Schiit Sol- The Next Great Turntable?

The Sol turntable is intended for people like you. People who already have experience setting up turntables and experience with turntables that are fiddly in getting things just right.

 

When all is said and done, will this turntable sound better than a cheaper AudioTechnica turn table?

 

I've been super busy since I posted this and just checked in. WOW, a lot of stuff sure has happened.

I was able to see the SOL in action at RMAF and liked what I saw but was not ready to get one just yet. I figured I'd wait a while and see what some of the initial reviews were. I wasn't expecting the "We goofed......" response from Schiit but I'm glad they're owning up to the issues and doing something about it. I'm still interested in it and will keep up with it over the next few months. My timeline for upgrading from my Debut Carbon DC is still a ways out.

Keep up the lively discussion and field reports. I'm looking forward to them!

 

You had me right there.

 

Going by comments from those who’ve heard it... yes, it’s easily better than that.
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I liked this thread a lot better when the focus was discussing ways to setup and improve TT performance.

I volunteered for the SOL beta, I didn't even know they were accepting applications. I just messaged Jason on another site and offered to help, from the category of noob/novice. I have about 100 records at home, mostly rock and country from the 60's through 80's, some classical, and Christmas. I own a couple of TT's, did not buy a SOL. My experience is very limited.

Lots of TT knowledge here. Thanks in advance for the guidance some have already provided by their posts.

Yes I like Schiit, and own a bunch of it, they aren't perfect, but they are trying their best to get this right, and I'm happy for the opportunity to help them and tinker around with this TT. Should be frustratingly fun.

More TT knowledge sharing, less bitching, please.

 

Someone over there definitely Schiit the bed, but with patience and a positive attitude, we will get through this Schiit... I Schiit you not.
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My guess is it will compete on sound up to $2000 turntables when sorted and if set up properly. That is the benefit of self assembly and direct sales. May never look as desirable as some ready to go dealer sold products. It's never going to be for the inexperienced user.

 

Ok. Let us come to consensus where the pivot point is optimized.

What is the theory of the height of a pivot POINT.

As we see in the setup video the attached cup on the that is a rod fixed by a locking screw in the tone arm. It is adjustable up and down.
And the "spike" in the SOL feet is also adjustable in height as known for the On The Fly (OTF) VTA adjustment (Then we can also move the platter up and down as a bunus.)

See this as the height of the tone arm is unaffected and in the two extremes below the tone arm is static. And it is only the pivot point height that is adjusted as high/low as possible.

Extreme one pivot point high up:

1. The OTF VTA spike is extended to it highest setting (or as high it is possible without altering the tonearm height) when the cup rod in the tonearm is also lifted as high as possible.
2. The OTF VTA in its lowest setting and adjust the cup rod in the tonearm in its lowest setting.

The difference between is the height of the pivot point in relationship to the record surface. As seen in the thread here that if we put the pivot point as high as possible then a lot of mass is below the pivot point. But someone said that it can start to swing if the record has bigger eccentricity.

My theory is to try to put the pivot point at the same height as the record surface.

But is there any thoughts and theories of where the most optimized height of the pivot point should be? Where is the height of TT that has unipivot designs that is not adjustable?

Let us determine the optimal pivot height to help our SOL owners to get the most out of their new TT!

 

Did anyone else notice that they have this set up with a Micro Acoustics cartridge? Nice cartridge, but they've been out of business for something like 30 years.

 

Conrad Hoffman, the designer of Sol, said on another forum the pivot height should be the same as the surface of the record. He said you should use a dab of adhesive on the anti-skate arm to hold the thread weight at that same height and that you should adjust the height of the hook for the anti-skate weight to be at the same height. The only way I know of the adjust the hook height is to bend that wire. I'll wait for better documentation of that before doing it.

 

Just based on the video, what is the point of adjustable platter AND adjustable tonearm height? I didn't get that.

 

Yes, I did notice the cartridge but I wasn't aware how old it was!

 

Aligning the pivot with the vinyl/stylus should provide the best tracking of warps and albums with eccentricity issues.

The key is maintaining enough mass below the pivot point to maintain stability.

It is nice that the Sol provides the ability to make this adjustment, though. It is something I plan to copy on my table (I have a DIY tonearm).

 

Not positive but I suspect the platter height adjustment might provide a means to reduce belt seeking.

If I were setting one of these up, my steps would be as follows...

(1) Get the platter/spindle mounted so as to minimize wobble. If there is wobble, mark the spindle to platter relationship with a marker, spin the platter, look for wobble, adjust the relationship between the spindle and platter until this wobble is minimized.

(2) Adjust platter height to minimize belt seeking.

(3) Put some vinyl on platter, adjust pivot to height of vinyl (use a straight edge).

(4) Mount cartridge, align pivot cup in arm with stylus.

(5) Now toss the tonearm on and see how stable the arm is.

 

Jason at Schiit often posts updates on SBAF before Head-Fi. If you are looking for up to date information on how the beta test fixes will be implemented just follow the Sol thread at SBAF.

 

Thanks, so it is a general consensus that the pivot point height should be at vinyl surface /stylus.

 

Well if you and I make a consensus.

Mind you, I run a unipivot with an offset (pivot is higher than the stylus). I’d actually say most unipivots don’t have a pivot that is aligned with the vinyl. It isn’t a huge deal.

But if you can pull it off, might as well.

 

Don’t forget the Cadillac Eldorado

 

Just tape another nickel on top and be done with it I say....

 

Could it also be that the adjustable-height platter is an easier way to deal with different thicknesses of vinyl, for the OCD among us?
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The 66 Toronado was, and still is a stunning car.

Of course, I'm partial to the '63 Chevy II Nova with the Dealer Mod V8 engine, but thats just me....

 

Could be. Could be any number of reasons. What it is, is another adjustment one can make... another among the many more than usual for an entry level table. Ironically, it's the adjustment they did not include that got them into this trouble --the arm distance. A sliding bed plate for the arm bearing would be useful, and might be preferable to a longer shell in terms of rigidity and damping. More expensive, too.

 

Well if it is, that would be a very cumbersome adjustment to make.

 

Oh,I dunno if it's bad business. Seems they're actually making money by people paying the company to be in on their beta test.