Dustcover on a Turntable?
 

How important is a dustcover on a turntable? I realize it protects the table from dust and protects the arm/cartridge from accidents, etc. I'm looking at turntables and have noticed some come with covers and some don't. On some high end tables a dustcover is not even an option. The salesman said you should always close the cover when playing an LP. My question is: should I avoid buying a turntable if it doesn't come with a cover?

It shouldn't deter you from purchasing if it doesn't, as he said, many don't come with one. I would purchase one if available for protection, and minor dust protection. Dust will eventually make it's way onto it, but not as quickly with a cover. Gingko makes nice ones if the maker of the table you are purchasing doesn't offer it.

I would not close the cover when playing an LP- that's ridiculous. You could get resonance off the stylus, resonance between the cover and plinth etc.

I agree it shouldn't be a reason to buy a specific table or not. I do recommend having one made up. I found a guy on AG he custom made it and delivered to me in a few weeks wasn't more than a few hundred complete but has kept my table dust free and safe from the odd mishap.

Say what , I would run not walk from any sales person who told you to play with the dust cover in place .... :rolleyes:

Yes a dust cover is a necessity IMO , you will spend valuable time cleaning instead of playing .Chose the best table , then Get a dust cover .

I ordered mine from the same folks. Great cover. If anything, it reduces the frequency by which you have to wipe thigs down, which reduces the amount of scratches as well.

Resonance off the stylus?
Could you please elaborate on that? I'm having trouble visualizing...

If you go to a Project dealer they will be able to sell you one. They fit over anything.
My new Thorens did come with a cover that protects the arm and platter, but I haven't even taken the plastic off it. The TT looks too nice to cover it up.

[QUOTE=ltc;9864889]Resonance off the stylus?
Could you please elaborate on that? I'm having trouble visualizing...[/


In a nutshell, the idea is to isolate the turntable and its moving parts from as much external vibration as possible. All the efforts to have a dense platter, platform etc are diminished when there is a loose cover sitting on the turntable shelf or worse, on the actual turntable housing.

This is even more of a concern when playing music at higher volumes, where there is even a greater chance to introduce vibration into the system. Any extra resonance that comes into play outside the stylus/LP groove should be minimized as much as possible.

What Lou Lou , you still here ..? The dust cover will cause resonance , worst if you tip it up when playing , but you know that ..:)

Yes, I am still here. I've been busy flying my planes after a 30 year hiatus.

I was confused by the original statement regarding resonances off the stylus. The stylus is far too small to transfer any energy via resonance to its surroundings and I couldn't come up with a model.
Turning it around and transferring vibration/motion to the stylus makes more sense.

And I avoid the issue by playing vinyl in a class 1000 clean room ... Very quiet and peaceful, no dust, no static....once you get used to the bunny suit of course.

I probably didn't state what I meant very clearly- what I meant is the reverse. While the stylus is making noise and that noise is echoing off the cover that would be (as you state) pretty minimal.

To be clear I think the cover could cause the stylus to resonate. You have two hard surfaces (the plastic of the cover and the wood or whatever it's sitting on) in very close proximity to the stylus. The cover is going to react to reverberations from the speakers (primarily) but could also react from the motor and platter and any disturbances to whatever it's sitting on. Why put something like that so close to the one thing (the stylus) that you don't want moving around except in response to the grooves? I wouldn't ever cover the turntable while playing and would (as Wayne noted) run from any salesman who told me to but as they say it's your ears. Besides if your room is that dusty you've probably got bigger problems.

I love that Thorens BTW- I strongly considered it but ended up getting a Clearaudio Ambient instead. Not sure if I made the wiser choice.