[rob400]

I've construced a couple of racks out of furniture grade BBP. They sound excellent with WTL turntables (and DV amps). Simple construction and still need staining but worth investigating if any of you are looking at new racks.

[threadkiller]

I like what you do with your wood... looking good!
Ah, the old Obs and Dynavector...what a combo....
And do I hear of Diapasons in your future? The king of speakers?
You'll need to fly everyone in and show em what a real system sounds like.

[rob400]

Who's everyone? Plus you are the one with the 400 Royale but I have the longer 'arm' 

[threadkiller]

Ba ha ha..
Well, I'm waiting for one of these redesigning, theorizing experts on here to actually work on something useful, like a teleporter, so we can all be in the same listening room at the same time. Then none of the malarkey on here that poses as facts would survive- maybe even some of mine.

Back on point, the big issue for me with the tables is over damping, which most of you tend to do. Generally if you prefer more goo than I think you're overcompensating for something else wrong in your system. And if we could all listen together, calmly, nobody trying to strangle me, I would think after a few records you'd get the idea. We have listened for countless hours, adjusting and readjusting. Audiophiles often operate in a vacuum, which is okay, yet can often lead to erroneous results.

I've never heard a Verselex sound better than an Amadeus, Rob. Maybe St Burns has special insights from God. Ours come from Firebaugh.

Yes, I love the Royale, Rob and Norton. I still can't believe it's here. I often hear a lot of expensive high end tables... this one takes the cake for me.

Get a WTL, Norton, and you'll be playing more records than ever...

[rob400]

I agree with you on the over damping Charlie but not regarding the Versalex. I came to that conclusion all by myself!

[threadkiller]

I'll leg wrestle you for it...
I'll do another comparison soon, just to yank your chain...

[rob400]

I'll leg wrestle you for it...
I'll do another comparison soon, just to yank your chain...

Not necessary. Here's the thing. The forum has to have some flexiblility of opinion rather than degrading into a Q&A with one person providing all the answers and dismissing an alternative view on a subjective topic as wrong. The Versalex is slightly better sounding than the Amadeus in mine and many other peoples opinion. We aren't all deaf because you disagree.

[newvinyl]

The racks look fantastic! I'm envious. A Baltic butch rack (not as fancy as yours) is in my backlog of things to do.

If you don't mind, could you list the equipment on each self? I assume those are DV mono amps at the bottom of each shelf. And what are the speakers? What cartridge? Also, I don't see a DPS power supply. One other thing... What's between the left top shelf and the additional Baltic birch board under the turntable?

[TimF]

Well put there Rob!

[rob400]

The racks look fantastic! I'm envious. A Baltic butch rack (not as fancy as yours) is in my backlog of things to do.

If you don't mind, could you list the equipment on each self? I assume those are DV mono amps at the bottom of each shelf. And what are the speakers? What cartridge? Also, I don't see a DPS power supply. One other thing... What's between the left top shelf and the additional Baltic birch board under the turntable?

Thanks newvinyl. I've had time to experiment with the extra board under the Versalex and I've concluded that it's better without it sound wise. It was convenient for levelling but I simply don't like what any spikes do to the sound with my set up. Same goes for glass aaaaagh! You might feel differently of course. If so you can by the ones I used off eBay. They are brass with a chrome paint finish and sold by gear_city. I use a A23 mat on the Versalex and a Dynavector XV1s cartridge. No DPS for the deck as it doesn't improve the sound to my ears here in the UK. The wall wart we are supplied with is pretty good.

As you realised the amps are Dynavector (Aus). Pre amp is L300mk2 with P300 phono stage. Power amps are the excellent DV HX100's used in mono config and recently upgraded with all new internal parts (except power supply). The CD player is a Densen 440xs with it's DNRG power supply. Nice player. I really like the top Audio CD players (not so keen on the amps and speakers) but my main listening is vinyl so not financially viable just yet. Speakers are Shahinain Obelisk 2. IC's and speaker cable are Auditorium 23 which like Threadkiller (but unlike many in the UK) is my preference over Mogami. Mains cables are recently acquired unshielded Audio Note Isis with furutech plugs and IEC's.

The racks are relatively easy to build, materials are dirt cheap and most importantly they sound great. My UK distributer really likes the way they sound and he's a hard to please. Should you want any advise regarding construction drop me a PM.

P.S 400 Royale just around the corner. I will be constructed a dedicated rack for it out of BBP which due to limited space will sit over the left rack. I should be dreaming of Cindy Crawford when I 'hit the sack' instead of conjuring up designs to accommodate a 100lb mega sized turntable 

[newvinyl]

Thanks for the info. I'll bet there's a ton of system synergy there with all that Dynavector stuff.

Cindy Crawford... he he... I guess we're about the same age if that's the super model you dream about.

So, you don't want to use the Royale's purpose-built stand? Maybe you have a good plan, but I'd find room for it if I were you.

[rob400]

Thanks for the info. I'll bet there's a ton of system synergy there with all that Dynavector stuff.

Cindy Crawford... he he... I guess we're about the same age if that's the super model you dream about.

So, you don't want to use the Royale's purpose-built stand? Maybe you have a good plan, but I'd find room for it if I were you.

50 is the new 30 isn't it? Maybe not!  . Synergy is as you describe friend but as for stand I haven't got the space for it. Next year after house move I will be looking at it.

[newvinyl]

One other thing I forgot to ask...

Did you ever try something other than spikes under the extra board? Without getting too fancy, you could cut some racketballs in half and try that (flat side up). That would kinda mimic what is on the turntable legs.

[rob400]

One other thing I forgot to ask...

Did you ever try something other than spikes under the extra board? Without getting too fancy, you could cut some racketballs in half and try that (flat side up). That would kinda mimic what is on the turntable legs.

I've tried squash balls and oak cones in the past under the extra board but ultimately the rack sounds best without IMO. Don't forget its not just about isolation from acoustic feedback the gear needs to be able to dissipate stored energy. BBP seems to do both very well. I believe the spikes and cones are detrimental in this regard. In my design the boards not being fixed down and the sphere cut into each board are both good moves. I believe my rack would compare well against the aesthetically appealing hardwood Box Furniture variants sold in the US. But we will never know. My hifi does sound really good right now. The 400 is just too much of a temptation though. I will post pics after install if anyone is interested.