Oh, my first DIY audio project

quadzilla
quadzilla Posts: 1,543
edited November 2009 in DIY, Mods & Tweaks
Did this with a hacksaw, hole saw, and drill. That was after getting turned down by machine shops, until one guy said he'd do it, then put me off for a few months. I finally found a place that would sell me some plinths they had laying around from other Empire tables they'd modified. These pics were taken right after I put it together and aligned the cart, and made sure it would track. It actually sounds pretty good. I'm still planning on a better version, and have found a friend of a friend with a CNC plasma cutter that is going to help. Someday.
Turntable: Empire 208
Arm: Rega 300
Cart: Shelter 501 III
Phono Pre: dsachs consulting
Digital: Marantz SACD 30n
Pre: Conrad Johnson ET3 SE
Amp: Conrad Johnson Premier 350
Cables: Cardas Neutral Reference
Speakers: SDA 2.3TL, heavily modified
Post edited by quadzilla on
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Comments

  • Systems
    Systems Posts: 14,873
    edited November 2009
    Nice work considering the tools used.
    Testing
    Testing
    Testing
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  • thsmith
    thsmith Posts: 6,082
    edited November 2009
    Is the tonearn level with the platter ?

    Nice work !
    Speakers: SDA-1C (most all the goodies)
    Preamp: Joule Electra LA-150 MKII SE
    Amp: Wright WPA 50-50 EAT KT88s
    Analog: Marantz TT-15S1 MBS Glider SL| Wright WPP100C Amperex BB 6er5 and 7316 & WPM-100 SUT
    Digital: Mac mini 2.3GHz dual-core i5 8g RAM 1.5 TB HDD Music Server Amarra (memory play) - USB - W4S DAC 2
    Cables: Mits S3 IC and Spk cables| PS Audio PCs
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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,901
    edited November 2009
    Looks great to me (and I am not being facetious).
    Those old Empires are just so cool (and they deserve nice arms, too, although the old anodized Empire arms were certainly nice looking if nothing else).
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  • quadzilla
    quadzilla Posts: 1,543
    edited November 2009
    thsmith wrote: »
    Is the tonearn level with the platter ?

    Nice work !

    Maybe 1-2 mm high. Next version will likely also include a VTA adjuster.
    Turntable: Empire 208
    Arm: Rega 300
    Cart: Shelter 501 III
    Phono Pre: dsachs consulting
    Digital: Marantz SACD 30n
    Pre: Conrad Johnson ET3 SE
    Amp: Conrad Johnson Premier 350
    Cables: Cardas Neutral Reference
    Speakers: SDA 2.3TL, heavily modified
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  • sTiLlLeArNiNg
    sTiLlLeArNiNg Posts: 805
    edited November 2009
    NICE mod! :D Good to see people thinking and keeping the old stuff new :)
    Media Room 7.1
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    Need some cable's? Just ask :)
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  • hearingimpared
    hearingimpared Posts: 21,137
    edited November 2009
    Nice table.
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