southern_tango Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Hello ,looking for some advice of how to wire the tonearm in my Thorens TD 150. Tonearm is a Grave G840 F that comes with the 5 pin connector to the RCA cable , which is pretty thick and unbalces the armboard. Tried to give a bit of slack ( lucky the base has a cutout as the thrad of the tonearm sits pretty deep) Should I use a short 5 pin connector solder to a connection bridge and then to the RCA cable like the original? My second question...How do you scee the armboard to the subchassis ? tried in every position and when I put the turntable back straight the armboard is all croocked... Any help, advice or suggestion will be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doppelganger Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Can you not just run the cable through the open cutout to your phono preamp? If the weight of the arm + cable is unbalancing the armboard, you need to adjust the suspension springs to ensure the platter is level. You can also 'dress' the cables by using cable holds to route the cable in the direction you want it to go and to ensure it doesn't impede arm movement. The cable is replaceable so you could also buy a more flexible cable to assist with routing. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markielinhart Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 My Sonab 67s has a similar DIN connection. It is a thick cable, however, the last cms beyond the cable anchor point are stripped of the heavy outer layer and don’t interfere with the sprung base at all... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern_tango Posted January 14, 2021 Author Share Posted January 14, 2021 2 hours ago, Doppelganger said: Can you not just run the cable through the open cutout to your phono preamp? If the weight of the arm + cable is unbalancing the armboard, you need to adjust the suspension springs to ensure the platter is level. You can also 'dress' the cables by using cable holds to route the cable in the direction you want it to go and to ensure it doesn't impede arm movement. The cable is replaceable so you could also buy a more flexible cable to assist with routing. The wire is anchored with two p clips but I guess that is part of the problem... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Rutter Posted January 15, 2021 Share Posted January 15, 2021 (edited) As far as the arm board is concerned I tap the sub chassis so that the arm board is screwed down from the top. This means you can remove the arm board and arm from above. Edited January 15, 2021 by Colin Rutter Picture Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Rutter Posted January 15, 2021 Share Posted January 15, 2021 Also the G840 can have its "bottom" shortened. I have had a G840 on my 150 decades ago, it didnt impress me so I ran a 707 for years. Just my thoughts. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern_tango Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 2 hours ago, Colin Rutter said: Also the G840 can have its "bottom" shortened. I have had a G840 on my 150 decades ago, it didnt impress me so I ran a 707 for years. Just my thoughts. The 150 and 707 are a classic set up ,would love to have one no doubt about it but budget is very poor ,just trying to put together a decent turntable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian F Posted January 15, 2021 Share Posted January 15, 2021 (edited) Linn turntable gurus used to tie back the Grace cable with a cable-tie and then direct it to a P-clip positioned midway along the rear of the LP12. I imagine the same trick could apply to the TD150. Edited January 15, 2021 by Ian F 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern_tango Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 1 hour ago, Ian F said: Linn turntable gurus used to tie back the Grace cable with a cable-tie and then direct it to a P-clip positioned midway along the rear of the LP12. I imagine the same trick could apply to the TD150. Great idea...and a good example of KISS ( keep it simple ,stupid) will try it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern_tango Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 More questions appealing to your experience, should I replace the 240 V. wires to two pole and earth connecting the earth yo the chassis ? ( screw next to the motor) would it be beneficial to replace the caoacitors and resustor for newer ones ? ( on a circuit board with all the connections soldered) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian F Posted January 15, 2021 Share Posted January 15, 2021 If you're comfortable working with 230v AC there are PCBs available on eBay to update the Thorens supply.These have the benefit of an inline fuse plus suitably rated X2 mains capacitors.You need to specify which turntable/motor you have in order to get the correct phase capacitor and dropping resistor.The traditional Thorens earthing arrangement uses a separate earth lead connecting back to the amplifier.This is less likely to lead to earth loop and hum problems. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian F Posted January 16, 2021 Share Posted January 16, 2021 https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Thorens-TD150-TD160-etc-Power-Supply-PCB-Upgrade-Linn-Ariston-REV-5-0/114629122017?hash=item1ab06d97e1:g:ErcAAOSw5ZtaUPxO 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern_tango Posted January 16, 2021 Author Share Posted January 16, 2021 (edited) So....I did as Ian F but with a little twist letting the wires "float" from the p clip , everything looked ok until I put the base and suspension locked up again...worked a bit on the springs pressure ,nothing. Until I put the tt on it's back one more time...and discovered the problem...It was ME !! when installed the tonearm did a jig to get the 222 mm center to center spindle to axis and trying to compensate for the longer counterweight...well tonearm connector hits the edge of the perforation in the base Edited January 19, 2021 by southern_tango 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregWormald Posted January 16, 2021 Share Posted January 16, 2021 2 hours ago, southern_tango said: discovered the problem...It was ME !! Oops. (Good catch though.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern_tango Posted January 19, 2021 Author Share Posted January 19, 2021 (edited) And it's done... Solid timber armboard ( guess the timber get the price) Corrected all measurements now it clears the base , unluckily the cover doesn't fit so for the moment it is going to seat inside a cabinet ( I have a cat) Edited January 19, 2021 by southern_tango 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Rutter Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 I use under body deadening paint on the sub chassis on my 150. Also I laminate acrylic to the "ends" of the wooden arm board. The only other mod other than a heavy custom plinth is the use of a sorbothane mat. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregWormald Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 If you're looking to 'deaden' the plinth then the deadening sheets they use in car audio do a great job. Whether they would improve the sound or not I can't say. The stuff REALLY STICKS so it would be hard to remove though if it's not right. Maybe some lead sheeting stuck on with blu tack might give you an idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markielinhart Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 (edited) 15 minutes ago, GregWormald said: If you're looking to 'deaden' the plinth then the deadening sheets they use in car audio do a great job. Whether they would improve the sound or not I can't say. The stuff REALLY STICKS so it would be hard to remove though if it's not right. Maybe some lead sheeting stuck on with blu tack might give you an idea. My hardware store sell sheets of ‘acoustic pinboard’ in black or white. It’s a dense felt like material 12mm thick that’s cuttable. I’m using in on a plinth I’m currently making. It costs about $30 for a 1200x900 sheet... Edited January 21, 2021 by markielinhart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern_tango Posted January 21, 2021 Author Share Posted January 21, 2021 46 minutes ago, markielinhart said: My hardware store sell sheets of ‘acoustic pinboard’ in black or white. It’s a dense felt like material 12mm thick that’s cuttable. I’m using in on a plinth I’m currently making. It costs about $30 for a 1200x900 sheet... I have some dound deadening material of that kind ( leftovers from my ex job) was thinking about... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern_tango Posted May 30, 2021 Author Share Posted May 30, 2021 So,been months since the last update on the Thorens ,so after making the second board ,posted a pic in a oage on Fb and comented about the 840 not fiting properly on it, a gentleman from UK asked if I wanted to swap the 840 for his 707 ,months oassed I got the arm a couple of months ago ( he still waiting on mine as it is miss located in post) Installed the 707 and it looked too much forward so today...armbord number 3 ...the ones before ,wrong measurements. Pluss added better feet ( at least visually) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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