I review home audio products on my blog and YouTube channel, along with tips and tricks to get the best sound possible out of your home stereo!
How I repaired a broken turntable...
Hi Everyone,
I recently purchased a broken turntable from a member of my family whose Dad, the table's original owner, passed away last year.
Actually, I didn't know the turntable was broken at the time I purchased it, but once I got it home and plugged everything up, the platter would not stop spinning.
Also, the ground cable was missing from the table which resulted in a horrible hum while in operation.
The turntable is a Technics SL-D30, a line of tables that I personally love. This is a fully automatic, direct drive table with a p-mount cartridge designed by Technics to easily plug and play for the average consumer in the 1980s.
I had several long talks with the previous owner about records, music and gear, so it was important to me to get this table operating properly.
I consider myself a tinkerer, you almost have to be if you buy and sell vintage gear, so I went online and discovered that this spinning platter was a common issue caused by a dirty switch that can be easily cleaned.
I also installed a permanent ground wire to eliminate the hum.
But I didn't stop there...I cleaned the dust cover to remove years of grime and scratches. I cleaned the plinth of the table and honestly, it almost looks brand new.
EVEN BETTER...I documented my journey restoring the turntable and posted a video on YouTube of the entire process in the event you have a model like this that might be experiencing the same issue:
Like I said earlier, these turntables are built like tanks and easy to service. They were built to be repaired, unlike a lot of the cheap plastic models you find on Amazon today.
This table included a vintage Ortofon 14 cartridge that I almost replaced, but after a couple of weeks of listening, it still sounds wonderful, so I left in place.
Most importantly, I experience a real sense of accomplishment and satisfaction whenever I repair a piece of broken gear.
It felt even better repairing this Technics, knowing my friend would be happy to see his table back up and running again if he were still with us.
I have a handful of other turntables I hope to repair and make similar videos for in the future.
In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the above video!
Keep it analog...
Aaron
Forever Analog
I review home audio products on my blog and YouTube channel, along with tips and tricks to get the best sound possible out of your home stereo!
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