Turntable suggestions?

While waiting for my amp I've been going through my cd collection and rediscovered a cd by a jazz artist that I haven't played in years. This brought back memories of the reason I bought this cd. The artist is Emir Deodato and when I was in school my fraternity brother had an LP by this artist. In the 90's when I was building up my collection the LP was not available on CD and at that time CDs were about all that were available so I gave up on that album. Today I checked amazon and found a used import of that cd is available...for $142....or I could buy a 'like new' LP for less than $7. So I ordered it. I do have about 100 LPs still packed away so I think I can now justify investing in a turntable. I don't think I need a $3000 turntable but it seems one in the $500 range may be in order. Any suggestions? Is it true that LPs are more dynamic than CDs or is that just hype? Of course now I need a phono preamp as well. ....Blake

Hi Sprags,

Your last question first. The dynamic range of vinyl is less than the one of a CD. Still, I find, vinyl sounds more pleasant than any average CD player.

Asf or turntables in the $500 price bracket the Debut or Essentialline of Pro-Ject Audio or the entry level Rega's might be worth looking at.

Enjoy.

Michael

Sprags wrote:While waiting for my amp I've been going through my cd collection and rediscovered a cd by a jazz artist that I haven't played in years. This brought back memories of the reason I bought this cd. The artist is Emir Deodato and when I was in school my fraternity brother had an LP by this artist. In the 90's when I was building up my collection the LP was not available on CD and at that time CDs were about all that were available so I gave up on that album. Today I checked amazon and found a used import of that cd is available...for $142....or I could buy a 'like new' LP for less than $7. So I ordered it. I do have about 100 LPs still packed away so I think I can now justify investing in a turntable. I don't think I need a $3000 turntable but it seems one in the $500 range may be in order. Any suggestions? Is it true that LPs are more dynamic than CDs or is that just hype? Of course now I need a phono preamp as well. ....Blake

I'd go for an used thorens. Anything but a 124 is quiet.

I have a technics 1200 mark 3 and a denon 62L for sale. both in very good condition. if interested, send me a private message.

peterh wrote:
I'd go for an used thorens. Anything but a 124 is quiet.

I use two thorens in my setup and I really like the way they kind of match the rest of it.
the sound of a specific turntable is negligible at best. the most important thing to consider is the cartridge you want to use and whether it'll match the arm on the table.
I think a used thorens TD160 is about $200 in the US, so that would be well within your budget. the 124 is definitely not within your budget

Don't need to spend $500. I picked up a Technics 1300, (homeowners grade 1200?) for $50 at a thrift store. Check out http://www.vinylengine.com/


Of course, then I also spent another $150 on a cartridge....

the best bang for your bucks would be a technics 1200 mark 3. there is a reason that they are preferred by more dj's than any other turntable. their only issue is the fact that they are manual. no auto lift or return. if that's an issue for you, you might look at Harmon kardons with auto lift or denons with auto lift. I would stay away from auto return since the mechanism introduces unwanted noise. another thing to keep in mind is whether you want quartz or belt drive. belt drive is quieter but requires changing belts when they wear out. there are reviews on the web that give the pros and cons for them all. a more important consideration is the cartridge. a good cartridge can make an average turntable sound great where a bad cartridge can make a great turntable sound bad. proper setup of the cartridge is just as important. check around and ask questions before you buy.

Years ago I wanted a Technics SL1300 and an Audio Technical cartridge. Bought it, got it home and for some reason it could not stop fluttering. The salesman ended up offering me a Yamaha direct drive and Shure V15 cartridge that worked perfectly. It was weird...that's when I had a Yamaha CR2020 receiver, cassette deck and DCM Timewindows.

Auto return isn't important but I would like auto return at the least. I'll also check out the Thorens as well.

Sprags wrote:Years ago I wanted a Technics SL1300 and an Audio Technical cartridge. Bought it, got it home and for some reason it could not stop fluttering. The salesman ended up offering me a Yamaha direct drive and Shure V15 cartridge that worked perfectly. It was weird...that's when I had a Yamaha CR2020 receiver, cassette deck and DCM Timewindows.

Auto return isn't important but I would like auto return at the least. I'll also check out the Thorens as well.

Thorens will be the last you buy.No need to replace. Ever! Some thorens ( 320 ?) have auto-stop.

peterh wrote:

Sprags wrote:Years ago I wanted a Technics SL1300 and an Audio Technical cartridge. Bought it, got it home and for some reason it could not stop fluttering. The salesman ended up offering me a Yamaha direct drive and Shure V15 cartridge that worked perfectly. It was weird...that's when I had a Yamaha CR2020 receiver, cassette deck and DCM Timewindows.

Auto return isn't important but I would like auto return at the least. I'll also check out the Thorens as well.

Thorens will be the last you buy.No need to replace. Ever! Some thorens ( 320 ?) have auto-stop.

I use a q-up for that.

I have a Music Hall MMF2.2 that fits your budget. Great thing about this table is the VTA adjustment. It allows for several different carts.
My favorite cart now is the Denon DL103. If you get the MMF2.2 it's also best to add an acrylic tt platter and speed box.

I seem to remember the turntable and cartridge I had was in the 300 to 400 dollar range. I don't know why I thought $500 in today's dollars was going to be a good price point.

instead of auto return you might consider auto lift. less things to malfunction. the q-up and the safety raiser are options as well but make sure there is a place on the tt to mount one. 1200 mark 3's can't use either because of the tonearm base. most auto lifts also turn off the tt as well as lifting the arm off of the record. the harmon kardons are a good choice in your price range. the 55 and 60 are in your price range. while the denons are a better table, they are more expensive. also, if you look at the L series of denons, which are the auto lift models, they should include a straight and curved arm wands and extra counterweights. I've owned all 3 and recommend the denon 62L simply because of the auto lift. takes into consideration the nod off factor.

I did mean to say auto return is not important but auto lift is. I will look into all suggestions. Thank you.

Way back when, Technics were the best bang for the buck. They pretty much were all dead quiet.

I have and use a Technics SL-1700-Mk 2. The Mk-2 is important. It has auto lift and return, with pushbutton cue and lift - no other stuff rattling around on the tonearm underneath. It's quiet as death. I replaced the leadout cables on mine with newer wire because I was bored one afternoon. I might go back and install one of those RCA jack boards to the back of the unit so I can listen to different leadout cables. I can send you a pdf of the service and repair manual if you ever buy that table.

I was in a similar position a few years back. The high end Technics and Denon direct drive units certainly are very worthy, and deadly quiet. Another option is the high end Sony direct drive tables. Sony sunk tons of R&D into their direct drive systems and it shows. A PS-X50 or PS-X70 and a new Denon DL-103 cartridge can be had for close to $500. IMO that setup is exceptional performance for the dollar. The later Denon tables with more sophisticated active tonearm dampening have better specs, but they demand big money on the used market unless you get lucky and find one local. All of the higher end Japanese direct drive tables offer much quieter drives than any belt system. The quality of the tonearm on these tables relative to some of the Belt drive (i.e. Thorens) units is probably more of a debate.

I'm using a Sony PS-X70 with a Denon DL-103R and think I would have to spend MUCH more money to really be satisfied with the increase in performance.

The only downside is the Sony units (and I suspect Denon too) are very very complex electrically and somewhat mechanically relative to some of the high end bare-bones boutique decks offered today. If the thought of potentially having to recap a circuit board turns you away, be warned. That said, mine has performed flawlessly.

Try a ThorensTD-160. You won't be dissatisfied. As a bonus, it's very tweakable. I'm currently using a Denon DL-110 mc cart and that combo with the vta70 is vinyl bliss!

Having brought up Technics, I have to say I've liked my AR for quite a few years.

I used to have several direct drive turntables, and they were durable, dependable, and user friendly. But as I upgraded my system over the years, I began to hear "rumble" from the motor. I switched to belt drive turntables and found them to be quieter, but more finicky when it comes to regulating speed. And of course it costs way more money the higher you go up the upgrade ladder. I have been restoring/modifying turntables as a hobby for many years, and the best advice I can give to someone just starting out or returning to vinyl is to make sure you set it up right! An improperly set up tonearm/cartridge will not only sound bad, it will ruin your precious vinyl albums. A test record is a valuable tool (I use HI FI News test record). The turntable itself has one important job-to make sure the speed is correct. Secondary is noise isolation. The tonearm has much more responsibility. It has to make sure the needle tracks in the groove at the correct angle, height, pressure, plus anti skating, resonance reduction, etc.
I am always happy to help out someone if they have any questions about setting up their 'table.

Any advice for an AR-XB? Besides replacing it with an XA.

quadaptor wrote:Any advice for an AR-XB? Besides replacing it with an XA.

The AR turntables are great, but the stock tonearms leave a lot to be desired. They aren't adjustable, so many owners replaced the tonearms with better aftermarket tonearms.

The stock tonearm on the AR-XA and the stock arm on the Thorens TD-150 Mk II are of such poor quality that they really only have value as conversation starters. The spindle, platter and main bearing on the Thorens TD-150 is quite good and that is why people build custom bases and arm boards around it. I spent some time with a ProJect Essential and was quite impressed with that low end turntable/arm/cartridge package as delivered. An overachiever in my opinion. Maybe you could find a nice used Rega RP-1 or a ProJect Essential or Debut on your local CL. They seem to pop up fairly often. For around $100 the Ortofon 2M or Shure M97xE are overachieving MM cartridges that are easy to find.

Years ago...20 of 'em, actually, i bought a used Linn LP12. The one in my avatar, almost. In recent years i've upgraded it extensively. I'd recommend a second hand LP 12 for this reason. You can start out very affordably, with one in its most basic configuration, and eventually upgrade it as much as you could want, without ever having to toss it and start over.

Best advice I've read on this thread. I've owned an AR, Thorens 125, Technics, and finally a Linn. I have kept the Linn for the past 30 years.
I've replaced the power supply, sub chassis, base, springs, and will soon replace the inner platter/spindle assembly and bearing. A used Linn
can be built into a great playback system incrementally for not crazy money.