If you were looking for a direct drive turntable ...


Let's say one that cost less than $3K, with cartridge, what would you look at? I'd been thinking about a Technics SL-1200GR, but they seem no longer to be available. Which has led me to the Thorens 403, the Music Hall Stealth, and ...?

Please do help.

Unless, that is, I end up getting a Rega and stick with belt drive.

Thanks for indulging me on my quest, as I'm old and don't have limitless funds.

-- Howard

 

hodu

Showing 6 responses by mijostyn

@elliottbnewcombjr , I think you might want to put your piano somewhere else. Play your system loud, open the top of you piano and stick your head down in there. It is a symphony of resonance. That is precisely what it was designed to do!.

I had to move our Parlor Grand because of this.

@elliottbnewcombjr , Yes, it is like a grand. The top should be open during play or you get a muffled sound especially since it is up against a wall. I would think "In the Garden of Eden" would do it.

Turntables that are "tanks" are not necessarily better. Turntables that were intended for commercial work were designed to take a beating. Rumble was not so much of a problem as Radio does not go below 50 Hz (if I remember correctly) not to mention nobody used subwoofers back then. Now that vinyl is dead to radio stations nobody makes turntables for that purpose and all those commercial tables got dumped on the market initially for cheap until someone figured out they could plant them on nice looking plinths and sell them for ridiculous money. Why was Edgar Villchur's little belt drive so popular? $75 got you a turntable that handily outperformed all the commercial ones. It was so good Thorens and Linn dandied up the design and still sell them. Sota added a twist to the suspension then SME and Basis copied them. There are nor a few hyper expensive direct drives out there now but the majority of them are belt drives. Oscillating motors do not belong under phonograph cartridges. 

I should say, "oscillating motors do not belong under phonograph cartridges" unless you are Russian. The fridged siberian environement creates a superconductive path through the motor's armature that absorbs stray magnetic fields. This also helps inexpensive very old antique crtridges sound better, even if they have no stylus left. 

@cleeds , can you tell me how a motor turns?

@rauliruegas , sorry, I will have to disagree with you on that one. We made that direct comparison in the store I worked from. Remember I told you I Had L07 M amplifiers? I got those at salesman's comp because we carried the Kenwood line. Our turntable of choice besides the ridiculously expensive Goldmund was the Linn LP 12 of which I owned two. We had to decide which to sell to customers so we direct ABed them with the same cartridge. I can't remember for sure but I think it was the Koetsu Rosewood. The Kenwood had the typical Direct Drive muddiness we heard in every direct drive of the day. We even swapped the cartridges to make sure it was not a cartridge problem. Very impressive display. So Raul, no it is not better than a Rega P1 never mind an LP 12 or my current table and you know what I think of LP 12's. I was actually thinking of getting the Kenwood. I loved the amplifiers and the turntable was very cool looking. But, it s--ked. It is one of the DDs we tested that made me a die hard belt drive fan. I have never listened to Chakster's turntable and Luxman made some great equipment.