TD 160 HD - Turntable THORENS - Free user manual and instructions

USER MANUAL TD 160 HD THORENS

UNPACKING AND ASSEMBLY

SET UP AND CONNECTIONS

MOUNTING THE PICKUP CARTRIDGE

Introduction Congratulations for your purchase of the new TD 160 HD! We hope that your new record player will give you lots of listening pleasure. In combination with a good pickup cartridge this turntable is to yield outstanding sound. Manufacturing and assembly of this record player has been carried out in Germany which will guarantee you its high quality and functionality being maintained for many years to come. Please keep in mind that this device is a precision instrument and therefore requires some attention and care. We strongly advise to read these instructions attentively before proceeding with the set-up as it contains all necessary information and guidance for assembly, placement, set-up and configuration of your new record player. In the event that you have any question this user manual cannot answer please do not hesitate to ask your Thorens dealer for further assistance.

OPERATING YOUR UNIT! This product was tested and complies with all the requirements for the CE Mark. CAUTION To reduce risk of electric shock, do not remove the cover (or back). No user-serviceable parts inside. WARNING TO PREVENT FIRE OR SHOCK HAZARD, DO NOT EXPOSE THIS APPLIANCE TO RAIN OR MOISTURE.

EXPLANATION OF GRAPHICAL SYMBOLS

The lightning flash with arrowhead symbol, within an equilateral triangle, is intended to alert you to the presence of uninsulated ‘dangerous voltage’ within the product’s enclosure that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute an electric shock to persons. The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert you to the presence of important operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying the appliance.

This symbol on the product or on its packaging indicates that this product must not be disposed off with your other household waste. Instead, it is your responsibility to dispose of your waste equipment by handing it over to a designated collection point for the recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment. The separate collection and recycling of your waste equipment at the time of disposal will help to conserve natural resources and ensure that it is recycled in a manner that protects human health and the environment. For more information about where you can drop off your waste equipment for recycling, please contact your local city office, your household waste disposal service or the shop where you purchased the product. Unpacking and Assembly Carefully remove the unit and accessories from the packaging. Supplied items: 1 x plinth (with/without tonearm) 1 x tonearm counterweight 1 x Thorens drive belt 1 x platter 1 x anti-static platter mat (2 parts) 1 x special bearing oil 1 x mounting jig for drive belt 1 x mains power adaptor 1 x set of RCA interconnecting leads 3 x RDC unit feet 1 x acryl dust cover 1 x sprit level (bubble) 1 x adaptor for single records By observing the following hints your record player can be mounted within only a few minutes. Fig. 1 Attach the 3 RDC-feet at the underside of the plinth and put the unit onto a level surface. Now put five to eight drops of the supplied oil into the bearing and then insert the axle with the thicker end first (Fig. 1).

Mounting platter and belt is carried out with the dedicated jig supplied (Fig. 2.1). Put the metal stems oft the mounting jig into a position as shown in Fig. 2.1. Put the platter upside down onto a level surface and stretch the rubber belt around the integrated sub-platter (Fig. 2.2). Hook the stems of the mounting jig into belt and carefully pull to the inner rim of the platter. Fix belt and jig at the rim as shown in Fig. 2.3. Fig. 2.1 Fig. 2.2 Fig. 2.3 Fig. 2.4 Avoid any oil or greasy substance to get onto the belt and the transmission area of sub-platter and motor pulley. If necessary you may clean them with a lint-free tissue lightly soaked in an alcoholic dilution (e.g. ethanol). Now turn platter back again and put it carefully onto the bearing axle. Position platter in a way that the area between belt and inner platter rim as formed by the mounting jig is to come exactly over the motor pulley (Fig. 2.4). The platter has been correctly positioned if it can be moved to the left or right by only a few degrees.

The stems of the mounting jig are now to be turned inwards, one after the other (Fig. 3.1), whereupon the belt will be freed and loop itself around the motor pulley. Remove the mounting jig as shown in Fig. 3.2. Turn the platter manually clock-wise several times in order to make sure that the belt fits snugly around sub-platter and pulley. Place the dedicated rubber-polymer mat onto platter (Fig. 3.3). The two pieces are to compensate vinyl records of different thickness without having to alter tonearm height (VTA; see page 31). Fig. 3.1 Fig. 3.2 If your TD 160 HD has been delivered without tonearm you may now proceed to mount and align the tonearm of your choice according to the instructions supplied by its manufacturer. Otherwise the mounting of your TD 160 HD is complete and can now be set up and connected. IMPORTANT: it is highly recommended to save the shipping box and all packing material in case your record player needs to be packed again for transportation. Thorens cannot be held responsible for any damage that may occur during transport owing to the record player not been properly packed Fig. 3.3

Set up and Connections Place the record player onto a stable foundation and after the final position has been achieved make sure that the plinth is fairly level. For any fine-adjustments turn the tip of each foot up or down until the plinth is in a perfect horizontal position. This procedure is best controlled (and to be corrected if necessary) with the help of the supplied spirit level. Take the RCA interconnect leads and plug them into the designated (phono) input jacks at the rear panel of your amplifier or receiver. Make sure that polarity (left/right channel!) is correct. HINT: if your amplifier lacks an integrated phono stage you need to acquire a special external phono-preamplifier. For amplifiers/receivers featuring a 5-pin DIN-socket at the phono input section you will need a special adaptor (RCA to DIN) which can be requested from your Thorens dealer.

While placing the record player onto its final position make sure that it is a fair distance away from other audio devices (such as amplifier, receiver or CD player). This measure is to avoid electro-magnetic interferences which can yield a distorting effect in the sensitive pickup cartridge which may be audible as hum during playback. Electro-magnetic interferences however can be disclosed and eliminated by simply changing the position of the record player with respect to the other audio components. Thorens record players are relatively insensitive when subject to foot-fall shocks or airborne vibrations. Nevertheless, a general problem remains when it comes to playing back vinyl records with a high-quality pickup cartridge. It is therefore highly recommended to choose a sturdy piece of furniture or a rack for placement whereby any close proximity of the record player to the loudspeakers is to be avoided. Under certain circumstances all these precautions may not be good enough in older houses with wooden floor construction. Here, in most cases a solid shelf firmly mounted to a supporting wall can be very beneficial for the sonic properties of the record player if it is placed on such a shelf or console.

Mounting the Pickup Cartridge You can now mount and adjust your pickup cartridge according to the instructions provided with the pickup. Proceed with making all necessary alignments. In the following you‘ll find some comprehensive instructions concerning the correct mounting of Thorens tonearms, which may accordingly be used for mounting foreign tonearms as well. However, if in doubt you should in any case resort to the original instructions provided by the manufacturer of the tonearm. Special hints concerning the configuration of the Thorens tonearms TP 250 / TP 300 are to be found on page 33/34 of this manual. Thorens tonearms will accept any pickup cartridge with standard fixing hole distance of 12.5 mm (1/2”). Carefully and with the help of tweezers, the four colourcoded fine litz wires coming from the tonearm‘s headshell are attached to the respective pins with identical colour at the rear side of the cartridge.

right channel, red (signal) right channel, green (ground) left channel, white (signal) left channel, blue (ground) HINT: if you happen to have acquired this record player as a complete system, i.e. with tonearm and pickup, there are no adjustments necessary because everything has already been carried out for you in the Thorens factory. Only tracking force needs to be adjusted. For the time being do not tighten the headshell screws. One should be able to slide the cartridge smoothly back and forth along the headshell slots. Fine-adjusting and fixing the cartridge is done after having determined the final tone arm height. Mount the pickup cartridge to the slots in the tonearm’s headshell. While doing this initial work it is recommended to leave – if possible – the stylus guard attached to the cartridge in order to avoid that the delicate stylus and cantilever are damaged while mounting the cartridge. HINT: if pickups from Grado are going to be employed it is recommended to fix the cartridge with the screws „upside down“. This means that the screws are inserted from underneath through the cartridge holes and the headshell slots.

Adjusting Tonearm Height Carefully detach the stylus guard from pickup and put (an old) record onto the platter. After that lower the tonearm by the lift lever. The tonearm tube should then be parallel to the record (to be viewed from the side). If this is not the case the so-called Vertical Tracking Angle (VTA) needs to be adjusted by the tonearm height. However the special clamp mechanism (Fig. 4) provided allows to individually adjust VTA according to the size of the mounted pickup. Fig. 4 The counterweight is attached to the rear end of the tonearm by some slight pressure and a clockwise rotation towards the tonearm’s bearings (Fig. 4). This adjustment is made by loosening the screw of the clamp mechanism and carefully sliding the tonearm slightly up or down. If necessary repeat this procedure until the tonearm tube is fully parallel to the record. After the position for a correct VTA has been found, do not forget to tighten the clamp screw again. Adjustment of tracking force: see page 33/34. ATTENTION: great care is necessary for the following mounting and adjustment procedures, because the slightest mistake may damage stylus and cantilever.

Alignment of Pickup Cartridge Only a painstakingly aligned pickup is able to compliment the outstanding sonic capabilities and potential of this record player. If you consider the alignment too difficult to be carried out by yourself, do not hesitate to ask your Thorens dealer for a helping hand. ATTENTION: when aligning the cartridge great care is once again obligatory in order to avoid that the delicate stylus or sensitive parts of the tonearm are being damaged. If you are a newcomer without any experience it is better to leave this work to an expert who knows the specific characteristics of most pickups and tonearms. A badly aligned pickup will be well on the way to yield bad sound and to damage your precious records! Azimut: is the angle between cantilever/stylus interface and record groove. It should be exactly 90° (excluding those cartridges in which the cantilever has purposely been installed with a slight offset). Azimuth cannot be adjusted on the TP 250 / TP 300. It is therefore most important that a pickup with precise azimuth is going to be

Offset: is the angle between the longitudinal axis of the pickup and the tonearm‘s longitudinal axis. In all pivoted tonearms (like the TP 250 / TP 300) the optimum value is to be found between 21° and 24°. Dedicated pickup alignment gauges required for this adjustment work are available from your Thorens dealer. Overhang: is the distance between the stylus tip and the centre of the platter spindle. For the TP 250 / TP 300 overhang should be 17 mm. Special pickup alignment gauges required for this adjustment are available from your Thorens dealer. Tonearm TP 250 Adjusting the tonearm lift: this has already been adjusted in the factory and can be considered suitable for nearly all pickups in the market. However if the lift needs to be re-adjusted to fit a very special cartridge, please do not hesitate to ask your Thorens dealer for help. Anti-skating force (bias): this is adjusted by shifting the button on the tonearm‘s lift bench (2). It is recommended to set the anti-skating force slight below the value of the tracking force. Adjustment of tracking force: make sure to inquire the recommended tracking force for your pickup from either the cartridge manufacturer or by consulting the mounting instructions supplied with the pickup. Tracking force is usually adjusted between 10 and 25 mN (corresponding to 1.0 and 2.5 grams). First lower the lift lever and move the tonearm to a position in between its rest and the outer rim of the platter. Tonearm TP 250

Then balance the tonearm by rotating the counterweight (clockwise or counter-clockwise) until equilibrium has been achieved. HINT: anti-skating force (bias) must in any case be set to “0”. Now you can apply tracking force by rotating the counterweight (3) according to the following scheme: a half turn of the counterweight corresponds to a tracking force of 10 mN (1.0 g) whereas a full turn corresponds to a force of 20 mN (2.0 g). Turning the counter-weight towards the bearings will increase tracking force, whilst turning it into the opposite direction will decrease tracking force. The green dot on the counter-weight is to measure the turns. Make sure the tonearm is kept in its armrest before making these adjustments.

tonearm lift lever tonearm bench counterweight

Tonearm TP 300 Adjusting the tonearm lift: this has already been adjusted in the factory and can be considered suitable for nearly all pickups in the market. However if the lift needs to be re-adjusted to fit a very special cartridge, please do not hesitate to ask your Thorens dealer for help. Anti-skating force (bias): this is adjusted by shifting the button on the tonearm‘s lift bench (2). It is recommended to set the anti-skating force slight below the value of the tracking force. Adjustment of tracking force: make sure to inquire the recommended tracking force for your pickup from either the cartridge manufacturer or by consulting the mounting instructions supplied with the pickup. Tracking force is usually adjusted between 10 and 25 mN (corresponding to 1.0 and 2.5 grams). Tonearm TP 300

tonearm lift lever tonearm bench counterweight anti-skating dial knob First lower the lift lever and move the tonearm to a position in between its rest and the outer rim of the platter. Then balance the tonearm by rotating the counterweight (clockwise or counter-clockwise) until equilibrium has been achieved. HINT: anti-skating force (bias) must in any case be set to “0”. Tracking force is applied by a spring inside the bearing assembly. You can adjust the tracking force by turning the dial knob (4) at the bearing assembly. Make sure the tonearm is kept in its armrest before making these adjustments.

Operation The lever switch on the left next to the platter is the speed selector. There are two speeds available: 33 rpm for longplaying records and 45 rpm for singles. If the lever is in middle position (as shown in Fig. 6), the record player is switched off. For playing a record the turntable is first started with the desired speed. Then lift the tonearm by slowly pushing the lift lever up. Release the tonearm from its rest and position it above the lead-in groove or above the desired piece/ track to be played. Slowly bring the lift lever into the downposition whereupon the tonearm is smoothly descending onto the record. ATTENTION: please do not attempt to accelerate the descending movement of the tonearm by applying force with your finger tip, because this will inevitably damage both stylus and record. Fig. 6 This record player does not feature an automatic end-ofrecord shut-off facility. Therefore, as soon as the stylus has reached the lead-out groove, the tonearm is to be lifted up manually by the lever and the motor switched off.

Maintenance and Care Your record player needs no particular maintenance. From time to time however you may add five to eight drops of the bearing oil in order to enhance lubrication (see also page 25). If over the time dust has collected on the plinth or dust cover you can wipe it off with a soft, moistened cloth. HINT: a moistened cleaning tissue for glasses will do a good job here. Refrain from using a dry cloth for cleaning because this will in any case generate undesired electrostatic charges. The Thorens precision belt should be exchanged at least every other year. If the record player is not in use for a longer time, it is advisable to remove the belt in order to prevent a premature ageing under tension.

Technical Specifications Model TD 160 HD Function Drive system Motor Speed Speed change Platter Tonearm Anti-skating (bias) Automatic shut-off Capacity of RCA leads Voltage/Power supply manual operation belt drive (internally via integrated sub-platter) electronically controlled AC synchronous motor 33 and 45 rpm electronically Acryl platter 300 mm (12“), 2.0 kg Thorens TP 250 / TP 300 (standard) by magnet (in TP 250 / TP 300) n/a 120 pF external mains adaptor

430 x 175 x 340 mm (W x H x D)

Dimensions (WxHxD) Weight Technical specifications subject to change. Handmade in Germany.

Service Information Your Thorens dealer or distribution partner shall be pleased to assist you in the event that you have any further queries or need additional information concerning Thorens products. You may contact Thorens also directly: Thorens Export Company Ltd. Im Huebel 1, CH-4304 Giebenbach, Switzerland www.thorens.com / info@thorens.com In case of warranty claims you are kindly requested to first contact your Thorens dealer or distribution partner! Further information may be obtained from: www.thorens.com