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Out of production reference turntables



Hi Folks:

I am sure that there are a sizeable bunch of us who have no qualms about purchasing a piece of gear who's manufacturer no longer exisits but the sound and build quality is fantastic and reliable.

In the analog realm the modern turntable that is my benchmark for the sound I prefer is the VPI TNT.

When I was first seriously getting into this hobby, I remember reading about a few top end tables that, at the time, were considered the best. I would like to get some opinions as to how the following reference tables compare to gear made today using the VPI "signature sound" as a comparison.

1. Goldmund Reference
2. Forsell Air Reference
3. Rockport (any model except the Sirius)
4. Oracle

Thank you for reading.

D.H.
danhirsh

Showing 2 responses by dougdeacon

dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Silly me. All these long years I thought the tunes were provided by the musicians. They actually come from the turntable! So do I need a different table for each key? Which one should I use if I'm playing Schoenberg or Webern? ;-)

I actually appreciate it when someone gushes about the "musicality" of a TT, or of any component for that matter. Lets me know right away that I should look elsewhere for neutrality.
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Naimfan,

Interesting observations.

The Rockport seperated instruments better in space. That implies superior reproduction of the time domain. Perhaps due to better speed stability?

The Goldmund seperated instruments better in timbre or tonality. That implies superior reproduction of the mix of frequencies that gives each instrument its unique voice. Perhaps due to better control of the spurious resonances that can muddy clean stylus tracing?

All speculation on my part, since I haven't heard either table. But maybe useful to D.H., who's also trying to audition these tables without actually being able to hear them.
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