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Buying TTs on CL

J

judygs

New Member
So after advice on another thread, I decided to look on craigslist for turntables around me. I have no idea why I didn't think of this before :l anyway, there were tons of options! Because I'm so lucky, I'm not going to provide all of the links here... I guess my first question would be how do I choose between all of these tables? I don't want to mess around too much with mods, especially since I'm not into the electrical/engineering part of things (so the most I would be willing to do is replace belts, cartridges, and fairly easy stuff like that). The most important thing for me is obviously sound quality. Anyway, onto the tables:

There were tons of Pioneers: PL A45D ($45); PL-250 ($179); PL-200 ($160); PL-7 ($300); PL-516 ($330); PL 12-D II ($185).

NAD 5020A ($68)
MCS 6601 ($125); MCS 6205 ($150)
Dual 1229Q ($225)
Marantz 2200 ($80)
Optonica RP-4705 ($80)
Audio Reflex DD 210 ($80)
JVC A10 ($100)
Technics SL-B200 ($140); SL-5 ($100)
Thorens TD 165 ($475); TD 145 ($425); TD 280 MK IV ($350)
Sansui XP-99 ($500)

Are any of these ridiculously priced if we assume they are all in great condition? And are any of them not worth my time anyway? I currently have an AT-LP60BK-BT (which was my first turntable) and want an upgrade. All of these are in my price range (although of course the less I can spend the better) and I can see them all in person. Any help would be appreciated!
 
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judygs said:
So after advice on another thread, I decided to look on craigslist for turntables around me. I have no idea why I didn't think of this before :l anyway, there were tons of options! Because I'm so lucky, I'm not going to provide all of the links here... I guess my first question would be how do I choose between all of these tables? I don't want to mess around too much with mods, especially since I'm not into the electrical/engineering part of things (so the most I would be willing to do is replace belts, cartridges, and fairly easy stuff like that). The most important thing for me is obviously sound quality. Anyway, onto the tables:

There were tons of Pioneers: PL A45D ($45); PL-250 ($179); PL-200 ($160); PL-7 ($300); PL-516 ($330); PL 12-D II ($185).

NAD 5020A ($68)
MCS 6601 ($125); MCS 6205 ($150)
Dual 1229Q ($225)
Marantz 2200 ($80)
Optonica RP-4705 ($80)
Audio Reflex DD 210 ($80)
JVC A10 ($100)
Technics SL-B200 ($140); SL-5 ($100)
Thorens TD 165 ($475); TD 145 ($425); TD 280 MK IV ($350)
Sansui XP-99 ($500)

Are any of these ridiculously priced if we assume they are all in great condition? And are any of them not worth my time anyway? I currently have an AT-LP60BK-BT (which was my first turntable) and want an upgrade. All of these are in my price range (although of course the less I can spend the better) and I can see them all in person. Any help would be appreciated!
Click to expand...

The first two Thorens are a good price if in good condition, they have gone up in price and usually sell for more these days.

Surprised the 165 is more than the 145, the 145 is the more desirable table.
 
grillebilly said:
I would go check out the 145 first. Another consideration is do they come with a cartridge and if so what's on it.
The cheaper ones are priced that way for a reason, not very desirable but they may sound OK.
Click to expand...

So given my goal of wanting the best sound quality, the 145 would be my best bet to look at?
Here's the link for you to check out for more details:
https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ele/d/portland-vintage-thorens-td145-turntable/7237923295.html
I have no issue with the cosmetic issues with the dust cover.
 
The first question I'll ask is what do you require in a TT? Do you want auto-lift? Auto-stop? Semi-Automatic or Automatic?

A pretty wide variety of performance and features there.

Cartridge and (verified good) stylus can affect the value quite a bit, as can a good dust-cover and plinth.

The make and model is only part of the equation.
 
So I'll provide the narrowed down list with links now. I completely agree (with SaturationPt) about the make and model not being the only factor! I just wanted to give a broad picture of what I was looking at in my original post.

https://portland.craigslist.org/clc/ele/d/oregon-city-pioneer-pl-516-turntable/7237538878.html
https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ele/d/portland-pioneer-pl-12d-ll-turntable/7237336420.html
https://eugene.craigslist.org/ele/d/eugene-dual-1229q-turntable/7227491757.html
https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ele/d/portland-jvc-a10-turntable/7224498657.html
https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ele/d/portland-vintage-thorens-td145-turntable/7237923295.html
https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ele/d/portland-vintage-thorens-td-165/7236685967.html
https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ele/d/portland-rare-sansui-dual-platter/7236450513.html

Any advice on any of them is appreciated! And if there are any red flags or sure-fire no's in there, let me know why so I know for future purchases!!
 
You seemed to entertain $600-700 in your other thread or perhaps that was just what you were seeing?

I read that you would like to get something that gets you half-way there and maybe upgrade in a while?

It might be worth your while to consider what you could realistically be comfortable spending and then concentrate on spending that much. Of course finding a good deal doesn't go out the window with this, it just helps you be a little more focused on what a certain budget can buy.

I see a Vpi HW19 and it's a bit above your previously stated numbers. But ask and get aren't always the same, especially on craigslist. So the guy is asking $1100. You offer $800....$850....$900, who knows where it goes, but the table would not need to be destined for upgrade for a long while. Additionally it's not finicky. It's quite reliable. It sounds quite good. It will hold its value, especially if you were to get a deal at my suggested offer numbers.

Anyway, I thought that I would suggest a slightly different approach to the way you are looking at things.
 
I still stick with my first recommendation, the Thorens TD145, or 165. The Dual would be my third choice although I think it's performance on par with the Thorens, just the Thorens looked in a bit better condition.
 
Grenadeslio said:
if budget is $700 I can definitely recommend a few tables.
Click to expand...

I'm hoping to stay under $600 for the table itself at the moment (before I was looking at ebay and had my price point a bit high because there weren't many tables I was interested in in my ideal price range). Yes, recs would be appreciated!
 
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