Guest Crystara Posted October 26, 2020 Share Posted October 26, 2020 (edited) Hi I have been into hifi for 30+ years, I already have a good system in my listening room, Aura TT (technically it is vintage) some Martin Logan’s but I want to add something vintage Japanese or European wet my toes so to speak, but nothing crazy money Linn Sondek, I would like something that has a Tonearm that I can swap out my cartridges easily preferably the plug in headshell type like the Jelco but not essential, I am thinking Japanese would like it to have wooden base but I am open minded, I would really appreciate your help in finding something that would suit my needs or pointing out options to hunt down and source, Sony, Kenwood, Pioneer, Denon kindest regards Edited October 26, 2020 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mat-with-one-t Posted October 26, 2020 Share Posted October 26, 2020 Hi mate. Everyone’s gonna ask so it may as well be me! A few questions..... - can you define “crazy money”? This definition around here will tend to vary by about 100,000%! Could you just give a budget for TT, arm and cart? - assume you have a phono stage to use with preferred cart’s? - what cart and headshell are you considering? This will dictate the style of arm to choose. Arm length will depend on the plinth and ideal setup - don’t forget Luxman in the mix. Lots of nice units ready to go with nice timber look and good quality - are you excluding Garrard & Thorens for a particularly reason? Lots of offerings there too..... have fun and good luck! With more info you’ll likely find something here! Mat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Old Man Rubber Posted October 26, 2020 Share Posted October 26, 2020 There is a lot to like about the classic Dual idler drive stuff - I had a 1209 and it sounds rather good, the steampunk internals are something to behold and the plinth is entirely up to you. The 1209 is fully automatic which might not suit you but once I saw how the mechanism worked I got a new appreciation for the mechanical detail. Can be a bit noisy though and changing the cartridge is a pain. If you want japanese maybe a classic direct drive unit - Technics is an obvious choice (the SL-1200,1400,1500,1600) can sometimes go for silly money and are hideously complicated with a pile of electronics in them but the quartz locked units can put out a very modern sound for a fraction of the cost that Technics want for the re-launched 1200. They use the classic headshell system and the fibreglass bases might not be to your taste, the auto-stop mechanisms are fragile. Still lovely when they are working. If you want looks, maybe a Denon DP-1200, DP-1600. They look like an alien just landed from the future just so that Bryan Ferry had something funky for his bachelor pad record collection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Crystara Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 3 hours ago, Mat-with-one-t said: Hi mate. Everyone’s gonna ask so it may as well be me! A few questions..... - can you define “crazy money”? This definition around here will tend to vary by about 100,000%! Could you just give a budget for TT, arm and cart? - assume you have a phono stage to use with preferred cart’s? - what cart and headshell are you considering? This will dictate the style of arm to choose. Arm length will depend on the plinth and ideal setup - don’t forget Luxman in the mix. Lots of nice units ready to go with nice timber look and good quality - are you excluding Garrard & Thorens for a particularly reason? Lots of offerings there too..... have fun and good luck! With more info you’ll likely find something here! Mat Hi Mat thank you for your quick response, I would like something under $1000, I have a Graham Slee & Shiit Mani Phono I am a MM cart guy I have a Garrott P77 Shure 15 iv and Nagaoka MP110, Luxman Garrard and Thorne I am happy to try Thanks again mate appreciate your help today Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Crystara Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 (edited) 2 hours ago, Old Man Rubber said: There is a lot to like about the classic Dual idler drive stuff - I had a 1209 and it sounds rather good, the steampunk internals are something to behold and the plinth is entirely up to you. The 1209 is fully automatic which might not suit you but once I saw how the mechanism worked I got a new appreciation for the mechanical detail. Can be a bit noisy though and changing the cartridge is a pain. If you want japanese maybe a classic direct drive unit - Technics is an obvious choice (the SL-1200,1400,1500,1600) can sometimes go for silly money and are hideously complicated with a pile of electronics in them but the quartz locked units can put out a very modern sound for a fraction of the cost that Technics want for the re-launched 1200. They use the classic headshell system and the fibreglass bases might not be to your taste, the auto-stop mechanisms are fragile. Still lovely when they are working. If you want looks, maybe a Denon DP-1200, DP-1600. They look like an alien just landed from the future just so that Bryan Ferry had something funky for his bachelor pad record collection. Nicely put, if the king cool had one in his pad then good enough for me I will take a look at the Denon, the Technics look is not my thing but I am sure the sales figures dictate them to be excellent TT, Dual sounds interesting as I have always been a tradesman I love mechanical stuff cheers mate Edited October 27, 2020 by Crystara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Old Man Rubber Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 (edited) 35 minutes ago, Crystara said: Dual sounds interesting as I have always been a tradesman I love mechanical stuff cheers mate They are astonishingly made, very robust and can be fixed with a hammer when they go wrong, the logic for the auto-start and auto-stop is like a wacky analog computer. If you lean towards mechanic stuff it's pretty hard to beat. You can even buy an autochange spindle to stack a pile of 45s on it if that is your bent. The unfortunate thing about them is the headshell arrangement - if you can find one with a normal headshell that would be preferable, otherwise the cartridge is a weird spring loaded arrangement with a secret agent like release that is the manual arm lifter (it swings back to release the cart). I think they are dead sexy, but my daily driver is a Technics for that reason. I'd love a Denon DP-1600 but just can't justify it with a house full of gear already. edit 2: this guy on Ebay has a few tasty vintage morsels of the asian variety: https://www.ebay.com.au/sch/Record-Players-Home-Turntables/48647/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=&_ssn=lofi_music Edited October 27, 2020 by Old Man Rubber spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eman Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 Mechanism in the old DUAL are an amazing piece of work to the modern eye. Full auto and all cogs and rods. Denon of about 10 years later is pretty much the opposite. The full auto with circuit board and servo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Crystara Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 1 hour ago, Old Man Rubber said: They are astonishingly made, very robust and can be fixed with a hammer when they go wrong, the logic for the auto-start and auto-stop is like a wacky analog computer. If you lean towards mechanic stuff it's pretty hard to beat. You can even buy an autochange spindle to stack a pile of 45s on it if that is your bent. The unfortunate thing about them is the headshell arrangement - if you can find one with a normal headshell that would be preferable, otherwise the cartridge is a weird spring loaded arrangement with a secret agent like release that is the manual arm lifter (it swings back to release the cart). I think they are dead sexy, but my daily driver is a Technics for that reason. I'd love a Denon DP-1600 but just can't justify it with a house full of gear already. edit 2: this guy on Ebay has a few tasty vintage morsels of the asian variety: https://www.ebay.com.au/sch/Record-Players-Home-Turntables/48647/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ipg=&_from=&_ssn=lofi_music He even sell Quitars some sick stuff there mate thanks for the heads up I have a starting point and thank you for taking the time, your vernacular of explaining things is very unique, secret agent like release cracks me up cheers mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Crystara Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 1 hour ago, eman said: Mechanism in the old DUAL are an amazing piece of work to the modern eye. Full auto and all cogs and rods. Denon of about 10 years later is pretty much the opposite. The full auto with circuit board and servo. I am keen to see this thing now you guys have me thinking custom clear acrylic plinth thanks mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Old Man Rubber Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 15 minutes ago, Crystara said: I am keen to see this thing now you guys have me thinking custom clear acrylic plinth thanks mate Angled mirror on the bottom and some LED back lighting so everybody can see the show. Damn I want to build that now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Crystara Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, Old Man Rubber said: Angled mirror on the bottom and some LED back lighting so everybody can see the show. Damn I want to build that now. Now your feeling me, the budget out the window, is this it she is a good looking unit have it facing outwards Edited October 27, 2020 by Crystara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Old Man Rubber Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 Yeah that's a pretty typical one. Dual basically sold the turntable top part, the plinths vary enormously. Not sure which one would be the holy grail of classic Dual - this link suggests the 1229 is the one to have but the 1209 if you find one is a nice bit of gear. My daughter has mine at the moment (just getting into vinyl). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Crystara Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 13 minutes ago, Old Man Rubber said: Yeah that's a pretty typical one. Dual basically sold the turntable top part, the plinths vary enormously. Not sure which one would be the holy grail of classic Dual - this link suggests the 1229 is the one to have but the 1209 if you find one is a nice bit of gear. My daughter has mine at the moment (just getting into vinyl). Lucky girl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expat Posted December 24, 2020 Share Posted December 24, 2020 Have a look on eBay at user Unisound. Masses of vintage Japanese TT's. Priced in US $ so bear that in mind. Also will be 100v AC supply so you will need a transformer. Feedback > 2750 so reputable. Some very sexy Denon and Pioneer direct drive TTs. Enjoy the journey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyW Posted December 24, 2020 Share Posted December 24, 2020 (edited) You can get a Victor/JVC QL-Y5 for around $700 shipped. Then another $330 for a full recap + installing quality RCA sockets and a banana plug. Also a 240VAC to 110VAC step down transformer from Tortech. These servo arm tables really are something special and the QL-Y5 or QL-Y7 take a universal headshell no worries. I moved from a S.A.M. Aldebaran + Fidelity Research FR-14 and FR-64S tonearms and find the JVC noticeably better. Superior speed stability and wow + flutter. The servo damped arms on these tables track beautifully and auto return at the end of each side is fantastic seeing as I've a toddler in the house. Great for nappy changes etc. Definitely an undervalued and underrated table. Edited December 24, 2020 by MattyW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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