Makeshift pitch adjuster

Ok, one more question about record players. I bought a sort of entry-level belt-drive one, I guess I'm realizing my mistake now, and not that the sound quality is that bad - but what really bugs me is the rotation speed. Having nearly perfect pitch, I could recognize right away that it must be spinning slightly faster than it should because the pitch is almost a quarter tone too sharp. And alas, there is no built-in pitch shifter.

So, my question is: anybody ever try to sort of fix it MacGyver-style? I tried wrapping some electrical tape around the base of the tray where the belt goes around to make the circumference of the tray larger and therefore making each rotation slower, but this didn't seem to make much or any difference. Am I on the right track here? Is it possible to add something thicker to the base of the tray to slow it down sufficiently?

You should have bought a direct-drive turntable...although some say with the motor right beneath the platter, you might be able to hear it through the record. If you spend the $$, this is not the case. With the direct drive I bought, it's computer driven and the speed is adjustable (to the nearest 0.1 rpm for the one I have), so your perfect pitch will be nearly satisfied.

Also, with a quality belt-driven turntable, the speed should be right at 33.33 rpm. My brother has one that is also speed-adjustable. Does yours have some adjust without the MacGyver approach?

Yeah, you're absolutely right. I totally realize that now Normally, I do a fair bit of research before getting into something, but it's something I'd been putting off for a while cuz I never had the money. So when I heard an acquaintance of mine had a pretty well brand new one that he didn't have time for anymore, and he wanted to sell it along with a bunch of old classic rock LPs, I made an impulse buy decision.

Unforunately, no. That is why I'm kind of angry about the purchase now. I've even done some reading after-the-fact, and this particular Sony model is known for not having any sort of mechanism for adjusting the pitch.

I wonder if wiring a rheostat into the motor circuit might do the trick?

Wiring a who into where? hehe

A rheostat. It's just an adjustable resistor. I have one here on my floor lamp to control the exact amount of light I want. It's like the control to your dashboard lights.

A dimmer switch, in other words!

Yeah. That.

Concise.

Neither of those approaches will work, because turntables are frequency-dependent, not amplitude-dependent. Lowering the voltage will serve only to burn up the motor windings, while raising it is liable to cause internal arcing in the motor or blow out some semiconductors. If you're interested in how turntable motors work, look up 'shaded-pole motor'.

Modern AC motors use a voltage-to-frequency converter and a phase-locked loop to provide speed control. This, unfortunately, is not something easily cobbled up at home.

If your turntable is belt-drive, the easiest way to change the speed is to change the ratio between the pulleys by wrapping something like dental floss around one of them to increase the size; this is extremely painstaking to get right, but it can be done with nothing more than a few things around the house and a lot of time and trial & error. A little goes a long way, and wrapping of pulleys must be done as evenly as possible to avoid unacceptable wow & flutter.

If it's direct drive, the easiest thing to do is toss it & get another one. Probably not, I don't think I've ever seen one without a pitch control.

OK. How about this: Tower Of Faith drags his thumb against the turntable?

Like Kev does with his knuckles and the ground?

Yeah. that.

My belt-drive from the 1980's runs too SLOW. Suggestions?

New turntable.