Schiit Sol- The Next Great Turntable?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by msinderson, Sep 5, 2019.

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  1. toddrhodes

    toddrhodes Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Bend, IN
    One thing to consider.

    Mike Moffat is a digital guy based on his experience at Theta, Schiit, and elsewhere building DACs and transports.

    But the whole reason he took up that charge was to try and bring digital as close to his preference as possible, that being analog sound from vinyl. He's mentioned in interviews that he's still a vinyl guy at heart and the Sol has been percolating in his brain for a very long time.

    Having read this thread, I'm still intrigued enough to get a Sol but unfortunately funds don't allow at the moment. But I do think Mike may have put a lot of trust in users with this piece. I mean, new analog boards, the new USB board, all of those items go into closed betas in real homes with listeners, not professionals, evaluating them.

    I don't think any such testing or process happened like this for the Sol at all which is really odd, and very different from how they normally approach a product or upgrade launch. So I'm not quite sure what the thought was there, but obviously this thing needed just a little more time in the oven. I believe they'll sort it out, however I've no clue how publicly that will happen or not.
     
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  2. Cyclone Ranger

    Cyclone Ranger New old stock

    Location:
    Best Coast USA
    Everybody should calm down. It’s their very first turntable, after all. :sigh:

    v1 = Significant teething pains, which they’ll eventually fix.

    v2 = More refined version, still ‘hands on’ but worth it, on account of punching above its price sonically. Plus, it’s a cool design.

    So, no real need to run around with our hair on fire for the next few months. o_O
    .
     
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  3. Joel S

    Joel S Forum Resident

    On top of all the other flaws mentioned, it would appear from the video that turning on the motor doesn't rotate the platter without a push.
     
  4. Cyclone Ranger

    Cyclone Ranger New old stock

    Location:
    Best Coast USA
    If that’s the deal, it’s actually a fairly common design... the Nottingham, Pearl Audio, and Palmer turntables are the same way.

    The idea is that you spec a smaller, low-torque motor that serves only to keep the platter spinning once you hand-push it up to speed. Said small motor feeds less noise/vibration into the system, resulting in better SQ.
    .
     
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  5. inperson

    inperson Senior Member

    Location:
    Ohio
    You guys with it in their system please take pictures and post.
     
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  6. zombiemodernist

    zombiemodernist Forum Resident

    Location:
    Northeastern USA
    Well if you were to read it before dismissing it you might see my post was about design — not engineering — which is very much in my wheelhouse, academically and professionally. My point is that from what I've seen, this product has caused confusion in the user base because it's not designed to illustrate its functions, instead preferring to cut corners with little set screws etc etc. It has glaring mistakes like the headshell size that will be sure to cause frustration as the user attempts to shove a square peg in a round hole. I have no clue how it functions as I lack the knowledge of engineering and physics to make a definitive call on that, and don't have one on hand to measure anything. But from where I'm sitting it's a poorly designed product as far as expectations for a consumer electronic in 2019 go.
     
  7. winders

    winders Music Lover

    Location:
    San Martin, CA
    Well, from where I am sitting, I love the design. I just wish the details of the engineering were better fleshed out. They will be in time.
     
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  8. Ripblade

    Ripblade Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Six
    Not to mention people who ramp down the AC motor voltage after start-up with an autoformer to minimize torque vibrations. The thinking is that once the platter rotation stabilizes, the only motor power needed is just enough to overcome drag forces. It's called Mass Drive, and has been around since at least the '70s.
     
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  9. Phil Thien

    Phil Thien Forum Resident

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    A number of little thumbscrews instead of set screws could easily increase their costs $20 to $30.

    I do see this as a table which will create a little cottage industry of vendors offering a variety of upgrade parts.
     
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  10. Ken Clark

    Ken Clark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago Suburbs
    Despite all the apparent issues, I'm already interested in a v2 version. It's a nice looking piece that could be great. Maybe v2 costs a bit more but could still be a killer deal.
     
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  11. Hymie the Robot

    Hymie the Robot Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    Just feel that people who don't own it, piling on, is funny from where I am sitting. Jeez. Read a couple reviews and watch a video or two and people think they have the entire picture. Why not wait for an official rebuttal from the manufacturer before calling it a poorly designed product or as someone else said fraudulent. Knee jerk reactions are humorous. That is all.
     
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  12. Phil Thien

    Phil Thien Forum Resident

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    I'm curious about the pics indicating the Denon cart. won't fit.

    Here is the thread...
    Schiit Sol Turntable Review - Episodic.

    The author writes, "This was my initial attempt to fit the Denon DL103. As we can see, the stylus is way forward of the alignment point."
    [​IMG]

    The alignment point is a moving target, though, it is on the platter (which rotates).

    It seems like one could rotate the platter, drop the stylus on the alignment point, and then adjust the angle of the cartridge to be parallel to the alignment lines.

    THEN, move the cartridge over to the next grid and make sure the cartridge remains aligned when the stylus is placed on that grid's alignment point.

    Am I missing something in the way the Sol protractor works here?
     
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  13. winders

    winders Music Lover

    Location:
    San Martin, CA
    I am guessing the stylus should hit the center point of the circle right under the bolt in the photo. In other words, the stylus is too far forward.
     
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  14. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    It’s an arc protractor, meant to show the arc at the proper overhang. There is a line that should point from the spindle to the pivot (and then the protractor and platter should be taped down to hold them in place). Moving the platter so the arc reaches the stylus would put the protractor out of correct alignment. I am just assuming the person who posted this pic has the protractor lined up, of course.
     
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  15. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    Eh, it’s a long-awaited, interesting new product. There’s going to be discussion.
     
  16. Hymie the Robot

    Hymie the Robot Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    ...and funny hyperbole.
     
  17. Phil Thien

    Phil Thien Forum Resident

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    Well I'm curious as to whether he does. You'd need to use a straight edge to get that lined up properly.

    The Schiit video doesn't seem to try to align the protractor to the pivot, but concentrates on getting the cartridge aligned to the grids. This process starts at about the twelve minute mark of the Sol setup video.
     
  18. Phil Thien

    Phil Thien Forum Resident

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    Right but if the person is eyeballing the alignment of the protractor to the pivot, the arc could be that far off.

    If you watch the Sol setup video starting at the twelve minute mark, you can get an idea of how tricky it might be to get the protractor aligned to the pivot w/o some sort of a straight edge.

    The Denon cartridge has a "standard" 7.5mm stylus to mounting hole distance. It seems like it should be aligned to the very front of the head shell, as other cartridges Schiit has shown have similar 7.5mm distances and are aligned to the front.

    The slots are likely to accommodate cartridges with > 7.5mm stylus to mounting hole distances.

    I'd print the alignment protractor at vinylengine.com and see if I can't align the cartridge with that protractor.

    Bet you can.
     
  19. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    Yeah, the video leaves a lot to be desired.
     
  20. winders

    winders Music Lover

    Location:
    San Martin, CA
    There is a hole to be cut that locates the protractor on the spindle. Does that not align it with the pivot assuming the protractor is specific to this table?
     
  21. Melted Townes

    Melted Townes Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    To be fair, I said if they KNEW about the issue and still sold the product I would consider it fraudulent.

    That being said, my buddy just sent me his email chain with Schiit customer service. This afternoon someone (not sure if I want to throw out names) at Schiit confirmed with the customer service rep that they are currently working to "change the size of the headshell". So they have acknowledged there is a problem.

    Last I checked they are still selling them. Still no disclaimer that you may not be able to mount and properly align most popular hifi cartridges without changing the leads which in my opinion requires some real soldering skills.

    I have no skin in this game. I didn't buy the table, my buddy did. I really like the table. Fix the headshell issue and I can get by the other quirks with some tweaking. With the one cartridge I was able to get aligned (AT 440mla) the table sounds excellent. Way better than I have experienced with most tables under 1500$.
     
  22. Hymie the Robot

    Hymie the Robot Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    .
    They all seem like very simple fixes.

    People claiming the sky is falling when it isn't is hilarious.
     
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  23. Phil Thien

    Phil Thien Forum Resident

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    Right, but once you slide the protractor over the spindle you still need to rotate the platter back and forth, which moves the protractor.
     
  24. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    Right, but you need to set it with the line pointing from the spindle to the pivot, which I agree you would really need some sort of straight edge to make sure the line continues to the pivot and not just “close”.
     
  25. Big Blue

    Big Blue Forum Resident

    Location:
    Wisconsin
    I shouldn’t need to fix basic things like lead clips on a brand new turntable. Aligning a very small sample of best-selling cartridges would have shown this problem before launch.
     
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