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How good is the Micro Seiki DDX-1000 Direct Drive turntable ?

Here is the MICRO DDX-1000 direct drive. Never tried myself, but it is the most compact DD designed for 3 tonearms.

*The question is how good this turntable really is, compared to some other vintage Direct Drives ?


Some information from VintageKnob website:  

The DDX-1000 is the original design, with two sculpted strobe markings around the 2kg / 31cm die-cast aluminium platter. The resulting moment of inertia is at 330kg / cm2 and the top mat in fact covers a thick cork sub-mat set inside the platter itself.

The DDX-1000, in real late 70s modernism is a direct-drive. The motor is a DC-Servo with FG frequency generator reference set through the strobe neon lamp which "checks" how many stripe it sees and rectifies if necessary ; the resulting speed accuracy is of 0,03%.

The starting torque is of 1,2kg / cm and load characteristics allow the DDX-1000 to remain below 0,04% deviation up to a 3g load set at the outer limit of the platter - specs-wise, we're here under the contemporary Sony TTS-8000 for instance...

The heigh-adjustable feet are typical Micro Seiki (or Luxman, of course :) and contain a mix of inert damping (neoprene stuffing) and mechanical damping (spring).

The is no Quartz Lock on the DDX-1000 ; the MD-1000 power-supply box holds the power on/off, start 33rpm, start 45rpm and stop buttons plus two ± 6% speed controls.

The AX-1G to AX-6G tonearm bases fit everything from the ubiquitous SMEs to the Technics EPA-100 or PUA-1600L.

Of course, the motor of the DDX was used as basis for the Marantz Tt 1000 (1979), and that of the DQX-1500 (an updated DQX-1000) for the Tt 1000 mkII (1992). And, as often, Micro's direct-drive motors came from... Victor.


DDX-1000/G :

April 1976 limited edition (really limited : 30 units) custom made in... bronze. Howerever, it is black-looking for the most part, with the bronze only kept visible for the top of the three feet ; the platter was kept in AL and the command box was anodized in all-black style ; even the AX-1/G was in-bronze-but-painted-black...
Names of the people they were made for (and offered to - these were gifts !) were silkscreened on the (bronze...) motor's cache (...but painted black) - a rarity to say the least.


The DDX-1000 naturally spawned a myriad of lookalikes and still does today - perhaps better than the original, perhaps not. Or not that much :) 

128x128chakster
pindac's avatar
pindac
2,864 posts
 
@lewm 
            Thank You for sharing on this thread your Vintage TT Project and your confidence in the Design Produced.
Your Base Price of Canadian/ US $500 , is in keeping with my suggestions that Beginner entering into Vintage TT's will be best served by spending time with a TT that is a Lenco Model.
A very safe purchase at a affordable asking price, that punches way above what is expected.
Add modifications and it becomes a Contender to many other Hi End TT's.
The Lenco Variants of the original TT, are regularly seen as a Source at the Prominent Hi End HiFi shows in Europe. 
alexberger
905 posts
 
EMT 950/948 phonostage sounds very even, neutrar, fast.
But the sound is very rough. Me and my friends prefer EMT with external tube phonostages by a big margin. I know Fabritius sells EMT phonostge board with modern better op-amps.
EMT tonearm is not bad. But it built for EMT TSD15 cartridge. You can can buy headshell for it, but the cartridge should be very short to match the right geometry.

I think the Lenco is the best turntable in therm of design. It is so quiet!
It is unbelievable how it was possible to design such not expensive, quit and accurate mechanics.

Regards,
Alex.
veryoldschoolhonda
1 posts
 

I tripped over  this discussion so please excuse the indulgence. I have a DDX-1000 and I can shake water glasses with bass, jump up and down on the floor with absolutely no audible effect passed through the stylus in the way of skips or feedback. Standing wave onset in a room is the clear enemy. Nothing has loosened or flexed. The rpm accuracy is great and structure is substantial. The clamp-up for the tone arm, leveling bubble etc is akin to a motorcycle front fork, if the truth be told. The 40 year old oil filled structural support dampers being shot on mine  were replaced  with an alternative elastomer, as most people do. I tend to mount this kind of instrument off the wall on an isolated platform, especially the way they build homes these days. I believe I could locate the sub directly under the thing firing sound amo upwards and it would likely still not skip a beat with the dainty SME tonearm at 1.5 grams, thanks to the sheer mass of assembly. The rigid machined platter may seem light but instead of relying on rotating mass for rpm assist stability, it relies extensively on motor control. The thick rubber mat is precision recessed in the platter onto a bonded composite base rather than laying flat on a platter surface.The frequencies this TT is capable of reproducing will certainly exceed those of us lucky enough to party through the 70s and 80s and still hear a fairly wide frequency bandwidth today. Some of the average and higher quality antique stuff is better spec'd than what the modern crayon eating MP3/retro consumer now has available as new. With expensive things the theory of diminishing returns takes over, and unfortunately more often than not, to the extent than any advantage is reasoned and perceived in one's own mind rather than ears. A reasonable hobbyist  would not turn down the chance to acquire a DDX-1000 and hopefully install it correctly. Once we label ourselves an audiofile all bets are off, with CDF happily and willingly thrown out the window. Think what you want I like this thing and it is far better than I deserve.

lewm
13,036 posts
 

Meantime, where is our friend Chakster?

dangcaonguyen
206 posts
 

I have a chance to buy a Luxman PD-444 in excellent condition with one problem which is the brake is not working. Does anyone know if it is an easy fix or if it does affect the turntable performance?

Thank you in advance,

Calvin

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