Norman Nicolai Posted October 25, 2023 Report Share Posted October 25, 2023 Just finished an AR-Xa turntable modification and restoration. I used the Steve Frosten roadmap for all the changes. Steve was extremely helpful throughout the whole process, which I have been working on (actually working off and on) for over a year. Without Steve's help this would not have happened. Upgrades included the following: Refinished and extended wooden base Repainted metal plinth Replacement jewel bearings Technics replacement tonearm for universal cartridge mount Replacement Litz tonearm wire Replacement Hurst motor External RCA jacks New AC power inlet New dust cover Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted October 25, 2023 Report Share Posted October 25, 2023 Beautiful! I keep meaning to refurbish my XA (bought new in 1970). Gotta get a round tuit. Steve is indeed a good guy. I bought one of his modified tonearms, like yours, but maybe I should just drive down to the New Brunswick area and drop off my TT for him to work his magic on it. I've seen those replacement plexiglass covers before but never with the engraved AR logo. Very cool! What cartridge are you using? Enjoy the music! As Carl used to say, that's what it's all about. Kent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Norman Nicolai Posted October 25, 2023 Author Report Share Posted October 25, 2023 3 hours ago, JKent said: Beautiful! I keep meaning to refurbish my XA (bought new in 1970). Gotta get a round tuit. Steve is indeed a good guy. I bought one of his modified tonearms, like yours, but maybe I should just drive down to the New Brunswick area and drop off my TT for him to work his magic on it. I've seen those replacement plexiglass covers before but never with the engraved AR logo. Very cool! What cartridge are you using? Enjoy the music! As Carl used to say, that's what it's all about. Kent Steve does indeed do great work. If you used him to update your Xa he would probably do all of the mods I did, and more. Steve usually lines the tonearm with a silicon sleeve to reduce the possibility of any resonant frequencies, but I was unable to do that using the Litz wiring. If your tonearm was replaced by Steve, you probably already have that specific mod. I’m going to experiment with different carts on the new Xa to find the one that works best. The original Xa’s were frequently paired with Shure M91E’s. I used that as the first cart on my new updated Xa, but my vintage Shure cart has a replacement stylus of dubious quality. I’ve used a Shure M97xE on an Xa that Steve Frosten updated a few years ago to very good effect. I only have one M97xE, even though it’s my favorite cart. Prices on that cart have gone up 10x’s from what I originally paid 8-10 years ago. Unfortunately, Shure is no longer in the cartridge business and prices on their products are only going to go even up further, so don’t see another M97xE in my immediate future. I may try an old Shure V15 Type II with a JICO stylus as my next option. And yes, enjoy the music! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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