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Akai Ap-b1 vs Sansui FR-D35

M

maple=syrup

New Member
Hi everyone, I recently have gotten into playing records, and have been using an Akai Ap-b1 belt driven turntable for a couple months now. I recently discovered another old Sansui FR-D35 direct drive turntable that my dad had back in the day. The Akai has a Shure 8x stylus on it, and is in need of a replacement belt. The Sansui has a Sansui SC-50 stylus on it, and needs a new foot since one it's missing one. When testing each of them out, I also noticed there was a lot of noise coming from the stylus of the Sansui compared to the Shure stylus on the Akai. I am curious if I should update my turntable to the Sansui, or stay with the Akai that I currently have in my setup, or any pros and cons to each turntable.
Thank you so much :)
 
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While I have no experience of either turntable, I can make some observations. Firstly, the Sansui looks a bit nicer than the Akai. The Sansui is direct-drive, so you wouldn't need to worry about belt replacements. The Akai has a straight arm that is probably low-mass, while the Sansui has an S-shaped arm that is probably medium-mass. As such, the Akai needs a cartridge with a high-compliance stylus (soft suspension), while the Sansui arm should be a bit more flexible with cartridges - most modern cartridge are medium-compliance. This brings me to the cartridge - if you go for the Sansui, you may be wise to upgrade the cartridge to make the most out of this turntable.
 
Crab33 said:
While I have no experience of either turntable, I can make some observations. Firstly, the Sansui looks a bit nicer than the Akai. The Sansui is direct-drive, so you wouldn't need to worry about belt replacements. The Akai has a straight arm that is probably low-mass, while the Sansui has an S-shaped arm that is probably medium-mass. As such, the Akai needs a cartridge with a high-compliance stylus (soft suspension), while the Sansui arm should be a bit more flexible with cartridges - most modern cartridge are medium-compliance. This brings me to the cartridge - if you go for the Sansui, you may be wise to upgrade the cartridge to make the most out of this turntable.
Click to expand...
Based around my budget at the moment, the cartridge I was looking to upgrade to for either turntable was an Audio Technica AT-VM95E. Do you think that would be suitable for the Sansui if I want to get a better sound from it?
 
Yes, that is the exact cartridge I would suggest if you want an upgrade on a very restricted budget. You can buy it already installed in a headshell, if you wish, although you'd still have to do the necessary alignment. Also, don't forget to re-balance the arm and set the required tracking force (2g).
 
Sorry, I should add that the AT-VM95E is only suitable for the Sansui, as the stylus is not high-compliance. For the Akai, you would be better looking at an Ortofon (Super-OM10 perhaps) or simply upgrade the Shure stylus with a good-quality aftermarket, perhaps a hyper-elliptical.
 
Crab33 said:
Yes, that is the exact cartridge I would suggest if you want an upgrade on a very restricted budget. You can buy it already installed in a headshell, if you wish, although you'd still have to do the necessary alignment. Also, don't forget to re-balance the arm and set the required tracking force (2g).
Click to expand...
Okay, I think I'm gonna look into upgrading for the Sansui with the replacement foot and new stylus.
Thank you so much you've been such a huge help I really appreciate it :)
 
I guess (hope) you mean new cartridge? I don't think the AT-VM95E will disappoint you. Good luck!
 
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