Full Upgrade Description
Your final turntable
I bet many people hate to say goodbye to the good old turntable...
Some people are luckier than other- it's the ones who bought a GyroDec (John Michell's unjustly overlooked masterpiece). For the unlucky it's good to know that it still is possible to buy this great player. It's good - and it can get even better! As many knows through reading different ads in High Fidelity and other magazines, this turntable can be modified resulting in even absolutely great sound-improvements.
Gert Pedersen (the man behind the beautiful suspensions on Niels Nørby and other's GyroDec) have systemized these upgrades. The upgrade consists of three steps.
Note that all three steps must be carried out simultaneously!
First step of the modification consist in discarding the hopeless spiralsprings (real men don't like spiralsprings) and replace them with rubberband-suspensions, inspired of SME's MODEL 30. These are very beautiful, precisely machined in polished stainless steel. Each spiralspring are replaced by 3 O-rings accurately suited to match the job. The original opportunity to adjust the chassis from the upside remains, though you have to remove the 'nice' covercups, which everyone who can hear, have removed already.
New stainless steel suspension towers
Second step of the modification consist in an ingenious stabilization of horizontal movement on the whole floating chassis. A couple of poles are used to fix a kevlar-wire, which via a rubber-disconnected screw are attached in point of each suspension. After adjustment, nothing ever moves sideways
again! On SE models, the "spider" is replaced with a new CNC-cut acrylic plinth.
Complete suspension upgraded
Third and final step of the modification consist in a resonance-deadening of the chassis underside with a chemical mass, plus sanddampening and double steel reinforcement of the main bearing. Detailed installation-instructions with drawings and drillmeasurements follows. On older models (GyroDec MK I-III) the old motor is hung up in 4 small rubbersuspensions (but the new stand-alone motor is recommended).
Bearing reinforcement Sand damping of the chassis in a container and the three hollows
Listen... These steps provide sound improvements such as much quieter sound-rendering. With a pre-known record, especially kettledrum/bassdrum/double-bass and cello gets tightened up, so strikes are heard extremely fast and precise without muddy distortion. Apart from this, the extension in both bass and treble are improved a lot.
Summarized you can say, that for just a little extra money you can rebuild a MICHELL GYRODEC/ORBE to become a worldclass turntable.
Fully upgraded GyroDec
For pictures of Gyro SE, Orbe and Orbe SE, visit the Gallery
Prices are found under Info & prices.
Please also see references of the Full Upgradekit here.