How much does record eccentricity matter?

[Angsty]

I put on a record today and was surprised by how much the tonearm moved from side to side the record spun. I enjoyed the record anyway!

I know that Nakamichi created a couple of classic decks in the Eighties to address this issue, but no manufacturer has really seemed to take on this mantle since. How much does one actually hear spindle hole eccentricity in records?

 

[kvetcha]

I put on a record today and was surprised by how much the tonearm moved from side to side the record spun. I enjoyed the record anyway!

I know that Nakamichi created a couple of classic decks in the Eighties to address this issue, but no manufacturer has really seemed to take on this mantle since. How much does one actually hear spindle hole eccentricity in records?

I assume it can cause channel imbalance but I think it has to be pretty bad before it’s easily noticeable.

 

[Russ I]

I put on a record today and was surprised by how much the tonearm moved from side to side the record spun. I enjoyed the record anyway!

I know that Nakamichi created a couple of classic decks in the Eighties to address this issue, but no manufacturer has really seemed to take on this mantle since. How much does one actually hear spindle hole eccentricity in records?

If it’s at all significant, I usually can hear it and it drives me crazy. Usually gets worse as the arm moves closer to the runout, and is most noticeable on sustained notes, whether instrumental or vocal.

 

[tvham]

If it’s at all significant, I usually can hear it and it drives me crazy. Usually gets worse as the arm moves closer to the runout, and is most noticeable on sustained notes, whether instrumental or vocal.

Does the swaying cause damage to the stylus? I just swapped out my stylus and took care to rebalance my tone arm correctly and am noticing a lot less swaying - curious if the swaying caused damage to my previous stylish

 

[zombie.modernist]

IMO Nakamichi was on the right track, with warps and cleaning largely under control eccentricity is probably the biggest impedance to proper playback of a pressed record. Still in real life scenarios I think it’s completely down to individual sensitivity, so probably hard to quantify. Some seem to be keenly aware of any and all pitch variations and are quite irritated by them.

Personally I have a poor sense of pitch so I will sometimes let it slide. Just depends how much the music relies on the parts that are audibly effected.

 

[mcherry]

I had one once where it was so bad, I could literally hear the sound pitch back and forth between channels. Got a replacement that wasn’t so bad

 

[hahahaha_totally]

Sometimes the only option is to use a round file to open the spindle hole in the correct direction and mark the labels so you can remember how to align each side before playing. Difficult and risky, must be done very slowly, but it works. Or in the case of 7" play without the adapter and position it by hand to center the grooves.

To me the warble effect of off-center grooves is more apparent on 45rpm records regardless of disc size, and the total weight of your tonearm and cartridge would be a factor as well, more mass = more momentum when swaying side-to-side following the groove = more warble.

 

[Angsty]

I had one once where it was so bad, I could literally hear the sound pitch back and forth between channels. Got a replacement that wasn’t so bad

Honestly, if I found a pressing that was that bad on eccentricity, I'd just go find a CD versus a replacement vinyl. Trading one anachronism for another.