Fixing Up Old Thorens

Kemp, I suggest you spend some time on http://www.theanalogdept.com/ website. It will give you detailed info on your 150. Best belts to use and where to purchase, how to oil the bearing and what oil to use, dialing in the suspension, tweaks, making an armboard, the best DIY mats, etc. SME 3009 arms seem to be the most popular arms on these tables.

If you take off the bottom cover and take a look, you will be amazed at Thorens simplicity. One of it's strong points, very simple to work on and everything you need to know is discussed in detail on the site provided above.

I highly recommend you do this maintenance yourself, it is very simple and easy and you will learn alot in the process.

The only real expense will come if you change arms. Everything else is peanuts.

Go for it!

You may get this up and running for almost no money. No doubt a new belt is needed. Get one intended for Thorens turntables, as they are slightly narrower than most generic replacement belts. If you are up to it, clean and lube the spindle bearing otherwise just add a drop or two of oil to the bearing well. See the analog dept website for more help. The TD 150 Mk II was (and still is) an excellent turntable, including the tonearm. If you are not sure how many hours are in the stylus, get a new one or replace the cartridge.

Have to agree with Goofytwoshoes. I recently bought a nice old TD160 and other than cleaning and adding a touch of Synthetic oil to the bearing..Still have the original belt.. No extra cost except for clening materials and 1 can of Synthetic oil.. Looks and works great...Pick up a cheap cartridge ( before you heavily in invest ) to see what type of cartridge you want to spend real money on..Give it a litle time and use what you have on hand first......

Hi guys I recently purchased a Thorens TD 150 (MK 1 I think). I added a RB300 tonearm with Ortofon red.The initial test was very disapointing, with vertually no bass. Any ideas as to why this is happening? I have a decent amp and speakers. I am a joiner and am really looking forward to building a new plinth from maple and a lovely piece of ebony for the arm board, but my enthusiasim has waned with the poor bass level.

Tomjacksons, the lack of bass likely means that the platter is now too close to the top plate and you need to adjust the springs. There is a good tutorial at the analogdept site, and this post at Vinyl Engine from a former Thorens employee will also help you learn how to do this--http://www.vinylengine.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=7020&highlight=justage

Scroll down to the post by Violette. On that-auction-site the poster Violette (Joel) also sells wonderful lubricants and Thorens-spec belts for the various Thorens models.

Also at VE is a Thorens overhaul guide (authored by Violette) that you might print for reference, it's terrific.

Jim

to Tomjacksons :

I have the same experience with the Rega RB300 on another turntable. It seems to have a very "midrange" sound. Very weak bass. As far as i can remember speed accuracy = good treble and all the bass is essentially in the arm...

Make sure the rear of the arm is high enough too. If it is too low, bass modulation will reduce the tracking pressure, IOW weak bass.

Also make sure you have the cartridge connections correct. If one channel is out of phase, you may experience weak bass.