My Garrard Lab 80 Obsession
- Thread starter gillsev
- Start date
SFBayArch
Super Member
Welcome back!
Looks like you got the Pickering of the litter with that one.
Looks like you got the Pickering of the litter with that one.
Back in the game and thrilled about it!!
johnjhazel
PhxJohn
Just bought a Lab 80 last night from Ebay. Should arrive in about a week.
Congratulations. I haven't used either one of my other tables since getting my Lab 80. Just sounds too good.
johnjhazel
PhxJohn
Sounds familiar. I have not used my absurdly upgraded Rega with Ortofon Quintet Blue since I got my stock AR 77-XB and fitted it with a GE VR 1000 cartridge with EVG 2751DE stylus.
johnjhazel
PhxJohn
Since the Lab 80 has a medium mass tonearm, I am probably going to install my second GE VR 1000 cartridge in the headshell.
Should work well. I'd love to try one but the one's out there are too rich for my blood.
I have several head shells and carts to use with the Lab 80, my present favorite being a Stanton 600 cart with a Pickering D625E stylus. Everything sounds great with it.
Lab 80 beauty. I am having one of those "should have never sold it" moments.
Exactly why I got another. Too many of those moments.
johnjhazel
PhxJohn
My first GE VR 1000, I paid $220. The second one, I grabbed at $164. It was a $10 cartridge in the mid 1960's. Most other brands cost about twice as much at the time. I posted extensively on the SteveHoffman forums about the GE VR stereo cartridges. I have a Golden Classic and VR-225 as well. Those were a 'short story' as trying to find useable styli is difficult. The styli are out there...more like in here....because I bought quite a few, but the rubber suspensions are dried up and they track terribly. They play mono records okay but the lack of vertical compliance is a real problem for them on stereo records. Peter Pritchard (of ADC and Sonus fame) designed the VR 1000 which is a totally different animal. I had read threads about people having to track at 5+ grams with the VR 1000. I was on a mission to prove that with a good stylus, the VR 1000 was just as workable as a Shure M3D. I did find an excellent stylus for the VR 1000. It is the EVG 2751DE which is an elliptical. It tracks great at just 3 grams. Since styli are no longer manufactured anywhere for the GE VR stereo cartridges, I bought out all remaining EVG 2751DE stock. The VR 1000 excels at channel separation, dynamics, clarity, and detail/resolution. I call it the 'poor man's London Decca'.
Have you compared it the M3D/M7D? I really like those on the Lab 80. Have a N21D stylus too, to track lighter.
johnjhazel
PhxJohn
No I have not. My stereo dealer has a box of cartridges. If there is an M3D or M7D in there, I will get a new stylus for it and try it. What intrigued me about the VR 1000 is that it generates the signal at the stylus tip instead of at the far end of the cantilever. I expected better transient response and dynamics because of that and it really delivers. My 'generic' cartridge is an Ortofon Quintet Blue and I currently prefer to listen to the VR 1000.
johnjhazel
PhxJohn
I had 2 pairs of Klipsch KG 4's over the years. The M55 was essentially the V15.I was swapping back and forth between the Shure M3D with the JICO N21D and the Shure M55 with an original Shure N55E stylus, and while they were both very very satisfying, I would have to give the nod to the M55
johnjhazel
PhxJohn
The M7/N21D caught my interest when I was very young and that cartridge was 'current'. The thing about the GE VR 1000 is that is is neither moving magnet nor moving coil. Only the cantilever moves generating the signal. Some people think it is an impossible or flawed design but it seems to work very well to me. The Garrard Lab 80 that I have now is really rough. I am looking for a better example. I did buy and receive the umbrella spindle which does work. The 45 rpm stacker spindle should be here soon. Right now I am playing my AR 77-XB with GE VR 1000 which is a nice combo. I have a quite new Rega/Ortofon combination in the livingroom but I seem to be into vintage right now.
