Brand New Replacement Belt for Technics SL-B1, B2, B3 and B5 Welcome to Atlanta Pro Sound Brand New Replacement Belt for Technics models SL-B1, SL-B1A, SL-B2, SL-B2A, SL-B3, SL-B3A, SL-B5 and SL-B5A. This is a relisting of a popular eBay item, not a new listing. This item was listed as eBay Item #181573967127. I sold 39 of them, I have 39 very happy customers! Then, the listing mysteriously disappeared. Here is a pic of the old listing: •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Available as Buy it Now one (1) brand new replacement belt for Technics turntable, models SL-B1, SL-B1A, SL-B2, SL-B2A, SL-B3, SL-B3A, SL-B5 and SL-B5A. Please be sure to compare shipping prices!!! Do not get tricked into spending almost $6.00 for delivery! There is a myth that one belt fits 95% of all turntables. In reality, nothing is further from the truth. A belt that is an inch too large or small will probably run on your turntable, but if it is too small, it will wear out your motor years before it would under normal conditions. If it is too large, it might also be bad for the motor, but as belts get older, they expand, so in the best case, you need a replacement years before you should. There are people online who have been selling belts for 5-10 years. Many have lots of feedback or websites that “look” like they know what they are doing. Do they really know what belt is the match for your turntable? Technics quit giving technical support on the models S-LB3 and S-LB5 (including part numbers) about a decade and a half ago. When the models SLB3 and SLB5 rolled off the assembly line, I was Assistant Store Manager for the largest independent Technics dealer in the Southeastern US. Read the Seller History below for more information. (In case you are wondering…I enter the model with the dash in different positions so those who search for the model can find it regardless of if they have the dash in the right place!) 5 Belt Measurements All flat rubber belts have 5 measurements that affect the belt’s performance. Length is the one most people think of right away. Length affects how tight the belt is. If it is too tight, the motor will not run (or if it is just a little too tight, the motor will wear out quickly). Width is one you might not think is important, however, the manufacturers specify this one down to the 64th of an inch! If the belt is too wide, the risk is the belt will hit the outsides of the capstan, which will create momentary bumps in the speed. If the belt is too narrow, it does not have enough contact with the capstan, causing it to slip. Either of these problems may be inaudible at first, but later? Who knows? Thickness of the belt is the smallest of the measurements. Most Turntable belts are close to the same thickness, but your parts provider who has only a decade of experience might buy their belts based on length and their cost alone. You could get a belt that they bought wholesale at 99 cents but is way too thick! A belt that is too thick will not fully fold around the capstan, causing more pitch problems. If you call to complain, you are told that your turntable has natural Wow and Flutter. Friends: These models’ Wow and Flutter is eight (8) times below the audible limit (Sources: Julian Hirsch – Hirsch-Houck Labs and the Technics models SL-B3, SL-B3A, SL-B5 and SL-B5A Service Manuals). Don’t let them pull the wool over your eyes! If you hear wow and flutter (a.k.a. bad speed fluctuation), you might just have the wrong size belt! External Diameter. This one is a no-brainer, it is closely related to the thickness and internal diameter. Internal Diameter. Like #4, this one is also a no-brainer, it is closely related to the thickness and external diameter. Many old-style belts were cut to size. Modern (get it out the door as fast as you can) cutting techniques can lead to inconsistencies and inferior product. This belt is not cut, it is precision molded to meet original factory specifications for the following Technics turntables: SL-B1 SL-B2 SL-B3 SL-B5 SL-B1A SL-B2A SL-B3A SL-B5A SLB1 SLB2 SLB3 SLB5 SLB1A SLB2A SLB3A and SLB5A The belt you are about to receive was recently manufactured by the same company that made the first belts for the Technics models SL-B1, SL-B1A, SL-B2, SL-B2A, SL-B3, SL-B3A, SL-B5 and SL-B5A. My distributor, Artistic Audio of Atlanta, buys thousands of belts and has been sending them all over the world for many years. Every few of weeks Artistic Audio of Atlanta reorders belts buy the hundred, replacing the stock they have sold. No belt is on their shelf more than a few weeks. Because they come into the distributor regularly, I can personally guarantee that the belt you get is fresh! About these models:The SL-B3 is a fully automatic belt drive turntable. It has a clear plastic dust cover. There is a pitch control, a Start/Stop switch and a cue mechanism to raise and lower the arm. To play a record, press the Start/Stop button so the platter will rotate, the turntable will raise the arm with the cue, place it over the record, lower the arm with the cue automatically. If you want to stop before the end of the record, hit the Start/Stop button to put the turntable in auto-stop. The SL-B3A is the same as the SL-B3 except that Technics put a cartridge in the box before it went to the dealer. I stock replacement styluses for both models of cartridges that were used through the years that this model was available. If you need a stylus, please click on the Ask Seller a Question link on this page. The SL-B5 is a fully automatic belt drive turntable and record changer. It has a clear plastic dust cover. There is a pitch control, a Start/Stop switch and a cue mechanism to raise and lower the arm. To play a record, press the Start/Stop button so the platter will rotate, the turntable will raise the arm with the cue, place it over the record, lower the arm with the cue automatically. If you want to stop before the end of the record, hit the Start/Stop button to put the turntable in auto-stop. To use this model as a record changer you will need the multi-play spindle (about 4” silver cylinder with three oddly retracting prongs) and several records. Take off the single play spindle and replace it with the multi-play. Push the multi-play spindle in as far as it will go and rotate it clockwise. The SL-B5A is the same as the SL-B5 except that Technics put a cartridge in the box before it went to the dealer. I stock replacement styluses for both models of cartridges that were used through the years that this model was available. If you need a stylus, please click on the Ask Seller a Question link on this page. On the rear left corner of the turntable, there is a raised circle about 1/8” in diameter. This is where you keep your 45 RPM adapter to play your 7-inch vinyl. If you need a 45 RPM Adapter, click on “Ask Seller a Question” below where it says “atlantaprosound” on the top right side of this offer. Are you about to purchase one of these models? The motor and drive system are built like a tank. Seeing it run may be your least concern. Here is what I check before buying: It should have a headshell and cartridge. The headshell screws into the tone arm. To remove it, turn the silver “cuff” on the end of the tonearm COUNTER-CLOCKWISE. It feels like that is backwards, but its how things work! Once you have the headshell off of the tonearm, check to see that there are four wires (they should be Red, White, Blue, and Green) coming from the back of the head shell and going to the cartridge. If you need a headshell, I should get them online soon, click on “Ask Seller a Question”. The cartridge should have a stylus. Styluses are “needles” that have the piece that touches the grove and plays the record. Look at the stylus. Does it have a piece of metal that lowers to the record, and is there a tip on the end of it? There are too many kinds of styluses to list them all on eBay. I have about 2,000 in stock, I probably have the one you need. If you need a stylus, click on “Ask Seller a Question” to send me a message. This one is really simple, but important. Check to see that there is a counter balance on the back end of the tone arm. These are not generic and “one size does not fit all”, if fact, if you do not have one, you will need to find someone selling one of these models for parts, or find someone who has bought one and is selling parts. You should spend no more than $10 on one, but finding one will be the trick! The last one is really easy to check as well. There is a black plastic bar in front of the place where the tonearm pivots. That is the arm lifter. It should move up and down when you change the position of the “cue” switch (front right) You may have heard someone say that the sound of vinyl sounds better than CDs. “How can this be?” you may wonder…the CDs do not have that scratchy sound. It is a matter of detail, really. You can prove it yourself with a $20.00 thrift-store turntable and a generic stylus. Get a copy of something easy to get, something acoustic, something like James Taylor’s, Carly Simon’s or Carol King’s greatest hits. (The demonstration works best with acoustic guitar, harp or lute, but once you have noticed the difference, you will be able to hear the difference on everything! The introduction to Ventura Highway by America will work well also.) Play it on your turntable, and listen especially to the very beginnings of each note in the guitar. Focus your attention to the very beginnings of each plucked string. The strings will sound almost like you can hear each of them roll off of the player’s fingers. That is the way it should sound all of the time. Now, play the same selection on a CD. You will probably notice that the beginnings of the notes sound muffled or slow. The beginnings of the notes on the CD have much less detail than their counterparts on vinyl. The reason is built into the way CD players work. CDs have a sampling rate of 44,100 samples per second. What this means is the volume level of a given sound is recorded at that frequency. The problem? Many parts of a musical note are very short in duration, like say, the just first part of a plucked string, the part where the recording goes from no sound to the very loudest part of its sound. The string creates the sound in less than 1/44,100th of a second. While the volume of the actual string is getting progressively louder, the volume on the CD recording is an average. As a note quickly gets louder, the CD sounds like stair steps, because we have a recording of averages for the length of time of the sample. People who argue that there is no stair-stepping miss the main point. The sampling rate is too slow to reach the peak of a plucked string! By the time it gets 3/4 of the way there, it is time to come back. Plucks of strings sound better on analogue. As soon as you hear it, you will hear it on the beginnings of all notes. While the volume of the actual string is getting progressively louder, the volume on the CD recording is an average. As a note quickly gets louder, the CD sounds like stair steps, because we have a recording of averages for the length of time of the sample. While the volume of the actual string is getting progressively louder, the volume on the CD recording is an average. As a note quickly gets louder, the CD sounds like stair steps, because we have a recording of averages for the length of time of the sample. This is why the vinyl sounds more like the original sound than the CD. Once you hear this, you will always look at listening for detail in the sound differently. It might be a good idea to stop reading those sights that say you can’t hear the difference with digital stair-stepping and start listening for yourself. Do you need them to tell you what you can hear?? Listen intently for the very first sounds made with the plucks of strings, the hammers striking the strings on a piano, the “attack” of each note. Once you hear this, you will notice more detail forever. Buying a new belt so you can transfer all your vinyl to CD? If you have read and understand the previous section, then you might want to re-think. The CD recording you make can not possibly sound the same as the vinyl, because in making the recording, you are creating the same stair-stepping sound that does not sound as good as the original vinyl! OK, OK, if you want to make CDs for the car, go ahead, but if you want to make CDs for detailed listening, maybe you should keep your vinyl. Georgia Residents will pay 7% Sales Tax. Shipping and handling is only $1.99 to any point in the USA. Belts are shipped by USPS Ground Advantage (2-5 Day expected delivery). Please, ask in advance about international shipping. Priority Mail shipping to the US is available for $9.65. Most items are shipped within 1 business day. Thanks in advance for your purchase!