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What is Technics thinking?

Lots has been said, both pro and con, about the new Technics turntable.  Description here -

http://www.sl1200gae.info/about

Some are excited about the potential, given the upgrades since their last production table/arm, the venerable SL-12XX series.  Others see it simply as an excuse to raise the price significantly of the 1200s.

In my view they shot themselves in the foot.  They copied the model number of their best selling table (I can only imagine in the hope the familiarity will carry over) and also ended up with a very similar appearance.  Given the information on all the upgrades over their prior model, the similarities make it appear like something less than what it might be.

Technics had a room at THE Show Newport and that was my first chance to see a SL-1200GAE.  The fit and finish appeared to be very good but it did look like a "polished up" SL-12XX.  I ask the Technics rep why they didn't do more to distinguish this as a new model, given their efforts with engineer upgrades.  He said he could understand my question but then really didn't offer a reasonable explanation.  After describing all the components which had been redesigned/upgraded from the prior model he offered a demo.  However the room was crowded and the remainder of the system was completely unfamiliar, so no fair impression could be made.

I believe it should have had a more unique model designation and more might have been done to the physical package so it didn't look so much like the prior model.

pryso

Showing 6 responses by raymonda

raymonda
855 posts
 
Mods are already being done to the power supply, thus improving the apparent and still problematic cogging effect that the new unit has. Also, replacing the tonearm plate and tone arm appears to bring the table up to snuff with some reports indicating that it approaches the Sp10 mkiii. It also adds another 3000 or more to the cost, but then you have an almost realized product.

I guess if you can get one discounted at around 1000 and then invest the rest in the mods you'll have a nice sounding table, if you can get over the DJ looks. I rather spend my money on something else.

raymonda
855 posts
 
All direct drives cog. Whether or not you hear it or notice it's impact is individualized. Timestep does the mods. Feel free to go to their website for more information.

raymonda
855 posts
 
I frankly don't care what it does or doesn't do. This is what has been reported by others and the subsequent mods they have done to correct it.

Now if they would have improved upon its look they might have hooked me. I also feel I would preferred leaving the tone arm choice up to me.

raymonda
855 posts
 
As in all things audio, where some see beauty others see moles. 

My question is, "What is it that Timestep identifies with the drive that led them to such radical mods?" 

You can read their whites papers on line, and they convey a strong rational, albeit, I don't have the knowledge or instruments to verify their findings. Are they full of it, or is there really a mole on the Mona Lisa? 

Maybe it is a matter of excellence being the enemy of the very good.

raymonda
855 posts
 
http://www.hi-fiworld.co.uk/index.php/vinyl-lp/30/827.html?showall=1
raymonda
855 posts
 

"Which brings me to cogging. We encountered this after fitting a Mike New bearing to our Timestep Evo SL-1210 Mk2. It increased drag a little by being larger in diameter and lubricated by heavier oil, showing the old motor didn’t have ‘enough in reserve’ to cope with the change. The cogging that appeared was at 6.6Hz (see our Feb 15 issue) but since it measured a very low 0.05% it was hardly a mechanical disaster and unlikely to have any major influence on sound quality.

   Ironically, our analysis of the new motor shows an identical component at 6.6Hz so it too is a 12 pole motor spinning at 33rpm (12 x 0.55Hz = 6.6Hz) and this is what our analysis makes clear. So cogging has not been eliminated; it exists at a very low level, much like before. But platter weight and quality of construction has improved – the important point.

What I’ll finally note with regard to the platter is that it is all-metal and not a large, heavy acrylic disc of the sort common to belt drives – and this likely influences its sound more than the minimal amounts of cogging our high resolution spectrum analysis is able to detect."


Here is the ULR for Hifi World review in which they mentioned it.

Again, I think the general reviews have been very good and with Timesteps mod it might be a case of the excellent being the enemy of the very, very good.


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