The Realistic LAB-2100 linear tracking turntable

Repair and demonstration of the Radio Shack Realistic LAB-2100 linear tracking turntable. Similar to the Mitsubishi Medallion LT-4, the Onkyo PL-25F, the Sherwood ST-903, and the Sherwood ST-905.
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[@SchreibenderEngel]

Also similar Players are the Universum F2026 and the Marantz TT525

[@11jazzygd11]

Thanks for the information and repair instructions. I sold these units when I worked for Radio Shack back in the 1980s. I have had mine since it was new and I had good success repairing mine and getting back in use.

[@jeffreyhipps9241]

I was the project manager at Sherwood when the ST-903 and ST-905 were introduced. Fujiya, a division of NEC, was the manufacturer. At the time, Fujiya built approximately 70% of the world's turntables. My early sample of the turntable, labeled Realistic LAB-2000, is suffering from the same non-movement of the tonearm. It will be interesting to see if I can resurrect it following your video.

[@zuperdee]

Jeffrey Hipps Did you have any luck?

[@johnschulien]

Jeffrey - I have been looking forever for a service manual for ANY of the turntables that use this OEM mechanism. Was there any technical information published on the mechanism / circuit? Thanks, John

[@zuperdee]

John Schulien I don't know how similar the circuits are, but there is a schematic in the service manual for the Realistic LAB-2100 posted here: www.vinylengine.com/ve_downloads/index.php?realistic/realistic_lab-2100_service_en.pdf

[@FredDeporter]

Hi, I have a ST-903 and the tone arm is 3 degrees from perpendicular to the rail when the tone arm is at rest, so the starting position adjustment will not correct for this. Is there some way to adjust the tone arm so it is perpendicular to the rail?

[@nancybonoli1389]

How did you get the base cover off? I have removed the screws from the bottom and am unsure about the three screws that are on the top inside a protective tube, for lack of a better description.

[@zuperdee]

Protective tube? I'm not sure what you're referring to... Are these screws different from the ones in my video?

[@sailfrog07smith4]

Yes -- Go ahead & remove those 3 screws in the recessed support tubes. Took me some head scratching before I went ahead & did this.

[@phonophreak]

Thanks so much for posting this! I purchased my lab 2100 from a friend for $10 back in about 1992. It's been in consistent use since then. But had started sticking as it tracked the record. Thanks to your video I was able to get a new belt, relube and adjust the mechanism. That solved the sticking problem, but the tone arm was still not tracking properly at the end of certain records , mostly albums, even when I tried your tape trick. I noticed that the tonearm was lagging behind the carriage, so it would get to the center of the record too soon and prevent the carriage from being tripped. I started playing around with the other little white screw on the left and found that it controls the side to side movement of the tonearm, causing it to follow the carriage more precisely. That solved the problem, and now it works like a charm on every record I play.

[@efandmk3382]

I picked up a Technics L-L25 linear turntable at a yard sale a few weeks ago...for five dollars. They said it didn't work and it was really old so they were just selling it for parts. It needed a new cartridge, a new platter belt and a new platter mat. So, for slightly less than a C note, I have a very minty, vintage Technics linear turntable.

[@zuperdee]

Sounds like a great deal! I’m always happy to hear of good old turntables being preserved.

[@SchreibenderEngel]

Your Video inspired me to make a service at my Universum F2026. What should I say, my player works now perfect!!!! Thank you very much!

[@Ingcivilcarlos]

Thank you for making this video! My girlfriend gave me a Sherwood PD-728B that belonged to her father, It had the same issue, I opened it up to try and fix it but found absolutely nothing on internet about that particular model. Looking on youtube on your thumbnail I noticed that one shares similarities with the one I have and lo and behold all it needed was some grease and to put the arm back to resting position. Looks like I'll manage to get it working again as soon as I buy the needle for it.

[@magentaline]

In the process of restoring a Sherwood ST-905. It appears to only need a new belt and a good cleaning. It's in the original box, too! This will go well with my recently restored Sherwood S7100 and S7300 receivers. Thank you!

[@zuperdee]

I’m always delighted if these kinds of videos are helpful!

[@cm2881]

Loved your video, you reminded of me when the stylus dropped on the rubber mat. lol I learned something from you, the electrical tape trick is great. I gave my LAB-2100 to a good friend when her son got into record collecting but I know it's in good hands. Again kudos on a great video, it will help many.

[@sonerogarcia]

I had the same issue as you. Someone tossed out one of this in my building and I said, hmmmm. Let me try something. I think it just needs a bit of cleaning and re lubing on the inside. Thanks for the Video, by the way I have an analog phone and a few type writers, lol.

[@dennisthebrony2022]

6:58 CD player!!!

[@hankalspach1]

With the help of your video, I got my almost mint-condition LAB-2000 working well. The only issue is when the the tonearm is at rest, it does not move all the way to the right-leaving about 1/8" open space from the backstop. Any idea how to make it move further? It drops and picks up at the correct places on the record. Thanks.

[@zuperdee]

I’m so glad my video helped you! Question: when the tonearm comes to rest, does the platter stop spinning? If so, then the mechanism must be moving the tone arm as far as it needs to go. If it weren’t, the gaps in the rail wouldn’t be allowing the infrared LEDs to shine through to the sensor to make it stop. Does that make sense? This might help give you a clue where to look for the problem, if there is in fact one.

[@hankalspach1]

@@zuperdee The tonearm goes as far right as it can, and the platter stops spinning. Sounds like the tonearm motor runs for an extra second after it stops, as if it's still attempting to move it rightward briefly. Other than that, everything is normal. The only reason I bring it up is because yours goes all the way over and it would be nice to have the extra room to place and lift a 12" record. As it is, you have to be careful not to hit the tonearm when doing so. I've seen at least one other instance of this online, but I can't find it again to see how or if it was resolved.

[@AntonDoiron]

I've had my LAB-2200 since 1988. It was in storage for a while. When I got it back, the records would play until the inner tracks then it would make a nasty clicking sound. I started taking it apart and tipped it over. The black plastic 45 adapter fell out of the tone arm hole. The adapter had been jamming it. Now it works great! All I've had to do to it was replace the needle. Although most online articles don't mention these as good turntables, I really love it!

[@seankling8616]

Thank you so much for this video. My LAB-2100 was having the same problem yours initially did, and the new lubrication + new belt worked. However, mine is also not lifting the tonearm when using the controls as well as not tracking. I suspect it is somehow not triggering a switch to know that the tonearm is down, but I'll have to keep tinkering with it.

[@sigfreid1189]

Hey! This video will be a lot of help when I am going to fix my player. Do you however have which bands and cartridges you ordered? Thanks

[@dualityk]

If you need to get into this model because the belt has crapped out, you can also just push the mechanism across by hand, if you put your fingers in and push on the sled (not the tonearm). Since the guide cable goes around a nylon pulley, it'll just slip without breaking anything. Good eye on the start/stop adjustment though; mine stopped stopping a while back and now I know how to fix it!

[@user-gh1bt2iu7w]

Big up, for your video, extremely helpful

[@CoolDudeClem]

Not quite as nice as the SONY I have, it too needs a new belt for the tonearm movement.

[@zuperdee]

Sony made some very good linear tracking turntables too, I believe. They also made some unusual ones like the PS-F5. I’m not sure how they compare to this one in terms of reliability or maintainability though.

[@dagnachewdagne1452]

Just fixed mine after watching your video. Thanks for posting this helpful information. Only belt was the problem on mine but added lube as needed. Thanks again

[@cmj20002]

I was going to say I believe they are made by Onkyo. I have a Pl25F and was having a tough time finding a tonearm belt for it. I used this model number to get one. Mine had an issue with the controls not working as well and I fixed that by cleaning the ground wire that connects to the turntable motor. It goes directly to the control board and after cleaning it all the controls started working again. Then I noticed that my tonearm wasn't moving and the belt was sloppy. Once I get the belt I should have a properly working turntable. These are nice units and I picked mine up for $30. It was broken, but an easy fix.

[@ElectoneGuy]

Manufactured by CEC.

[@theoriginaljimmykicker]

Hi. would this be a similar repair to a 2250? Mine is starting to skip halfway through the record. Thanks for the video!

[@zuperdee]

I’m not sure how similar the internals are, since I’ve never personally seen a 2250, but I’d say there’s a distinct possibility that it is a mechanical problem similar to what I encountered on this one. Let me know if you have any other questions-I’ll try to help as best I can.

[@rossfromfriends8468]

Thanks for this vid. I have one and am having a similar issues with the tracking. I think I need to clean and re lubricate the gears. Everything else works perfectly . Thanks for showing me how to break it down . It seems like an easy fix and I love tinkering. I even have a tube of super lube haha

[@zuperdee]

I hope it works! These are great turntables when they do work!

[@shaneandis3910]

I love this tutorial. I refer to every once in a while to make slight adjustments to my turntable. Thank you for taking the time ti make it.

[@logantesta2813]

This video has been incredibly useful, but I've run into a problem with the smaller screws that can't be taken out with a regular Philip's or flat head, and was wondering how/what you used to get them out.

[@zuperdee]

I'm not sure which screws you are referring to... Which part are they screwed into?

[@logantesta2813]

The Perennial Gadgeteer sorry please disregard that query my partner insisted that we needed to remove the screws holding the mechanism and circuitry in place, we managed to find the right screws and she came off nice and easy.

[@0PsychosisMedia0]

I just picked up a Carrera LT-120 Linear Tracking Fully Automatic Turntable. From what I gathered its a rebadged Realistic LAB. Tho it seems to be a newer model. Yet the way to get to the tone arm mechanism is the same! I so glad I found your video! Now I can order a new belt and check the grease. I was afraid to do anything. Now I have confidence I can do the cleaning! Thanx!

[@Dennis-ig5uf]

Hi, great video. I bought a LAB-2100 that was supposed to be fully functional. After unboxing the time arm didn’t move at all. After removing the cover the small steel cable was completely off all the pulleys. I ordered a new belt but cannot see how to route the steel cable. It seems excessively long so I wasn’t sure if it wraps around the big pulley more than once or what? I tried to see how it was routed in the video but it doesn’t really show it. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I really need to get this working. Thank you in advance!

[@camc5483]

Thanks for this. I have this exact model, dormant since 1987, that I had a different issue with. When the tonearm would start to drop at the start of a record, it would simultaneously move to the left, causing that dreaded zipper sound when it hit the record, sometimes on the 2nd song. Then it played fine. Between that, and the purchase of my first CD player, it's been sitting in my basement ever since. I hate to get rid of it! Now, I might go have a look at it.

[@zuperdee]

Go for it! I’m not sure what’s causing your problem, but a good place to start might be with the adjustments under the plastic caps.

[@camc5483]

@@zuperdee if all else fails, I want to try that polish anyway. Never knew such a product existed.

[@zuperdee]

@@camc5483 You mean the Novis Plastic Polish? Yes, that is fantastic stuff! When used properly, it can buff scratches out of plastic surfaces on old telephones, help clear up foggy car headlights, and smudges on plexiglass, among other things.

[@erikmolnar6585]

Who cares, I never notice any of that

[@KMichaelRenno]

Thanks for posting! After watching your video I figured the old grease could be behind my LAB-2100 arm tracking problem. Video saved me time figuring out how to disassemble. The belt ended up my real issue, replaced it with a standard "O" ring of about the same size b/c did not want to wait for correct one after ordering. Works great with it and thinking the "O" ring is better quality than the OEM belt and will last longer.

[@eartraffic]

Great vid! Big help in aligning the 12" AND the 7". The 7" took a bit of time but I figured out where to tape it. Once it was cleaned of hardened grease, I used silicone on the rails as well. Working like a charm.

[@synapticflow]

So cool! I wish they still made these! And I'm not talking about the couple of companies that have $10,000 ones. I mean I wish that all the companies still made them.

[@pcallas66]

That's a great turntable. Thanks for sharing.

[@CP-ki7xf]

My 2100 'locked up' an hour ago. I found this video and it's back working again. New belt on order soon. Thanks man. You're the best.

[@randyc8171]

My $99 1981 Sharp Linear turntable has never been serviced and still works fine. Like all old phonographs it will eventually need some renewal work.

[@taylornewman8709]

Very informative! I have a Realistic Lab 2200 with similar issues, so this was very helpful. One area I found interesting is the part where you talked about the manufactures history of your unit. Where did you get your source? I love learning the history of these vintage HiFi units and I would love to know more about my turntable. I know Realistic was known for outsourcing the design and manufacturing of all of its units to other companies. Thank you!

[@laranaarana]

I wanted to buy this model when I worked at Radio Shack back in the mid-'80s but it was pricey, so I bought the LAB 4300, which I still have and use.

[@vibingwithvinyl]

Interesting. I just acquired a Nikko Delta DL1 which is basically the same machine.

[@vibingwithvinyl]

And it's now been sold. Got a Denon DP-47F instead.

[@camtron0]

Thanks for the video. I got to see inside without risking damage to my new lab 2100. Our old record player died and I found this refurbished for $100. It was right after Christmas and the store had almost been cleared out. The only 2 players left were both linear drive. I guess they were too outlandish for people to gravitate to.

[@zuperdee]

Wow! What store did you find these in? It’s REALLY rare to find these kinds of things in any brick and mortar store anymore!

[@peacearchwa5103]

Thanks for your review. Today I just acquired a used Realistic LAB-2200, the successor model which functionally is quite similar. Mine has functioned fairly well other than two issues, one being the auto mechanism placing the stylus dangerously close to the outer edge of the record (in some cases essentially off of the record itself), the other being seems that the platter bobs unevenly up-and-down as though the platter and/or spindle mechanism are warped. All of the records I've placed on the LAB-2200 behave as though they are severely warped, which they are not when played on my other turntables. Interestingly, in most cases the LAB-2200 can still satisfactorily play the record although as if I were to play records like this on a routine basis this will cause excessive wear on the playback stylus as well as the record itself. What are steps I can take to troubleshoot the spindle mechanism or the platter?

[@AntonDoiron]

I have the same turntable and I had a similar problem. it turned out that I hadn't lined up the rubber mat properly. there are indented areas on the rubber that fit over the 12 inch record sensor. If you are lucky all you have to do is rotate the rubber mat and press it down over the sensor thing.

[@evanstorm3360]

Great video! Mine seems to have the same issues motor wise and your video motivated me to give a go at fixing it

[@lennertradio]

Thanks for your very informative video! A question though: at 8:48, what's the use of the left (plastic) screw?

[@zuperdee]

The plastic screw on the left seems to adjust the amount the carriage moves every time movement is called for. Set it too aggressive, and the pivot point will keep getting too far ahead of the stylus. Set it too much the other way, and the stylus will keep getting too far ahead of the pivot point. Ideally, you want it set so that the arm is as close to parallel as possible at all times. In short: I would NOT mess with that adjustment unless you’re finding that the tonearm is clearly not staying close to parallel as it plays. The maximum deviation from parallel should be about 0.5 degrees, if my memory serves me correctly.

[@wric01]

I think a better tech should be a sonar or light emitting device to read grooves.

[@zuperdee]

There is indeed such a thing-the ELP turntable uses 5 laser beams to read the grooves, but it is INSANELY expensive (around $10,000 for a base model), and has some serious limitations and issues, like not being able to read anything other than black records, and the need to wet-clean the records to remove ALL traces of dust and dirt before every play. According to some reviewers who have heard it, the ELP turntable is highly finicky, and its sound quality mediocre at best and not worth the high price compared to a high end traditional stylus-based model.

[@gryghin]

Thanks for posting this very informative video. I have this exact model since the 80's, it's been in storage until this week. Could you post links to where you bought the belt and needle? Mine currently has the arm stuck and I suspect it will need the same cleaning as yours.

[@zuperdee]

gryghin The belt can be found here: www.lpgear.com/product/RSLAB2100.html and the stylus here: www.lpgear.com/product/RSRT1500E.html

[@Agamemnon2]

I wonder if the reason the auto-start and stop alignment was off is because the photosensor or LED have degraded over the years, so they pick up or emit, respectively, slightly less light than when new so the apetures need to be slightly more "open" for the action to be triggered.

[@zuperdee]

Agamemnon2 I've wondered the same. I'm taking a wild guess that if a weak pickup signal is indeed compensated for in the circuit, it would likely be by some kind of automatic gain control circuit on the receiver, since the LED brightness surely has an upper limit, and there doesn't seem to be any official adjustment for the alignment of the LED or the receiver.

[@Sim_V]

Very good video ! Thanks !

[@bumbadum87]

Do you know how the metal wire is aligned on the machine pulley system? I opened mine up and the wire wasn’t hooked into where it needs to be. Not sure if it needs to be wrapped around each thing twice and where the hoops hook into. Thank you.

[@zuperdee]

It’s been a while since I’ve actually seen it firsthand-I must confess that I don’t remember now for sure. I think it loops around the main pulley twice, and that’s all. The direction is important too, as I recall.

[@bumbadum87]

@@zuperdee Yeah. I’m just not sure what the wire is supposed to hook to. One of the ends has a spring and the other doesn’t. The spring end was connected to this hook but the other end wasn’t hooked into anything. Not sure if a piece is broken.

[@MegaChatzi]

Any idea why I can't take off the platter? It seems to be stuck on something but I can't figure out what.

[@zuperdee]

Chris Hatz It should be really easy-just lift the platter off. I do suggest putting a finger on top of the center spindle and pushing slightly on the spindle as you lift the platter, because the spindle/motor assembly seems a bit weak on this turntable.

[@jackmatson962]

@@zuperdee This unit, and many others, use a tapered spindle. If the platter hasn't been removed for decades, it may need some encouragement. While lifting the platter equally from either side, tap the top of the spindle lightly with a rubber mallet.

[@animalcorvair]

i have one the belt is the weak spot ..

[@HarmonyMan]

But! I can't the turntable apart. What screws am i overlooking?

[@zuperdee]

Harmony Man Is this a LAB-2100? Are you following the exact procedure I show?

[@justinchapman445]

There are three deep ones that stumped me, as well as one near the center of the underside. Once I double checked the deep ones, it came off very easily.

[@jonr4888]

can you do this with LT 5v

[@samsonbonkeabantubrown3681]

What are the second set of screws you took out? I've taken out all the edge screws from the bottom, but I can't get the base plate to lift up.

[@zuperdee]

Hi Samson, let’s see if I can help… Could you point to the timestamp in the video you’re referencing regarding these screws?

[@samsonbonkeabantubrown3681]

@@zuperdee it's begins at 3:42. After you had removed the first 5 screws

[@zuperdee]

@@samsonbonkeabantubrown3681 Ah ok… As I recall, the critical screws are those 3 on top, plus the ones around the edges on bottom that are holding the plastic cover to the plinth. VERY important to make sure all critical screws are removed, to avoid breaking the plastic.

[@zuperdee]

@@samsonbonkeabantubrown3681 If you still need help after that, I’ll see if I can get pictures of them later.

[@samsonbonkeabantubrown3681]

@@zuperdee the plastic cover on mine got damaged so it isn't secured to the actual plinth. Hopefully I can still get those screws out. Thanks so much!

[@midnightzebra]

Thanks for the video! I inherited one of these from my parents but I can’t get the motor to kick in as the record plays. The tone arm tracks to the right when I physically move it as you do in the video, but it doesn’t budge when I push it to the left. The left and right buttons work fine so it’s not a problem with the motor, I think the brain just doesn’t recognize when it needs to move left. Not sure if this makes sense but any help would be greatly appreciated!

[@zuperdee]

My apologies for not replying earlier. My first thought is: The fault must lie somewhere in the circuit that tells the “brain” when to move the arm inward (left). The first thing I’d check is: Does the motor activate at all when you lightly push the arm (not the carriage) to the left? If it does, I’d say check to see if the settings for it are good. My thinking is: If the brain is not being triggered by normal movements of the arm in the grooves, the threshold for movement may be set too low, and if that’s the case, it can easily be adjusted. If I remember correctly, I cover these settings somewhere around 8:45 in the video.

[@midnightzebra]

No worries! Thank you for the reply. I’ll try this out!

[@zuperdee]

@@midnightzebra No problem! Another clue: Since you say the motor works when you press the buttons manually, this shows that it is not a mechanical problem.

[@midnightzebra]

Another question (assuming I fix this problem) since I have you here: The sound tends to distort and get fuzzy the longer the record plays. Is this a problem with the needle/cartridge?

[@zuperdee]

@@midnightzebra Without seeing your cartridge setup, it’s difficult to know. Generally, the inner grooves WILL often not sound as good as the outer grooves, particularly on higher frequencies like those made by sibilants and cymbals (this kind of distortion is called “sibilance.”) Some people call this “inner groove distortion.” The main reason for this is that phonograph records are a Constant Angular Velocity (CAV) medium, meaning the rotational speed is constant, and since the diameter of the inner grooves is smaller than the diameter of the outer grooves, the LINEAR velocity of the inner grooves is slower-it’s just like the way 1 rotation of a smaller tire will cover less ground than 1 rotation of a big tire. HOWEVER, all that being said, there are things you can do to minimize inner groove distortion, including: 1) Check to make sure your cartridge isn’t getting dirty as it tracks to the inside, and 2) Use a finer, more advanced shape of stylus, like a fine elliptical or a micro-line stylus. Basically, the finer the stylus, the better it will be able to track the high frequencies in the inner grooves.

[@bubu-tk2sb]

Good work man!

[@fredflintstone2077]

What is the left hand adjuster screw for?

[@zuperdee]

fred flintstone On the left hand of which piece? On the tonearm carriage?

[@sailfrog07smith4]

@@zuperdee Screw in question is the larger white nylon screw to the left of the smaller cam screw. It would be the one that can be adjusted thru the left hole. You mentioned this screw but didn't elaborate on it. Thanks

[@kevinomura5251]

@@sailfrog07smith4 That controls the position where the arm drops. I have mine set fully counterclockwise and the arm still shifts slightly to the left when it is lowered to the record surface. Before adjusting that screw the arm would shoot 1/4 of the way across the record when you hit the start button and the stylus started to drop to the record surface.