Turntable upgrade advice

[Berkel]

Good day all : I'm looking at obtaining a better TT than my current Pioneer PL15R. It's quite OK with the Ortofon Quintet red cartridge, but not quite " there ".

My finances are rather limited, being an age pensioner, but my appreciation for high quality playback of classical music has always been high. Back " in the day " when I was working, I had units such as Goldmund studietto and Alphason Sonata, so have been quite " spoiled ". Now I need to lower my sights, but still want something reliable, well built and has the " wow " factor.

 

So, I'm open to suggestions regarding used TTs which I should investigate.

 

Thanks,

Dennis

[Telecine]

Perhaps a Lenco L75. You may be able to locate one for a reasonable price if you hunt around and there are unlimited upgrade options, many of which you can do yourself.

Edited October 26, 2020 by Telecine

[t_mike]

The humble Technics SL 1200 mk2 >.

 

Lots of upgrades available on this one too.

[Berkel]

Thanks for the suggestions so far. I've always been under the impression ( maybe wrongly ) that a sub platter suspension was better than a non suspended table. Any opinions ?

 

Dennis

[Telecine]

1 hour ago, Berkel said:

Thanks for the suggestions so far. I've always been under the impression ( maybe wrongly ) that a sub platter suspension was better than a non suspended table. Any opinions ?

 

Dennis

 

Either approach can work. The objective is to lower the resonant frequency of the turntable. Both suspended an unsuspended decks can achieve this with various approaches. 

[Berkel]

Thanks for the information. This has held me back for years avoiding non - suspended tables.

Many people have recommended Rega, but I've steered clear because of lack of suspension.

I have an older Rega Apollo CDP which is terrific.

 

Dennis

[captain.j]

I don’t think you’ll have any regrets going Rega. There’s a good reason they’ve survived since the early 70’s.  There are plenty of reasonably priced second hand units around. P9’s still fetch fairly good money but the P7 might be a good under rated option.

[Luc]

3 hours ago, Berkel said:

I have an older Rega Apollo CDP which is terrific.

 

Don't ever sell it. Magic spinner, classic design and Rega made a mistake with their utilitarian upgrade the 'R models.

[Berkel]

2 hours ago, Luc said:

Don't ever sell it. Magic spinner, classic design and Rega made a mistake with their utilitarian upgrade the 'R models.

That's interesting. I've had a Denon DCD 1500AE SACD player for a few years which is also very good, but found this Rega going at a good price so took the plunge. Quite an improvement over the Denon, so it's a keeper.

 

Cheers,

Dennis

[Berkel]

3 hours ago, captain.j said:

I don’t think you’ll have any regrets going Rega. There’s a good reason they’ve survived since the early 70’s.  There are plenty of reasonably priced second hand units around. P9’s still fetch fairly good money but the P7 might be a good under rated option.

Thanks for the advice. I was thinking of keeping an eye out for a Planar 3 or P3.

Dennis

[Berkel]

How about a vintage Micro Seiki ? I heard they were an excellent deck ...... opinions please ?

 

Dennis

[RaoulJuke]

deleted (duplicate)

Edited October 27, 2020 by RaoulJuke

[RaoulJuke]

53 minutes ago, Berkel said:

Thanks for the advice. I was thinking of keeping an eye out for a Planar 3 or P3.

Dennis

 

Hi Dennis,

 

Crazy. My post above yours i actually mention im thinking of selling my RP3 which has had a tonn of upgrades

[Berkel]

Quite a coincidence. Perhaps you would like to PM me with details and asking price ?

 

Dennis

[wen]

@Berkel, i had a Linn Sondek for 35 yrs, now have a Rega Planar 2 from 1976, put a Moth OEM 202 arm and a Ortofon Quintet Blue, tangospinner subplatter, ceramic bearing, no less enjoyment in the listening of music, also being in a cash strapped situation, the Rega wins hands down

[RNWau]

Rega P3 with a decent cart is an excellent choice. Also check out Funk Firm LSD (my current deck) and Funk Gett....incredible tables that box waaaaay above their weight. I’ve gone off of vintage TT’s now as I’m tired of tinkering, and prefer spending time listening to the music!

[Berkel]

Thanks for the info, which is quite enlightening. I'm really surprised that your modified Rega Planar 2 is as good as, if not better than a Linn Sondek ! Crikey !

 

Dennis

[Berkel]

3 minutes ago, RNWau said:

Rega P3 with a decent cart is an excellent choice. Also check out Funk Firm LSD (my current deck) and Funk Gett....incredible tables that box waaaaay above their weight. I’ve gone off of vintage TT’s now as I’m tired of tinkering, and prefer spending time listening to the music!

Thanks Ryan : my thoughts too. I was going for a " high end " vintage table, but now have come round to your opinion. At 70, I'm over tinkering, or lugging a dysfunctional TT to technicians. A good new ( ish ? ) one that will see me out is the way to go. Where does one purchase FF TTs ?

Dennis

[RNWau]

Hi Dennis,

From what I gather the agency in As used to be Magenta Audio - not sure if it still is? I bought mine in South Africa and am shipping it when we move end of November. I’m running mine with a Sumiko Amethyst and it really is sublime...the overall package compares well with top drawer Bauer and Audionote TT’s that I’ve listened to.

cheers, Ryan

[andyr]

1 hour ago, Berkel said:

Thanks for the info, which is quite enlightening. I'm really surprised that your modified Rega Planar 2 is as good as, if not better than a Linn Sondek ! Crikey !

 

Dennis

 

Actually, Dennis, he said this:

 

1 hour ago, wen said:

@Berkel, i had a Linn Sondek for 35 yrs, now have a Rega Planar 2 from 1976, put a Moth OEM 202 arm and a Ortofon Quintet Blue, tangospinner subplatter, ceramic bearing, no less enjoyment in the listening of music, also being in a cash strapped situation, the Rega wins hands down

 

"No less enjoyment and in a cash-strapped situation! "  

 

I've always regarded Regas as the TT you buy when:

• you want to get onboard an upgrade path
• but you can't afford the Linn pricing.  

Then again, I consider the engineering behind my 'SkeletaLinn' puts it as the equivalent of a top-spec LP12 - which LP12 owners may not agree with me about (like, say, @Tasebass ).  

 

Andy

 

[wen]

it never ceases to amaze me peoples interpretations of what people say, quote, misquote, etc....

A Rega still plays music whether you can afford a Linn or not......

one can cast nasturtinms about why do you "skeletal" your Linn, cant afford the top spec Linn, it's the music you listen to ,not your turntable, for some

[Tasebass]

On 27/10/2020 at 9:30 PM, andyr said:

g.  

Then again, I consider the engineering behind my 'SkeletaLinn' puts it as the equivalent of a top-spec LP12 - which LP12 owners may not agree with me about (like, say, @Tasebass ).  

 

Andy

 

 

Now c'on Andy.......

I'm sure the efforts that you placed into the Skeletal are to a very high standard.....but I doubt you've spent the millions Linn have...( and other manufacturers ) to obtain the engineering standards they wanted to achieve with regards to manufacturing of their products.

That said I've never layed eyes.....and ears... on your creation so I have no idea of its sonic virtue ....however I still think it needs a plinth which I have always said....

 

Have fun...Tase..

 

BTW if your gonna build V3 I would certainly take the opportunity of permanently fixing the headshell to your Univector.... 

 

[andyr]

1 hour ago, Tasebass said:

 

Now c'mon Andy.......

I'm sure the efforts that you placed into the Skeletal are to a very high standard.....but I doubt you've spent the millions Linn have...( and other manufacturers ) to obtain the engineering standards they wanted to achieve with regards to manufacturing of their products.

That said I've never laid eyes.....and ears... on your creation so I have no idea of its sonic virtue ....however I still think it needs a plinth which I have always said....

 

Have fun...Tase..

 

But if different plinths make an LP12 sound different, Tase - shirley, they must all "add something " to the intrinsic LP12 sound?    (And there is an "intrinsic LP12 sound " ... otherwise LP12s with different plinths would all sound completely different - whereas different plinths merely make LP12s sound a bit different.)

 

So removing the plinth ... removes its "addition" to an LP12's sound.

 

Likewise ... all the different top-plates make an LP12 sound different - so not having a top-plate also removes the sonic influence which a top-plate has.  

 

1 hour ago, Tasebass said:

 

BTW if you're gonna build V3 I would certainly take the opportunity of permanently fixing the headshell to your Univector.... 

 

 

I am in the process of having v3 built, as we speak, Tase!    This is being machined out of a solid slab of Duc's favourite material ... Delrin.    It will look sensational when it is finished - and, as I have corrected some errors I found in my weight-distribution spreadsheet ... v3 should have a bit more even weight distribution across the 3 springs than v2 has.

 

This version has the 2 motors attached to 'wings' either side of the bearing cross-brace - which:

1. removes the need for motor pods to be machined, and
2. fixes the motors - and therefore the pulleys - the required distance from the spindle ... removing the need to measure the pulley-to-spindle distance, each time I do work on the TT.

 

And - yay! - the person doing this work is also providing me with one of Duc's fixed headshells for a Univector.  My only issue is ... how TF to get the sleeve on the end of the ebony arm wand off, so I can install the fixed headshell!  

 

Andy

 

[Andrews_melb]

On 27/10/2020 at 6:08 PM, Berkel said:

How about a vintage Micro Seiki ? I heard they were an excellent deck ...... opinions please ?

 

Dennis

Ive got a Micro ‘Solid 5’ which i think is one of their cheapest version of their range, 1970s i think. The tonearm is fantastic but it has some slight speed issues probably due to its age. I havnt had it looked at.

 Ive also got a rp3, and the rega beats it in my set up. 

[Berkel]

14 hours ago, Andrews_melb said:

Ive got a Micro ‘Solid 5’ which i think is one of their cheapest version of their range, 1970s i think. The tonearm is fantastic but it has some slight speed issues probably due to its age. I havnt had it looked at.

 Ive also got a rp3, and the rega beats it in my set up. 

Thanks for that. Rega seems to be a favourite TT with many people.

Cheers,

Dennis