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Denon dp-80 (and other vintage direct drives) vs modern turntables

Hi

I have a denon dp80 in his original dk300 cabinet. I changed the feet to some isopuck and new foam pads in the platter. The motor and bearing itself need some maintenance and the platter magnetic strip is scratched in some areas. Im wondering if its worth to invest money and time with it or if im better off buying a modern turntable. Basically my question is, do these old vintage dd turntables stand the chance against more modern designs?

 

 

rockness87

Showing 2 responses by elliottbnewcombjr

elliottbnewcombjr
6,071 posts
 

lewm

he said 'scratched' not stretched.

elliottbnewcombjr
6,071 posts
 

I have a 100v JVC Victor TT81, with a small inexpensive voltage converter, all original, never serviced. I would never mess with it unless it starts to sound like the speed is off. It maintains perfect speed even if I drop all 3 tonearms (using my SUT with 3 front selectable inputs to instantly compare cartridges), as proven by Halcro’s Video of his TT101.

I find Female Vocals, Voices like Annie Lennox, Eva Cassidy, Cassandra Wilson, Betty Carter, Peggy Lee, Abby Lincoln, Ella .... are telltale, they either sound ’right’ or they don’t, you have a control to adjust the speed, use it, see how quickly it becomes obvious to you. 

IOW, if it looses speed, you will know. Then you have a choice to make.

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