Schiit Sol Turntable Sneak-Peak

Discussion in 'Vinyl Nutjob World: Turntable and Related Gear' started by purr1n, Jul 19, 2017.

  1. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    Interesting. Just happened to get bitten by the curiosity bug for vinyl and have been doing research on a near-future table purchase. I wonder how much better the Sol potentially is than a mid-fi rig like the Orbit, which is supposed to be excellent entry level...

    I haven't a clue what the price to performance ratio for vinyl is.
     
  2. Senorx12562

    Senorx12562 Case of the mondays

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    Poor. Oops, did I think that out loud?
     
  3. Darlig1218

    Darlig1218 New

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    Poor Indeed. You are way better off spending $1000 on a CD player or a DAC than $1000 on a record player (because of the cartridge, table, and pre)- Not to mention music will be cheaper to get. If you have money to waste, the always inconvenient and unfriendly vinyl is the answer.
     
  4. LetMeBeFrank

    LetMeBeFrank Won't tell anyone my name is actually Francis

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    There's something ritualistic about vinyl. It demands your attention and in an increasingly mindless world I like being able to hold the music in my hands in a meaningful way. The feeling I get when I slip a 50 year old vinyl out of it's protective sleeve, lay it on the table, carefully brush it and then lower the needle is indescribable.
     
  5. PTS

    PTS Friend

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    That's fine if you're on a tight budget or enjoy the convenience of digital. No-one would bother with the extra expense and hassle of a vinyl rig if they didn't think it sounded better, obviously.
     
  6. Syzygy

    Syzygy Friend

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    images_maninchair.jpg

    This was used to say "our tapes sound as good as vinyl" in Maxell commercials. Because this is exactly the kind of enjoyment you can get from vinyl. The photo with only the word Maxell needed no further verbiage, because it was immediately recognizable for what it was.

    I've never experienced that same level of enjoyment from digital.
     
  7. HotRatSalad

    HotRatSalad Friend

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    I've never heard digital sound better than on my current headphone gear. However all my records are staying where they are. I reserve playing records for the ones that I think do sound unbelievable.

    As mentioned above when I pull out a minty record that's 45-55 years old and it plays and sounds beautiful... There's nothing that beats that. It is all a huge pain in the ass chasing the best pressings and masterings.. that all carries over to digital and CD mastering anyway.
     
  8. luckybaer

    luckybaer Friend

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    Wait... is this an older post, or am I going nuts? I could have sworn you gave vinyl a try recently, and found that it wasn't your cup of tea.
     
  9. mscott58

    mscott58 Friend

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    This was a pretty ballsy first post!
     
  10. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    The advice is good, and one that I would otherwise give, but not to @ColtMrFire, who has been a long time member who I am sure has read the many cautions and many joys of vinyl / TT ownership. Knowing the people here is key. @Darlig1218 will not be executed today.

    I will answer @ColtMrFire's query based on my experience with the Orbit and Sol TTs after I get home from dinner.
     
  11. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    It's after work and I'm tired so don't remember if I updated. Tried vinyl but came to the conclusion it was more hassle than it was worth at my budget level.
     
  12. LetMeBeFrank

    LetMeBeFrank Won't tell anyone my name is actually Francis

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    I really love my orbit table with the 2m blue cartridge, but like I said in another vinyl thread, I don't have experience with any high end turntables, only lower end stuff (which the orbit completely dominates), or any better sources than Modi Multibit. All I can say is that I think it sounds incredible, much better than the Modi Multibit or ak4490 in the Fulla 2. With my experience in mind, hopefully that is helpful.
     
  13. Wfojas

    Wfojas Friend

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    I think that vinyl is a commitment you cant take lightly. Most people (you know who you are) haven't spent more that 10% of their audio budget on music. IF you do vinyl, you should appreciate the differences it brings, and commit to it being worth it in your current situation. I do know people who threw a bundle at it, then decided to walk away. Not only do you actually have to buy records (not leech files off avxhm) AND have space to store them. BUT a budget setup that appeals to what you like will give you more pleasure than digital could. Only you can decide for your self, though.
     
  14. winders

    winders boomer

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    Having spent a good amount of time comparing vinyl and digital recently, my opinion is that vinyl is only better than digital when the vinyl mastering is better than the digital mastering. Because of this, unless you spend a lot of time and effort hunting down the best digital masterings, vinyl will sound better most of the time. Often, no digital mastering exists that is as good as the (best) vinyl mastering. This is particularly true with more contemporary recordings that are more compressed on digital than they are on vinyl. However, when I compared vinyl and digital Classical recordings, I more often preferred the digital recordings.

    For me, since I lost my 70's and 80's vinyl collection long ago, it makes more sense to track down the best digital masterings on the albums I wanted to have in my collection. These digital masterings are often as good as the best vinyl masterings or at least very close. Add in the extra cost, the rituals required with vinyl, and the inevitable crackles and pops, means vinyl gets less attractive to me. I would rather spend that money on a better set of speakers which I think would improve the sound of my 2 channel setup better than adding vinyl to it.
     
  15. jexby

    jexby Posole Prince

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    this should be a damn sticky to ward off vinyl vampire hipsters.
     
  16. LetMeBeFrank

    LetMeBeFrank Won't tell anyone my name is actually Francis

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    I totally agree @winders. I think you get out the effort that you put into vinyl. To me it's reserved for more attentive listening, when I want to be more involved in the process, so I only buy my favorite album's. Most of the time I'm listening while doing other things, and digital is just fine for that as well. I like having the option to do either. If I had a high end DAC like Gungnir Multibit or Yggdrasil I probably wouldn't have bothered with vinyl, but I'm glad I did.
     
    Last edited: Jan 12, 2019
  17. Biodegraded

    Biodegraded Friend

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    @Darlig1218 , the bipolar responses to your post have more than bipolar reasons. Many of us would agree with you about vinyl's price/performance ratio, many of us like the engagement that vinyl requires, and - not least - many know that @ColtMrFire already has an excellent digital setup and is willing and able to explore alternatives.

    Like @mscott58 said, ballsy first post. While this forum has a convergence of views in many respects, diversity of opinion based on experience is respected and encouraged - Welcome, and don't let the disagreements put you off expressing your views in the future.
     
  18. winders

    winders boomer

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    Yes, the DAC your own clearly factors in to the equation massively. I am very fortunate to have a DAC, the PS Audio DirectStream, that has resolution and detail yet does not have digital glare or harshness. The DAC has a nice sense of fullness to the sound. Maybe a better word would be richness as it is quite musical.

    I may have a much different opinion if I had a less capable DAC.
     
  19. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    First of all: Doh, I thought the drawbridge was up all this time. Registrations are now closed.

    The Sol is a skeletal frame. The Orbit is a solid lightweight plinth. Both are belt driven. They are going to have a different sound. I think @MuppetFace wrote something about the sonic differences of various approaches to TT design. If anyone remembers the link, please post it. She does have an emphasis on the higher-end stuff, but her observations still apply here.

    I feel the Orbit is a better proposition than most existing tables up to $1k. The Pro-Ject tables have a nicer arm (carbon), maybe extract a bit more resolution, but the motor mounting with rubber bands gives them a wooly sound, and their platter bearings have been known to develop a grinding noise that transmits to the needle (heavy motor oil works as a temporary fix). The Orbit arm is OK, but the motor mounting is solid - a bit more snap, drive, etc. The Regas TTs up to $1k are no better IMO. It's just more of the same. I owned two Regas in a prior life, one with a nice arm. I don't know why I did this because I should have quit the first time. The issue with these designs is the lightweight plinth, which strongly imparts its own resonance. The bass and "PRAT" sounds like ass unless you prefer gooey congested "PRAT." The vintage Technics tables are a possibility, but used units are costing too much, and we have no idea of their condition.

    Now we move on to the Sol. As much as I dislike to outright say that I like Schiit gear these days, the Sol is impressive. At first, I was apprehensive because I became of the heavy platter, heavy plinth school of TT design. Obviously, Schiit was not going to take this route because the shipping and materials costs would have been enormous. What worried me more was their selection of the cartridge, a Nagaoka MP-110, which has sort of an organic sound. On the right table and system, its coloration is quite tasteful, full-bodied, and technically capable.

    To my surprise, this combination worked surprisingly well exceeding my expectations. I don't know the final pricing but given the continued escalation of TT pricing and discontinuation of the VPI Classic series (used to be able to get a Classic 1 for $1600), the Sol is a no brainer. It's a game changer. I believe Schiit has implemented a host of "user-interface" improvements to the Sol since I first auditioned it. Conrad Hoffman, who has an encyclopedic knowledge of all things turntable, contributed heavily to the design. The smart elements of the design are indicated in my first post.

    I am spoiled, perhaps not as much as some others here with even more costly turntables. But I am dead serious when I say that I would be perfectly happy if the Sol was my primary table. The Sol is the cheapest table I would actually buy and use. (The next would be a Technics SL1210GR at $1699). I had actually planned on this possibility when the Woolsey fire came by my neighborhood as I expected my Classic 4 to be ashes.

    Gone will be the days where turnable ownership was a money pit. You will have to pay for vinyl. Stealing music will no longer be possible. However, only good karma awaits those who pay for other people's ideas instead of stealing them.

    As far as a phonostage, the TC-750 with an external LPS is highly recommended for MM carts. If you use an MC, the current production Schiit Mani. (Mani too for MM if you don't want to fuss with custom LPS). Anything slightly above these price points from Creek, Rega, etc. suck ass. Pro-Ject has a small phonostage box, but the earlier iteration of it sucked so bad. The new one might be better, but I haven't heard it.

    The Nagaoka MP-110 was a fantastic combination if you have a neutral setup and will only set you back $138. Ortofon has a more straight-forward sound. 2M Blue for something more energetic at $200. Anything more gets into diminishing returns.

    Finally, setting up the turntable, mounting the cart, adjusting VTA, VTF, is what makes everything click.

    With some elbow grease and about $1000, such a setup will destroy any DAC in the mids and highs, have a transient response and dynamics that hangs with the best DACs, and be on par with the PCM1704 or ESS Sabre DACs in the bass. The older the recordings (back in the day), the better the results will be.
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2019
  20. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    The only thing is that the Sol is late late late late late late. We need to bug @schiit and @baldr.

    Go to Conrad Hoffman's site. He has some great tools for TTs. Sure you can buy Dr. Fuckhart's protractor, and that stuff is nice, but I'm a cheapskate. Windows and a printer is all that is needed to align your cart.
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2019

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