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-- belt-drive vs direct-drive
belt-drive vs direct-drive
me as TT n00b whats better and why?
direct-drive?
belt-drive?
gr.
robin
Direct drive is way better. More consistent and more reliable.
belt drive are turntables that are turned by the spindle being attached to a motor off to the side.
direct drive places the motor directly underneath the spindle.
Direct drive has higher torque, and runs much more steadily than belt drive.
My advice, direct drive all the way. Belt drive is a waste of time and money if you plan to DJ.
as above. belt drive suck
I'll try to provide a short comparison between the two.
In short direct-drive (dd) is better for djing over belt-drive (bd).
Direct Drive works via a motor sitting directly underneath the spindle and spins the platter. The motor uses magnets to turn the platter and because of this, you don't have any parts of the motor directly touching the platter. You'll see dd TTs advertising brushless motors, which is what the magnetic "brushes" are all about--not brushing up against the platter. This results in a lower amount of background noise, compaired to bd. One con of a dd system is that it cost much more to manufacture and because of this, all dd systems will be considerably more than even the best bd TTs. More pros of a dd TT is that it provides better wow and flutter. Wow is the slow variation in the pitch of a sound reproduction resulting from variations in the speed of the TT platter. Flutter is the rapid variation in the pitch of a sound, again resulting from the variable speed of the turntable. The lower these numbers the better, in general. The greater % of pitch adjust available on the table will increase these numbers. The Numark TTX1 for instance, has a higher wow and flutter rating over the Technic 1200, but the TTX1 can have a pitch adjustment of upto +/- 50%, where as the 1200 has +/- 8% (or up to 10%, I think, if you modify the internal set screw). Since the dd motors are made with better parts and more power, they also come with more torque. Torque is the force that is applied to you axle in your car from the rotation of your engine. This force turns the axle and hence the wheels, which results in horsepower. This is basically the same with a TT, though since there is no forward motion, there is only torque and not HP. The greater the torque, the quicker and more accurate your motor can start up and keep its velocity, and hence the platter and your record! This is a good thing because you don't want to release your record on a particular beat and then have to wait for your TT to come up to speed. You want it to come up to speed very very quickly so that your two records are beatmatched! These are the main benifits of a dd TT, and they definitely warrant spending the extra money if you will be using the TTs for djing.
Bd TTs do have one main advantage over dd tables. That advantage is price! If you want a decent table to use to record all of your vinyl onto your computer and then transfer all of those tracks to CD, then bd isn't a bad choice if you are on a budget. Dd is still better due to the wow and flutter rating, though this eliminates the need for more torque because you will let the table come up to speed before the track actually starts playing. Budget constraints should be the only reason you get a bd TT though, unless you don't plan on Djing with it or using it for HIFI recording--the most consistantly piece of advice that I've seen from those who have bought bd TTs is that they regret buying them due to their inability to maintain a constant speed--hence you can't beatmatch effectively. If you are sure that you want to DJ, then save up for good tables. You can even start with a really cheap mixer to start and upgrade that later, though I'm sure you'll find that it will be hard to save money once you get addicted to buying vinyl--everyone does 
Decent dd TTs are a must if you want to stick with Djing, otherwise you will just get frustrated in your investment and the inability of your investment to give a good return.
If you tell us more about your situation, budget and wants, then we can help you out quite a bit more, but remember, the more details you provide, the better we can help you!
^^^ Exactly what I would of said. 
lets cut it to the point..
if you want to DJ - get direct drive
if you want to listen to records - get belt drive
Belt Drive are a good way to get into it if you don't know how serious you are. If you get sick of djing after a few weeks you've saved a lot of money.
| quote: |
| Originally posted by Ghostface Belt Drive are a good way to get into it if you don't know how serious you are. If you get sick of djing after a few weeks you've saved a lot of money. |
There is no question about it...direct drive is the way to go! You will definetly regret belt-drives!
Like was said above, belt drive's can't hold a beatmatch.
Like recess says on his site:
| quote: |
| Belt Driven decks suck. This isn't from a "To be a Dj you must have Technics" point of view. It's the truth. Belt-Driven decks suck. You'll hear people telling you that they're using Belt-Driven decks, and there's nothing wrong with them, "Oh yeah, I've had mine for years, can do anything on them, scratch, mix, cook, play frisbee, solve the worlds debt and hunger problems...." Fine. If you want to listen to them rather than me, then I'm not going to get all fussed and bothered about it, but PLEASE, stop asking me if it's OK to use Belt-Driven decks, then bugging me about it for two weeks, ignoring what I say, then sending me a mail two months later saying "Yeah, you were right, they suck. How can I make them better?" At which point, I just hit the delete button. It's the only thing I'm a wanker about. This is something I feel passionate about, that belt-driven decks are for people who either a) Aren't serious about Dj'ing, b) are only going to use them for a couple of months as a test to see if they're going to like Dji'ng, or c) Think with their wallets instead of thier heads. |
ya, read that, its intresting.
but, the main problem with belt drived TT's, is that they can't keep up the tempo very well, where DD TT's can. For example, a DDTT can keep 1% more speed with 100% accuracy. But, a belt drive can't, it depends on the temprature and how humid the room is. And, another thing, a belt drived tt is waaaaaaay weaker than a dd
Saving money? Good to begin with? hell no!
If you buy a belt driven TT, you'll NEVER learn to beatmatch with that!
learn to dj on belt driven tables and youll be badass
| quote: |
| Originally posted by Blithe Like was said above, belt drive's can't hold a beatmatch. Like recess says on his site: I recommend reading into his gear suggestions to get a more detailed comparission, although I believe the statement above should have helped change your mind http://www.recess.co.uk |
And anyway, i can still spin on BeltDrive TT's brilliantly, and im sure alot of other people out there are the same and that should really be telling you something.
and one more thing is the fact about how serious you are. if you're really going to get into the whole scene, and become really passionate about it, of course you'll eventually want the best stuff on the market. ie. a set of Techs.
now this wont be becuase there better (even though they are )or you're other tables are shit, it will be becuase there the industry standard, and well.....
theres just something special about em 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I totally agree with that.
My first setup consisted of two Numark belt drives and I learned how to beatmatch perfectly well on them. I even put together a mix cd with them and there were no mixing flaws at all. In my opinion it's not really fair to compare beatmatching on direct drives Vs. belt drives because they involve different techniques. I will say that if you're not sure where you want to go in the future, it won't hurt you that much to play safe and get belt drives although I do agree that directs are the way to go even if they're cheap geminis or something. The thing about spinning on belt drives is you'll get too used to how they work and are manipulated and you'll be like a fish out of water on direct drives. When I bought a direct drive I felt like I had to learn how to spin all over again because it's so much different. Long story short, get direct drives.
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