A budget turntable exploration


Hey all!

Let's see how long politics will stay out of this seemingly innocuous discussion.

A few months ago I decided to get a vinyl system for my classroom primarily so my students can play their vinyl on something other than the Crosleys most of them have.

I found a Technics SL-B30 on craigslist for $45, brought it home and realized it had never been cleaned or serviced (though it had been kept in good condition). So I found the service manual online and started taking it apart. Degunked all the ancient grease, cleaned the contacts and resoldered some of the pins that looked a bit flaky. My wife said I looked a bit flaky and tried to solder me but I managed to wrangle the soldering gun back and return to the task at hand. 

The belt was as ancient and stretched as an octogenarian pole dancer and I know the P-mount Ortofon 10 was original and probably had 275000 years on it. A new belt and an AT85 cartridge quickly appeared. A close cleaning and polish and the thing looked like it had just come out of the box!

Actually, it didn't. The dustcover was seriously scratched and smudged and no amount of soft scrub or plastic polish made a demonstrable difference. Plus, one of the plastic hinges was missing and so the cover cannot maintain an up position. But whatever. The proof is in the sound and performance. 

I let the AT85 play several spins of Analogue Productions Ultimate Analogue Test LP to serve as a break in for the cartridge and then put on a familiar and sonically pleasing LP, Bruce Cockburn's Dancing in the Dragon's Jaws (1979), followed but Janelle Monae's virtuoso production Dirty Computer (2018), finished up with Heifetz' even more virtuoso performance off Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto in D Major (RCA Red Seal,1958; cond. Reiner). Wow! This bargain basement set up was surpassing my much more expensive and well-built main rig!

Of course it wasn't. I mean, the total cost of turntable and new cartridge and belt was less than 10% of my Maestro Ebony V2 cartridge alone. But that's not the point. The sound from the Technics SL-B30 and the AT85 running through a Schitt Mani into a Schiit Raggie 2 and then Reference 3A de Capos was quite good. A full and enveloping soundstage, great instrument separation, and a a balanced spectrum projection with only the high frequencies seeming rolled off. The Technics and Mani are bound for my classroom in the fall where, with a pair of Audioengine A5 powered speakers, it'll show my students what their vinyl can sound like on an inexpensive but good system within their financial reach - should they want to pursue it. 

Good, satisfying sound can be had for far less than some feel you have to spend in order to be satisfied. 

 

128x128simao

I bought a pair of Audioengine A5 two months ago, they punch way above their price. Not sure how they will sound in a big classroom though.

@simao You might also consider a SpinClean to remove those teenage fingerprints.

@lewm. Yes, the de Capos compensate for a lot. I switch between them and the Reference 3A MM Gen 2, which are a bit warmer. 

@noromance. True. But as long as they know vinyl can sound decent. 

@mahler123. English! High school and collegiate. 

 

Smart move getting a fully automatic turntable. I guarantee that whatever age your students are, they have no clue how delicate a record is. 

Recently, I had a young friend over (he is 31yo and I am 69yo) and his reaction to hearing quality sound for the first time was almost comical. He sat in the sweet spot with the iPad most of night, just picking songs a grinning like an idiot.

 

The key to your success (defined here as satisfaction) is or may be in great measure due to the fact that the Reference 3A Da Capo is a superb speaker that could probably reveal any upstream improvements.

Well done you for encouraging the younger generation to experience Vinyl.

In a Circular Economy this sort of new enthusiasm, for older Tech' being reintroduced to the Trades taking place is a Cornerstone.  

Great stuff. I would counsel you, if I may, not to oversell the setup lest they assume this is what the best turntable hi-fi sounds like. Most of the kids will have no clue and no baseline reference.

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Nice job resurrecting something for a very worthwhile and hopefully infectious cause!  Let us know how the youngsters react to the “new” sound.  Fortunately it sounds like you have a pretty low bar for comparison.  Out of curiosity, how old are your students?  I remember “seeing” a stereo image floating between two speakers for the first time when I was 12 and it changed my life forever so hope you manage to affect/ignite some youngsters similarly.  Go get’em!