Rick's b.log - 2020/12/23
It is the 27th of April 2024 You are 13.58.39.23, pleased to meet you!

Advent Calendar day 23

Muse MT-103 record player

Your comments:

Mick, 27th December 2020, 00:55

Most 12" singles play at 45 rpm on at least one of their sides. Interesting the muse case does 78 rpm too. You'd be hard pressed to find anything that plays at 16rpm but I don't think many at all were pressed at that speed. I've never seen one. Have you any EPs? 7" where at least one of the sides plays at 33 and a third?

Rick, 28th December 2020, 00:49

Hi Mick,    I think all of my 12" singles play at 45 on both sides. Otherwise it would last a while.    I think 78 is perhaps a case of "because the motor can do it". Actually using that hardware for a 78 would destroy both the record and the stylus. They're what, something like 0.7mm? You need a bigger sturdier one to handle shellac discs.  16rpm was a bit specialist. Spoken books and stuff for the blind. I've seen ancient language courses supplied on record that ran at 16rpm. I guess the only option these days is to record them at 33 and play back at half speed?    Not seen a 7" 33, didn't know they existed but I guess if 12" 45s exist... ;-)    I like how on albums, the good songs are on the outside of the disc. Better sound quality than near the spindle.    If you're interested, I have written about the record player on today's (27th December) entry.

Mick, 28th December 2020, 02:23

I'm not sure quality is better on the outside tracks. Though theres more centrifugal force closer you get to the centre any decent deck will have a bias weight or spring to counteract. ??? Not something I've though about. You don't gradually go from FM quality to AM. Do you!

Rick, 28th December 2020, 22:31

Mick,  It's not the force, it's the fact that the record turns at a constant rate, so on the outside of the record (especially a 12") there is a lot more vinyl passing under the needle for every second of playing time - about one foot per second. However on the inside, the distance traveled by the stylus for the same second of music is about half a foot, which implies that the fidelity of recording in the centre of the record will be rather poorer than on the outside.

Rick, 28th December 2020, 22:33

This is also a likely explanation of why we have 45s. Since the 45 rpm record is physically smaller, the way to get back some of the fidelity is to speed it up.    Now, a 12" 45..... ;-)