Technics 1200 noob, answer my stupid question..?

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-- Technics 1200 noob, answer my stupid question..?

Posted by Man_Devil on Oct-17-2009 17:13:

Technics 1200 noob, answer my stupid question..?

had been using CDJs for the longest time. just picked up a used tech 1200 MK2 to test out with Traktor Pro.

Have 2 stupid questions which I know like 80% of you could easily answer (yeah I tried to google for a little bit but this way is easier)

1. on the bottom left corner between the play button and the power knob it says '+6%, 3%, 0, -3%'... what does this mean? are these the range options for the pitch fader? and if so is there an easy way to change the pitch range aside from taking the thing apart and screwing with it?

2. it came with a 45 adapter... briefly tried to google and still dont understand. Is this necessary to play 45 RPM records? and how do I use it exactly?

Thanks

Posted by n3lly on Oct-17-2009 17:32:

1. When you press play on the deck you'll notice the little dots on the platter. They're a visual indicator of what speed you're playing at. When the dots don't move you can cross check and see what speed the deck is going at, the figures are just there to let you know what each row of dots corresponds to (speed wise)

2.From my understanding the adaptor is used for 7" records, i could be wrong though.

Posted by SPAWNmaster on Oct-17-2009 17:50:

quote:
Originally posted by n3lly
1. When you press play on the deck you'll notice the little dots on the platter. They're a visual indicator of what speed you're playing at. When the dots don't move you can cross check and see what speed the deck is going at, the figures are just there to let you know what each row of dots corresponds to (speed wise)

2.From my understanding the adaptor is used for 7" records, i could be wrong though.

Adding further to what has been said, the moving dots (created by the red strobe illusion on the turntable) are a better indication of the "true pitch" than your slider.

An example of what I mean is to move your pitch slider to what it supposed to be "+3.3". You may notice that the dots are still moving for the 3.3 row when they are supposed to stand still...that would be because your pitch is slightly off.

Not all turntables are the same, nor will you ever find a perfect calibration between any two decks. That is part of the beauty of the analog world.

I would use the dots for reference over the pitch slider markings.

Posted by Jarvmeister on Oct-17-2009 19:16:

That 45 adapter, if it's what i think it is, is a little piece of metal that's about an inch wide.

Back before you were a twitch in your dad's nutsack there were 45rpm records, normally 7 inches in diameter, that had a 1 inch hole in the centre, not the 5mm hole that vinyl has these days. This 45 adapter is designed to fill that gap allowing you to centre your old 45 records on a new style deck, like the Technics 1200 series.

These days vinyl plays at either 33 or 45, and there's no better way of deciding which speed a track is at that to wap it on the deck and fire it up. Change up or down to 33 or 45 rpm accordingly.