Do you think being charged 80.00 for correctly balancing a TT counterweight/tracking

johnnyboy70

Active Member
I'm getting a Music Hall MMF 5.1 SE Turntable soon. I've been emailing the shops in my area if they could help fine tune my TT so I could spin some records this weekend. I asked a shop if they could help out with balancing the counterweight and help with the tracking as that seems to be the hard part. I'm no novice but I thought being quoted 80.00 was a bit steep. Does anyone else think that's out of line? I thought about getting a stylus force scale myself and doing it. I don't believe it would be that difficult. Feel free to move this to dollars and sense if I'm posting in the wrong section. The other shop never got back to me but I don't think I want the hassle. When I lived in Minneapolis the guys at Needle Doctor would do it in a heartbeat no charge.
 
Get the tools and do it yourself. This is something that should be checked from time to time and being able to complete the task yourself is well worth it.
 
Considering that this is all fairly easy, if you're completely unfamiliar with the procedures, then you ARE a novice. Fortunately, there are some good instructions on various websites and YouTube.
 
I'd think it is out of line. If your not a novice, and have access to the manual, it's very easy. I all should have a stylus force gauge in our tool boxes. I'm sure AK'ers with your TT will chime.
 
Thanks for all your responses, much appreciated. I guess you could say I'm pretty hands off when it comes to the technical side of the TT's. I was able to balance my Project Debut 3 without too much of an issue. This is my first higher priced purchase so I thought I'd make sure everything was spot on from the beginning. Think I'll go ahead and purchase that scale
 
You can never guarantee that the person at the shop is going to do it right. You also can't guarantee that if they did all the adjustments perfectly, that it's not all going to come undone again during the car ride home.

You should learn to do it yourself and do it in the spot where the TT will stay. It's easy--not nearly as complicated as some of the more fastidious types can make it sound--if your turntable is in fine fettle, that is.

I was intimidated at first. Now, I've set up about thirty carts in different head shells and I switch them out all the time. Enjoy your hobby by mastering the arts involved!

And, yes, I think $80.00 is ridiculously high. At an average of $40 an hour labor charge, someone is telling you that it's fair to charge two hours for a job that a pro should be able to do in less than fifteen minutes.


well said. thank you, going to give it a go
 
yes

Hey johnny
Yeah I d think if they want to cultivate a new customer by stearing you the right way .
You might go to YouTube look up adjusting turntable. Look for the one Robert Arco posted. 27 minutes. It get you squared away. Eric
 
I took my TT to our shop and he couldn't believe my tracking was set to 15 grams~! He did it for free, his store just closed to though, nice guy. Still $80 seems like highway robbery.

It's very easy to do, I got a cheap scale for less than $10 and now I can nerd out and check the tracking weight whenever I want.
 
http://musichallaudio.com/pdfs/music-hall-mmf-5.1se-turntable-manual.pdf

That is the manual for the mmf 5.1 SE. A very nice table. I see they have changed the cart that is installed. Mojo, made by Ortofon. I have always liked Ortofon cartridges. My mmf has a Goldring 1042 cartridge. It was supposed to come with a 1021 but showed up with a 'free upgrade'.

Anyway, read over the manual, while you await your new table. If you have any questions, maybe we can answer them before you go 'hands-on'.
 
If 80 bucks i s the bench fee, the amount charged to look at something to give an estimate, then that is the charge to put anything on the bench and for your work that will cover all the time necessary to do the job. So no real problem with that charge but you want to find somewhere else to have that done.

I just looked at the OM for the 5.1 and all that YOU need to have done at the shop is described as USER adjustments. Look over the OM and see what it calls out as extra parts you need, like a spirit level to see if the table is level. The arm counterweight is calibrated so you don't even need a scale to measure the tracking force.

This is really easy stuff since the cartridge is already mounted. If you get the table level the rest is not hard to do.
 
The question is, do you feel able to do this???

So many folks try to do this but end up with a poor sounding mess.
$80 for a tune-up? not out of range. Figure $30 to $40 / hr. for the job and it may sound reasonable. Of course checking may require a test LP along with a decent scope.

Sounds cheaper all the time.

And if they find an unknown problem expect that to be repaired/adjusted prior to final tune-up.

Paul
 
Definitely learn to do this yourself.

What if you decide to change carts down the line? What if you simply want to verify that you are REALLY running at 1.7 grams of tracking force?

Watch the video, pick up a scale on the auction site for about $9, and enjoy being able to do it yourself.
 
I wouldn't pay that much but that's just me. I'd do it myself. Not hard at all really. You can learn it easily, the net is full of tutorials and the tools are inexpensive.
 
I hope that none of those who respond that $80.00 is highway robbery aren't folks who think nothing of dropping $500+ for one meter cables.

My plumber charges $90.00/hr. I read people fussing about how fiddly and time consuming setup can be. You have to pay the technician, plus all the costs of keeping a brick and mortar store open for you to bring your equipment for repair.

If someone isn't knowledgeable or comfortable doing the setup and if the technician does a cracker jack job and if the customer gets to hear the turntable/cartridge perform at their best, $80 sounds like a sound investment.
 
I'm getting the Music Hall cork mat as well. Should i measure the tracking force with the mat on the table?

Cork mat sits on the platter ? VTF "Tracking Force" is the 'weight' of the tonearm ?

Sorry, I don't see the connection.

Maybe someone can inform us both if there is one.
 
Cork mat sits on the platter ? VTF "Tracking Force" is the 'weight' of the tonearm ?

Sorry, I don't see the connection.

Maybe someone can inform us both if there is one.

some arms.......those of the "static balance" types.... read differently than when arm is level. Setting a scale on the platter mat, and then setting the stylus on that will be usually above normal riding height of the stylus, and the measured downforce will be different when playing an album.
 
With my TT, there is a substancial difference in VTF when the arm is not level. I shim my scale up to the exact height of the record (with arm level) between the arm rest and platter.

Like many here, these 'set-up' adjustments should be done by the owners. Some research about alignment is needed, but certainly nothing hard to do.
 
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