Technics SL-DD33 turntable notes
Posted by jpluimers on 2025/06/20
I need to service a [Wayback/Archive] Technics SL-DD 33 | hifi-wiki.com turntable which I acquired, so here are some links, from hopefully most important to least important, as there were various problems with it (lowering the tone arm didn’t work well and there was some wow/flutter):
- [Wayback/Archive] Tone arm won’t raise/lower SL-BD22- Vinyl Engine
probably the grease has dried up
You’ll have to take the boom cover off,
and locate the arm lifter piston. It’s brass with a spring. Don’t try to take it apart, without making sure you will not damage the spring.
With a cotton swab or old toothbrush and either alchohol or baby oilwipe / scrub the visible area from the old gunk.
Try putting in a couple of drops of light machine oil and work the mechanism by hand for the oil to “get in there”. Hopefully this should do it. - [Wayback/Archive] audiocircuit.dk/downloads/technics/Technics-SLDD33-tt-sm.pdf Service Manual (no OCR)
- [Wayback/Archive] How to Fix Technics SL BD or Any Turntable Cueing servicing Repair – YouTube
- [Wayback/Archive] Technics SL-DD33 Troubleshooting- Vinyl Engine
- [Wayback/Archive] SL-D33 tone arm will not lower | Audiokarma Home Audio Stereo Discussion Forums
- [WaybackSave/Archive] Needle Won’t Stay Down on Record to Play- Vinyl Engine
- [Wayback/Archive] Technics SL-DD22 tonearm won’t lower enough to make contact with the record? | Tapeheads.net
- [WaybackSave/Archive] Technics SL-D33 tonearm mechanism not lowering/auto-returning- Vinyl Engine
- [WaybackSave/Archive] Technics SL-DD33 automatic start issue- Vinyl Engine
- [Wayback/Archive] Technics sl dd-33 PLEASE HELP- made a bonehead move | Audiokarma Home Audio Stereo Discussion Forums
- [Wayback/Archive] KAB Electro Acoustics http://www.kabusa.com
Automatic arm motion is not working properly.
Instead of starting at the lead in groove, the arm moves way over to the center of the record. In this case, the usual problem is hardened grease in the tonearm assembly. The positioning mechanism is a spring loaded plate that rotates on the arm base and contacts the position adjuster. Hardened grease can cause this plate to become frozen. The solution is simply to apply a short spray of penetrating lubricant, or fader lubricant. once the plate is free again, dry up any excess lubrication and put down a few drops of spindle oil. There was never any need for grease here in the first place. The pivot is outlined in red shading. it should always be in contact with the adjust dial. The cueing lifter is another area where grease was place in which it did not belong. spray clean, get working smoothly, and put a drop of spindle oil on the shaft. Reassemble and retest both record sizes. Service manual is available at
- [Wayback/Archive] KAB Electro Acoustics http://www.kabusa.com
- [WaybackSave/Archive] Cue Lever Position when Balancing Counterweight | AVForums
- [WaybackSave/Archive] Needle landed on slipmat, should I be worried? | AVForums
It didn’t damage mine at all.
…
I would make a visual inspection using a loupe or magnifying glass and make sure it looks like the stylus is still there on the end of the cantilever and then try it out on a record that you could can easily replace.
I wonder why a lot of these audio forums do not want to have their content archived in the Wayback Machine, either blocking them with a HTTP 403 or by refusing them even http connection. Examples of Wayback Machine archiving results (Archive.is went fine):
- The capture failed because Save Page Now does not have access rights for https://www.avforums.com/threads/cue-lever-position-when-balancing-counterweight.2226318/ (HTTP status=403).
- Saving page https://www.vinylengine.com/turntable_forum/viewtopic.php?t=122467
Save Page Now could not capture this URL because it was unreachable.
Mine is black; a silver version gold sold by a store nearby that I have known and respect very much for 40+ years. You can see the old listing here (links to high-res images below): [Wayback/Archive] Technics SL-DD33 – Plato Leiden
- [Wayback/Archive] IMG_20240507_145412672_HDR-scaled-e1715260336963.jpg (1928×1570) top
- [Wayback/Archive] IMG_20240507_145527155.jpg (3072×4080) sticker with model/part/stylus # on the back
- [Wayback/Archive] IMG_20240507_145503112.jpg (3072×4080) mat with sensor holes
- [Wayback/Archive] IMG_20240507_145448769.jpg (3072×4080) tone arm: back side
- [Wayback/Archive] IMG_20240507_145437372.jpg (3072×4080) tone arm: front side with angled view of cartridge
- [Wayback/Archive] IMG_20240507_145428957.jpg (4080×3072) tone arm: front side with top view of cartridge
- [Wayback/Archive] IMG_20240507_145423780.jpg (3072×4080) stroboscope and Technics badge
A guy selling replacement parts in the USA is at [Wayback/Archive] Technics SL-DD33 Turntable Complete Gear Assembly. Tested Parting SL-DD33 | eBay.
Some parts are also on Amazon, for instance at [Wayback/Archive] Amazon.de : technics sl dd33.
Queries in the order of my quest:
- [Wayback/Archive] technics turntable needle does not come down – Google Suche
- [Wayback/Archive] technics sl dd33 needle does not come down – Google Suche
- [Wayback/Archive] technics sl “dd33” needle does not come down – Google Suche
- [Wayback/Archive] Technics “SL-DD33” arm not lowering – Sök på Google
- [WaybackSave/Archive] Technics SL-DD33 service manual – Google Suche
- [WaybackSave/Archive] Technics SL-DD33 service manual filetype:pdf – Google Suche
- [Wayback/Archive] Technics SL-DD33 – Google Suche: Bilder
--jeroen
[Wayback/Archive] How to Fix Technics SL BD or Any Turntable Cueing servicing Repair – YouTube
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