighlty tilted?
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  • msg
    msg Posts: 10,130
    The angle of the diamond in the groove won't be optimally aligned. Tear up your records, maybe?

    Looks like not much in the way of damage, but may depend on the stylus and by how much the angle is off.

    In limited reading, looks like minor changes can affect the bass or high frequency presentation.

    Leaning forward - tail high - highs, bright, forward.
    Tail down, fatter sound, bass bloat at extremes.

    https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/can-wrong-vta-damage-the-stylus
    I disabled signatures.
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  • newbie308
    newbie308 Posts: 769
    Sounds like you already found a mat for your platter.

    ejrzsztt6e9d.jpg

    If you like to experiment, I found this laminated aluminum and Sorbothane platter in conjunction with a clamp to be a bit better than the acrylic mat I had been using. It's thinner, too. It will also add to your platters inertia since it has significant mass of its own.
    Sources: Technics SL1200MKII | SME3009 Tonearm | Monster Alpha 1 MC cartridge | Oppo UDP203 disk player | Nikko NT-790 analog tuner | Musical Fidelity Trivista 21 DAC | Preamp: Threshold SL-10 | Amplifier: Threshold Stasis 2 | Speakers: Snell Acoustics C/V | Kimber 12-TC bi wire speakers | Analysis plus Oval 1 preamp to amp | Wireworld Eclipse 7 DAC to Preamp | Wireworld eclipse digital IC Oppo to DAC | Audioquest Quartz tuner to preamp |
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  • BlueBirdMusic
    BlueBirdMusic Posts: 2,314
    Tardcore wrote: »
    I really like the Acryl-It platter I got for my Debut Carbon. If nothing else, I do not have a staticy mat sticking to every record I pull of the platter.

    I think you will enjoy the upgrae.

    Yes, for this reason alone! My friend has a Debut Carbon and the mat comes off every time an LP is removed and at other times too. It's worse after one has a glass or two of wine.
    "Sometimes you have to look to the past to understand where you are going in the future"

    Anger is just anger. It isn’t good. It isn’t bad. It just is. What you do with it is what matters.
    You can use it to build or to destroy. You just have to make the choice.     Jim Butcher




    Harry / Marietta GA
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  • dromunds
    dromunds Posts: 10,018
    Gollum wrote: »
    Dear gentlemen, may I ask you for advice - I put a Pro-ject Acryl-It platter onto my Pro-ject Debut III DC (no mat of course) and the tonearm went up just a bit, no longer parallel to the record but maybe 99%; the cart (original premounted Ortofon Om 5e) not touching the record with its belly at all. Sound is great. Should I worry myself with inserting a VTA adjustment too they have called VTA-It (a nightmare to install) or forget it and enjoy the music? Or in other words what do I risk if the tonearm is just slighlty tilted?

    I assume when you say the tonearm is no longer parallel that you mean the front of the arm is slightly higher? You also say “maybe 99%” parallel. Some guys actually set their VTA to have the base of the arm slightly lower than parallel and they say it improves the sound. If it’s really close to parallel and the sound is great I don’t know that I’d go thru a nightmare to install the VTA-It device.
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  • DaveHo
    DaveHo Posts: 3,536
    Jezz, 9 years later and besides the phono pre, I'm running the same setup. If the acryl-it platter is higher, I never noticed. Sounds good to me and it tracks great. Get rid of that ortofon cart. It's terrible.
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  • Keiko
    Keiko Posts: 764
    newbie308 wrote: »

    ejrzsztt6e9d.jpg

    I like your table. What mods have you done to it? I have a stock SL-1210M5G that I tweaked somewhat. I'm using a KABUSA poly-mat with a Herbie's Way Excellent combo and find it works extremely well.

    Did you paint the plinth on your MKII? Also looks like you have it sitting inside a wood frame? Looks classy! I'd like to see more pics and what mods you did to your table.

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  • newbie308
    newbie308 Posts: 769
    edited April 2023
    Sorry for the late reply. I installed the KAB bearing, removed the transformer and installed it in a separate enclosure, and dampened the deck with a few pieces of dynamat. The deck was powder coated white, and I replaced all of the LEDs with blue ones. The stylus incandescent lamp was replaced with white LEDs. I tried upgrading the stock tone arm, but eventually abandoned it for a SME3009 improved. The stock SME tonearm wiring was giving me some trouble, so I replaced it with Cardas litz wire and terminated it with a standard din connector. The wood you see is my stereo rack.
    Sources: Technics SL1200MKII | SME3009 Tonearm | Monster Alpha 1 MC cartridge | Oppo UDP203 disk player | Nikko NT-790 analog tuner | Musical Fidelity Trivista 21 DAC | Preamp: Threshold SL-10 | Amplifier: Threshold Stasis 2 | Speakers: Snell Acoustics C/V | Kimber 12-TC bi wire speakers | Analysis plus Oval 1 preamp to amp | Wireworld Eclipse 7 DAC to Preamp | Wireworld eclipse digital IC Oppo to DAC | Audioquest Quartz tuner to preamp |
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