Inexpensive Good Vintage Turntables?

Reacting to the ’vintage’ post, there are more older tables that performed well; not SOTA for their era, but may have gotten matched with a ’so-so’ arm and cart.

I’ve an older Marantz table that I intend to mate with a tangential arm, cart subject to budget and reasonable ’returns’ for it as a whole ’performance concept’. *L*

(SOTA is a state of mind, imho... ;) ...There will Always Be Better...*G*)

Have an old Rabco SL8 (...yes, go and cringe....it’s ok...) that could be subject to the plethora of mods for grins....but a diy tang arm is not out of consideration...

"I have the technology..."
The time?

*meh*L*

Pivot arms will be rejected.
Like you, I have my preferences...*S*

And, it hinges on your expectations, as usual....

...or budget.... ;)

I think the question is, "How vintage do you want it?"

I bought the #1 selling HiFi turntable of my early youth, the German-made Dual 1019. These were state-of-the-art best-sellers from 1965-70 and millions were sold in the USA on even the highest-end stereos! It’s an idler-wheel turntable (not exactly belt-drive OR direct-drive). Its low-mass tonearm supports 0.5gm tracking force, anti-skate, fully automatic and semi-automatic operation, 16, 33, 45, 78, pitch control, cueing, 33rpm installable changer spindle, 45rpm installable changer spindle(!), a do-everything table. Wow and flutter might be a tiny bit off of a quartz-feedback modern table but everything else is superb. Compared to turntables today I think you’d need to spend $800+. Many service specialists rebuild these tables.

As for headshells, Dual TK-12 headshell 3D reprints are available on EBay. As for cartridges dozens will work and I recommend Shure M44 (Jico M44 now), M55, Shure V15 or M97xe (M44 is perhaps the best selling cartridge of all time.) Modern Ortofon cartridges like red or blue or black will also mount on these.

In my opinion #1 is the cartridge, #2 is the tonearm (low mass is better, and anti-skating is essential), and #3 is the drive-technology & turntable features.  Dual 1019 has ALL THE FEATURES you could ever want and a highly competitive tone arm so this high-end 60’s table can still be competitive where it matters - in the sound coming out of your speakers.

Harmon Kardon T65C was nicknamed the "poor man's Linn Sondek"

Belt drive with auto lift.