An enthusiast contacted me to encounter about a LP12 as he wanted to get back into vinyl, having only briefly used a Rega Planar 2 before. We were really lucky and within an hour we sourced what looked like a great buy. The person collected the unit from the seller.
I visited the new owner shortly afterwards and what I found was an absolutely beautiful LP12, with the original packaging material. It is rare to find this and I told the owner to hang on to this. First, the plinth is in a great condition with not a scratch or a dent anywhere. The fluted Afromosia plinth is the classic look and feel. I explained that all it needs is a bit of teak oil to make it look nice and shiny again.
The motor is a bit noisy and we will sort this out. Often, all that is needed is for the ball race and spring at the bottom end of the motor to be cleaned. My own LP12 had the same noise issue and it was easily fixed. The startup is a bit slow and I pointed out to the owner that when the inner platter gets dirt residue that comes from the belt, the belt will slip. A few cotton buds and some purple methylated spirits will clean the inner platter. In time, it is advisable to replace the belt. It's an expensive item at about R1500.00, but it will last a long time. Of course, it could also be the classic example of a failing Valhalla power supply. Slow startup is one of the first signs that the power supply needs some new capacitors.
Next, we replaced the installed MM cartridge with a new AT VM95E. After showing the owner how to balance the arm, float it and then set the tracking weight and bias, his first record's sounds were heard. Fitting the cartridge took a bit of work. Without a jig to mount the LP12, basic tasks can become problematic. One of the connector cables became undone on the tonearm's side, requiring fiddling to get it back in place again. It is best to do this sort of thing with the arm removed from the turntable, but it was not possible in this case. There's a deeper lesson here. Often individuals will simply do something without explaning how and why they did it. I first balanced the arm and then showed the owner how I did it. In the future he will be able to do it himself. The smile on the owner's face told the story. He was very happy with what he heard.
What remains is a more thorough check. The Valhalla board will be recapped to sort out the startup speed issue, and the motor checked for its noise, along with generally cleaning a bit here and there. For the rest, this is a unit that complements his existing setup very well. With a top-notch valve amplifier and matching phono stage, this LP12 has room to breathe and give its best, despite its age.
My parting advice to the owner was this: Take it easy and let the turntable grow on you. Get the unit sorted out, buy a few items such as a fibre brush and a stylus cleaner, and you are good to go. More photos and a report on the unit's service will follow.
Servicing the Unit
A few days after my first visit, the owner reported that the turntable was behaving erratically. I knew that we had to get the unit serviced immediately. Once I had confirmed parts availability with fundi Dewald Visser, we took a leisurely 40-minute drive eastwards out of Pretoria towards the very quiet and rustic Cullinan. While Dewald prepared to open the unit, we discussed what was wrong – the noisy motor, the erratic behaviour of the power supply, and a pesky tonearm lead that cannot really be attended to unless the arm is removed. We promptly did this and while Dewald was doing his thing on the motor and power supply, I took care of the arm, securing the four connecting leads, with the arm upside down. We also took some time and cleaned the armtube, which had discoloued slightly. It's no big deal, but it just looked beautiful when cleaned. We also cleaned the inner platter's side with methylated spirits, which took care of the slippage of the belt on the platter. We assume that it is time for the belt to be replaced, which will be done later.
With everything assembled, it was time for a quick spin. As expected, the erratic rotation problem was gone, and the startup was perfect. The noise heard from the motor previously was gone, and the arm looked as good as new. We left Dewald thanking him for an amazing job he did, given his limited time.
A few photos showing the process
This was the board before being removed.
A closer inspection shows how one of the capacitors has stared leaking.
Another view of the LP12 innards.
With the capacitors replaced, it is time to reassemble the power supply.
This is a 1982 unit and still sports the split counterweight. In many cases this is preferable to the later unit. The split counterweight allows for lighter cartridges to be mounted. The arm's bearing assembly is a bit dirty but this was taken care of at the client's home. Now it is as good as new.
The armboard is still in a good condition. You will notice that this unit is still before the later introduction of corner bracing. Linn says it was done to improve the rigidity and thus the sound. Whether this is true can be debated.
The first test – startup was quick and smooth, and the noise from the motor was gone. The music sounded excellent right out of the blocks. Back home, I helped the owner to set up his turntable again by fixing the counterweight, balancing the arm, and ensuring the the correct tracking weight and force for the very impressive AT VM95E MM cartridge. I left knowing that this is one happy customer.