Vibratrim VT500

Vibratrim VT500 Review

The VT500 is the top of the line whole body vibration machine designed by Vibratrim. Compared to the its predecessor the VT400, the newer VT500 is taller, wider, and heavier. It is designed as a premium home use machine that supports as many as 10 individual users and also professional doctor’s office like chiropractors, and physiotherapists. The new VT500 is also a dual vibration system that has been upgraded to use higher output motors. The dual motor system provides two motions. The larger 1000 watt motor provides the oscillation motion (rocks left and right like a teeter totter). Whereas, the smaller 300 watt motor consist of the orbital vibration (the motion is like a tornado movement as the platform spirals along the center of the platform, the motion feels like a strong cell phone vibration, one that is strong enough to vibration the lower half of your body!) With a 400 lb weight capacity, this machine is suitable for the majority of the population.  The VT500 competes with the likes of PULSER by Vmax Fitness, G Force G7 and the Slim Vibes Vibrapro Genesis.

Machine Assembly

The VT500 came in two boxes. One of the box contains the big heavy base platform, and the second box contains the column and handlebar attachments. The tower itself is very heavy with a plastic shrink wrap that clings to the front glossy surface and protects the surface from scratches. You’ll have to gingerly and very carefully remove the plastic slowly in order to not rip it so you can remove it the entire piece, and not bits at a time as it clings a lot to the machine. The column and base unit communicates via an electrical cable that comes out from the column and clips into the latch end of the cable in the platform. You then slide the entire column onto the base, and screw it together with 10 bolts. All the accessories you need to assemble and use the machine comes with the machine, so its a nice touch–no special tools needed! Now that the hard part is done, the only thing left is mounting handlebars. 4 screws hold the handle bars on each side of the tower and another 4 screws hold onto 4 pieces of plastic fairings that wrap around the ends of the handlebar that connects to the tower. After this, the machine is complete. Assembly took a little less than 20 minutes (we’re not counting the time to remove the plastic wrap). Both the Pulser and Genesis comes with additional horizontal crossbar attachments (Pulser has one, Genesis has two) and would take an extra minute or so to put those in.

Platform Size

The platform plate can lift users upto about 400 lbs and should be more than enough for most people but if you are heavier, I do suggest an alternative machine. Its possible that the machine can lift users that are 450 lbs but definitely not persistently as that will overheat the motors. One thing to watch out for is to include your body weight in addition to any free weights you may be using in order to calculate the proper weight capacity you require. The platform size is 27″ wide by 20″ deep. Unlike the VT400, the ends of the platform does not have a bezel that slopes down, so you get to use the entire platform in its whole glory. A wider platform gives a higher displacement movement of the plate and ultimately increases the amount of vibration you will feel. With such a wider platform, taller users won’t have any issues and you can assume many different positions without running your feet off the platform. The very generous platform size makes it quite comfortable in all standing positions. You’ll definitely have no problems doing dynamic exercises on this platform and keeping your feet on the platform.

Display and Control Panel Operation

The display is a wider 7″ display using mainly red and blue LED bulbs. The H on the left indicates the High amplitude vibration (oscillation) and the L represents the low amplitude vibration (Orbital). When you turn both vibrations on, you get the DualVib mode. In the center you’ll have the menu display and on either side are the graphics for the respective vibrations. They don’t really do anything but rather just for visual display purposes. Below the graphics you will see the speed and intensity levels with the time sandwiched in between. The last row shows the pre-set program that you are on.  UPDATE: The red bulbs can go out after a while but does not affect the machine’s overall performance.

The biggest change in the VT500 from the VT400 is the use of rotary dials (similar to volume knobs) to adjust the speed / intensity of the machine. Similar to turning the volume higher or lower, a clockwise movement of the dials will increase the intensity and counter-clockwise will decrease it. There are a total of 3 dials. The left most controls the speed/intensity of the oscillation motor (or pivotal) and the right most controls the orbital vibration. The dials make adjusting the speeds of the motors simple and highly adjustable. You can turn it up or down depending on your fancy and fairly easily with just a flick of your wrist. No more pressing the buttons a gazillion times to set it high or low! The noise level is fair and increases as you increase the intensity. The noise is noticeable but not abnormally loud. You should be able to hear the tube going if you have this in the living room.

The third knob on the second row of the controls adjusts the pre-set program modes. You can change between the manual mode (88) and 6 pre-set programs, 3 of which can be modified. The preset programs are exercise programs that run for 10 minutes and the intensity of each vibration motor is automatically adjusted every so often (usually about 15-45 seconds). They make it a little easier to just set it and forget it and not worry about what to set the machine at when you are vibrating. Some of the programs can get pretty strong so I’d say stick with the manual mode for a week or two before you graduate yourself to the preset programs.

A Stop/Start button is in the middle and the length of the vibration can be adjusted by using the Time Up and Time Down buttons on the second row. You can adjust the machine upto 20 minutes or as low as 1 minute for your vibration session. The USB feature has been removed and you can no longer make your own routines on the computer. The VT500 now has a built-in configurator where you can adjust and modify the U1, U2, and U3 programs by pressing a certain sequence of buttons. This makes it a little quicker and faster without having to put the USB and modifying it on a computer before you can use it with the machine.

Frame and Construction

The base and column is made of steel with a chrome accent strip at the neck of the control panel where the panel starts to angle backwards. The tower has a high gloss black acrylic and looks quite sophisticated. Once we started using the machine for a bit, we started seeing our greasy finger prints on the glossy surface. The high gloss coating soaks up our fingerprints like a sponge and its really easy to see where all the dirt and grime are. Make sure to have a wiping cloth handy after you finish using the machine.  One odd thing we noticed is the vertical placement of the log as it looks out of place and seems like an after thought to brand the unit. Other units have a full spread of the brand across the entire column or a smartly etched branding at the center of the column. I guess the beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Standing on the platform, there is not much give when you pull on the handlebar. This is a good thing since the sturdiness is excellent for users that require the machine for balance. We do find ourself missing the horizontal cross bars on some of the other units like the Genesis and Pulser and sometimes we would suddenly try to grab the “invisible” bar and notice this is another machine we are testing. At the higher speeds, the column tends to sway a bit more without the bars.

The platform has a soft rubber gel pad built into the standing platform. It is a little less padded than the VT400 pad and a little harder. The older pads ran into the problem of getting scuffed very easily and eventually get so worn that makes the machine look awful and very used looking. These harder pads will certainly last longer and we hope it eliminates this problem altogether. The rubber passes our smell test and doesn’t give off a terrible toxic rubber smell you may get from other cheaper machines. Two notches on either side of the platform allows you to slide the included stiff nylon hand straps through. The hand straps allow you to stimulate the upper body without needing to go low onto the platform with your upper body. Wheels on the back allow you to move the machine easily from one room to the next room.

The base consists of 5 adjustable levelers that allows you ensure the machine is horizontal and flat. We allowed the machine to run by itself for a good 3-4 minutes and it stayed on the ground. Some machines that are lighter weight and have cheaper levelers without the suction cups will jump up and down across the room. At the maximum speed, the machine did try to jitter a bit but otherwise stayed pretty much glued to the ground. The VT500 comes with suction cup levelers and weighs at a decent 150 lbs.

Final Thoughts

The Vibratrim VT500 makes for an excellent home use unit and will tailor to many users in the household. The DualVib mode will be more than sufficient to provide you with the full benefits of Whole Body Vibration in terms of therapeutic uses and muscle development. The full steel construction makes this unit heavier than most others in its category and makes the body very rigid and sturdy. The unit has been released quite a few years back and now feels pretty dated. Also, it is missing the horizontal cross bars but if you are a user that doesn’t use the higher speeds (>45) then the slightly added stability won’t benefit you much.  The VibraTrim VT500 is a great dual vibration machine with a proven rotary dial system. It does have some shortcomings but if you can overlook those, it certainly can be something right up your alley.