VPI Prime User manual

VPI Prime
Turntable Manual
Setup and Instruction Manual
VPI Industries, Inc., 77 Cliffwood Ave. #3B, Cliffwood, NJ 07721
http://www.vpiindustries.com

Prime Turntable Packing List
Serial #:________________
Prime Chassis
Stainless Steel/Delrin Clamp
Azimuth Rod
Gauge
Motor
Instruction Manual
Flash Drive
Drive Belt
Power Cord (110V Only)
Alignment Jig
Platter
3D Tonearm
Isolation Feet
Date: ______
Final Check by: ________________________

Important: Read Before Proceeding!
Read and follow the

Safety Instructions below.
Save all packing materials. The Prime should only be moved or shipped in its
original packaging to reduce the risk of damage in transit.
The Prime must be placed on a flat, level surface. This will make setup easy,
provide better sound quality, and put less strain on the main bearing.
Safety Instructions
Follow the instructions below to reduce risk of electrical
hazard or injury.
To avoid electrical shock, do not open the motor housing.
If the power cord provided with the Prime does not reach an outlet, use a heavy-
duty, grounded extension cord.
To avoid electrical shock, always plug the Prime into a grounded outlet.
Do not expose the Prime to rain or excessive moisture.
Do not touch the male pivot point of the tonearm
assembly. It is extremely sharp and will puncture
your skin.
Minimum Specifications
Wow and flutter: >.1%
Rumble: >85db down
Speed Accuracy: >.03%
Total shipping weight 54 pounds.
Platter run out +/- .001 inch.

1
Unpacking the Box
The turntable and tonearm are packed very carefully to avoid damage during shipping. It is
important that you save the packing materials and box to use for shipping or moving the Prime.
Carefully remove the tonearm watching for the built in 3D printed tonearm finger-lift and
delicate wiring with Lemo connector
Remove and set aside these items:
Alignment Jig.
Record clamp.
Power cord.
Stylus force gauge
Tools
Prime bottom feet
Make space for the Prime and remove the chassis from the box. Put the chassis down on a
solid surface that will not be marred by the pointed Delrin feet. If possible have a second
person handy to put the foot supports beneath the cone feet. If not lift up each corner
separately and place the Prime cones into foot bottoms with the three ball bearings facing the
shelf the table sits on.
The warranty does not take effect until the warranty
card is returned on line as given at the end of the
manual.
Remove the Prime motor and place it in the Prime cutout to the left. Be very careful not to hit
or damage the motor pulley. It measured +/- .0005” when it was tested at the factory. Try
not to disturb it at all.
Remove the turntable platter and peel the tape of the bearing hole. Carefully lower the
platter on to the Prime spindle, (there may be a red cap on the spindle –remove it). The
platter is lubed with PTFE grease and needs nothing for at least two years.
Setting up the Prime
The Prime must be placed on a flat, level surface. This will make setup easy, provide better sound
quality, and put less strain on the main bearing.
Place the turntable chassis, with the motor cutout on the left, on the shelf or stand where it
will be used. The better isolation you provide the Prime, the better it will sound. We highly
recommend a 1 to 3 inch thick maple shelf sitting on rubber isolator feet for this purpose.
Connect the power cord to the motor, put the belt around the motor pulley and platter, spin
the platter by hand and the belt will self-level.

2
For 33 RPM operation, place the belt on the upper part of the pulley. For 45 RPM operation,
place the belt on the lower, wider part of the pulley. The center groove in each diameter is the
correct speed. The VPI Synchronous Drive System (SDS) speed controller is an accessory that
provides the ultimate speed accuracy and improved sound. Check with your dealer about
availability.
Verify the turntable is level by using a 9 or 12-inch bubble level front-to-back and side-to-side
on the platter. If it is not level, rotate the cone feet up or down. If you must turn the Prime
feet more than three full turns, level the shelf or platform the table sits on first.
The Prime comes with 4 isolation platforms for additional stability. These platforms can be
used on any “tip-toe” type feet but are especially efficient for the Prime. The base has been
made to provide additional stability and focus in your musical experience! Besides being used
as the standard base on the VPI Prime, they are also an easy upgrade for the VPI Scout
turntable!
Top
Bottom
Installing and Aligning the Cartridge
Remove the protective cover from the male pivot point on the arm base assembly.
To avoid injury, do not touch the male pivot point. It
is extremely sharp. In addition, skin oils can blemish
and cause corrosion to the assembly.
For cartridges with threaded mounting holes, use the screws supplied by the cartridge
manufacturer. Other screws may not fit properly and may cause damage to the threads and
cartridge.
To avoid damage to the 3D tonearm, use one of the washers supplied by VPI under the screw
heads and do not tighten the screws too tight.
For cartridges with pass-through mounting holes, use the hardware supplied with the
tonearm. Be sure to use washers under the screw heads.
The tonearm wires are color-coded as follows:
Red right hot
Green right ground
White or Black left hot
Blue left ground.

3
If your phono section inverts phase, the hot color becomes the ground color.
Using tweezers or fine-tipped pliers, grip the center of the red wire’s connector not the wire
itself and push it onto the cartridge’s right hot terminal pin. Connect the remaining
connectors in the same way. To avoid damage to the cartridge, do not push the connectors all
the way on.
Place the Alignment Jig on the spindle with the V-groove against the base of the male bearing
shaft. Tighten the screws of the jig so it fits snugly against the male bearing shaft and over
the record spindle.
Place the arm tube assembly on the male pivot point, using caution with the 4-color wire and
Lemo connector. Set the arm in its rest. If the cartridge has a guard, remove it.
MAKE SURE THE MALE POINT IS IN THE CENTER OF THE FEMALE CUP, IT SHOULD FEEL SOLID
BUT YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO SLIDE IT SIDEWAYS AND THE ARM RAISES AS YOU GO FROM
THE CENTER TO THE SIDES OF THE FEMALE BEARING. IT IS AN INVERTED CONE.
FEMALE BEARING
Use the arm rest all the time when not playing a record!!

4
Line up the red dot on the Lemo connector with the red dot on the receptacle on the junction
box. The Lemo connector can plug in only one way and should not be forced.
Swing the tonearm over the jig so the stylus is as close as possible to the dot in the center of
the grid. Set the counterweight for enough downward force to keep the stylus from moving
when resting on the jig.
Look down at the cartridge and align it between the lines of the grid. You should have the
diamond stylus on the white dot and the cantilever lined up with the lines on the grid. Use a
flashlight to look from the front and line up the cantilever with the grid lines. That is the only
alignment that matters, the cantilever lined up with the white lines and the diamond on the
white dot. The angle of the cartridge is irrelevant.
Adjust the cartridge mounting screws and the counterweight as needed until the cartridge is
centered between the grid lines and the stylus is resting on the dot of the grid. The picture
below shows the setup, the jig is in white for clarity, yours is black.

5
When the cartridge is properly positioned, tighten the cartridge mounting screws and remove
the alignment jig. Do not make them overly tight, the 3D arm is self-damping and you can
damage the surface by over tightening.
VIEW OF CONICAL AND LINE CONTACT STYLI AND WHY ALIGNMENT MATTERS MORE WITH THE
LINE CONTACT.
CONICAL LINE CONTACT

6
Setting the Tracking Force and Tonearm Height
Tracking force is adjusted by moving the tonearm counterweight forward and back on its shaft. If
your cartridge is overly heavy and the counterweight is all the way back, you can order a heavier
weight from your dealer. Half way back is fine as is the middle third of the stub.
The JMW Tonearm does not have a built-in tracking force gauge but we have supplied you with a
quality digital tracking force gauge if we did not mount a cartridge for you.
Place the gauge on the platter (no record).
Loosen the two black thumb screws in the base of the tonearm and raise the arm so it
looks parallel to the platter when it is on the stylus force gauge. When the arm is at the
desired height, lightly tighten the thumbscrews.
If you do not make the arm parallel when doing this you will be between .2 to .4 grams
light or heavy when you are on the record. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!!
Set the tracking force according to the cartridge manufacturer’s recommendation. We
recommend always going to the high side of tracking force. High frequency vibrations on a
light-tracking cartridge can cause more damage to the grooves of a record than running a
cartridge at a heavy setting. We usually recommend .1 gram higher than the max
tracking force if you are not using anti-skate (recommended way of setting). This does
not apply to Lyra cartridges that sound best at 1.73 to 1.76 grams tracking force with or
without anti-skate.
Put a record on the platter and using the VTA tower lower the arm so it is parallel to the
record. Now you will be tracking at the force you set and not a lighter force.

7
Setting the Azimuth
Using the supplied aluminum rod or a fireplace match or coffee stirrer (something light and
about 6” long) place one of them into the groove behind the mounting screws on the
tonearm headshell.
If it is not level loosen the thumbscrew on the drop counterweight and rotate the
counterweight around the shaft until the headshell is parallel to the record. Be careful not
to change the tracking force setting.
With the new 3D arm on the Prime you can also rotate the side weights for even finer
azimuth adjustment, this lets you leave the tracking force as set. You want the rod to be
parallel to the record.