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First TT, not sure what to get!

S

SamSquanch

New Member
There is a few older turntables for sale in my area, I've read reviews(which is how I found this forum) on all them, but I'm still not sure which one would be the best choice, this will be my first TT! Powering it will be a Technics sa-ax710.

Technics SL-M1 with a Grado GT cart/stylus $160.00

Pioneer PL-520 with a Stanton 500 cart/ stylus $100.00

Kenwood KD-3070 with an Astatic MF200 cart/stylus $80.00

Kenwood KD-2055 with new Audio-Technica cart/stlyus $125.00

I really have no idea which is the best option there is lots of good things written about all them. So please enlighten me with all your wonderful wisdom!!
 
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SamSquanch said:
There is a few older turntables for sale in my area, I've read reviews(which is how I found this forum) on all them, but I'm still not sure which one would be the best choice, this will be my first TT! Powering it will be a Technics sa-ax710.

Kenwood KD-3070 with an Astatic MF200 cart/stylus
Click to expand...

Welcome to the AK turn table forum!

Take a test drive of the Kenwood KD-3070 with the Astatic MF 200 cartridge and hopefully the Shibata stylus.

Make sure all the features are functional!

It is a very reliable work horse.

The cartridge is pretty rare, take good care of it.:music:

Kenwood KD-3070
http://www.vinylengine.com/library/kenwood/kd-3070.shtml

Astatic MF 200
http://www.vinylengine.com/library/astatic/mf-200.shtml
 
I have also found a Dual 505 for 50$. From what I've read Dual puts alot into reducing external sources of distortion. Which would a nice thing in my old creaky hut. So many choices!!!!
 
The KD3070 has the cast resin base. Should go a long way to reducing external vibrations. I don't notice footfalls with either my KD550 or Kd5070 like I do with other TT's. If everything is working, $80 is a good price.

Have fun.
 
Don't ignore the Technics SL-M1... same technology as the SL1200, specifically focused on the consumer/home/audiophile market.

It is a very serious turntable - the Grado GT cartridge is pretty good too.

The SL-M1 came in an S-arm 1/2" cartridge mount version as well as a straight arm p-mount version.

http://www.thevintageknob.org/technics-SL-M1.html

The Kenwood 3070 has a good reputation but is a bit more plebeian and less high end than the Technics.

The MF200 cartridge on the other hand is legendary - it is a cartridge that its owners rave about...

I think the best table mentioned is the SL-M1, the best cartridge mentioned is the MF200.

Dual 505 is a nice turntable, but again, not a competitor to the SL-M1.

The SL-M1 tonearm damping should make it both a better arm than the other choices mentioned here, and allow it to work with a wider variety of cartridges...

It would be my pick, especially if it is the p-mount/T4P version - I am not sure whether the S-Arm version had the damping, or whether they transferred an SL1200 arm to it...

bye for now

David
 
The SL-M1 doesn't have the S arm in the pictures, It's straight. Would the SL-M1 and the MF200 cartridge be compatible with each other? It's the same person selling all them so I could try and talk him into switching them.

Thanks for the advice so far!!
 
whitey said:
I think the Technics is a p-mount. Different animal altogether.
Click to expand...

Doesn't matter all that much, plenty of good 'P' mount carts still available new/used and with Jico SAS replacement stylii they are still competitive. Grado still offers the better replacement stylii for all their carts incl the 'P' mounts.
 
The Straight arm SL-M1 is a purely p-mount arm.

The good thing is that it is an arm specifically designed for high compliance p-mount cartridges - the damping, and arm mass are all oriented around that.

It is a true audiophile p-mount design.

The downside of this is that you are limited to p-mount cartridges. (which does not include the MF200)

However you do have some excellent choices out there:

Sub $50:
Audio Technica AT92
Shure M92e
(both have excellent stylus upgrades as well - which take them into a whole different class of performance)

Sub $100
Grado Black (other Grado's up to the Gold range up to $200, and you can take it a notch further by fitting an 8MZ or MTZ stylus....)


Around $150
Digitrac 300SE (this one is an absolute gem - great value for money, basically on unlabelled Ortofon OM30)
Ortofon OM20 (a notch down from the Digitrac, very good though)

There are other options out there, and there are quite a lot of classic P-mount cartridges from the 80's for which excellent styli are still available.


BUT: by getting the SL-M1 you join the lunatic fringe of p-mount cartridge afficionados, appreciators of that great forgotten standard which had so much potential but ended up being killed by digital.
(I count myself as a card carying member of that lunatic fringe...)

bye for now

David

p.s. the grado cartridge that comes on there is very good, and can be upgraded a long way with stylus upgrades like the 8MZ and MTZ
 
The SL-M1 is nice, but should have had the S arm and the Technics P-Mount headshell included. It's the best P mount model they built but for light mass MM cartridges quite excellent. I love it as a rule.
 
Pio1980 said:
Doesn't matter all that much, plenty of good 'P' mount carts still available new/used and with Jico SAS replacement stylii they are still competitive. Grado still offers the better replacement stylii for all their carts incl the 'P' mounts.
Click to expand...

If you had read the post above mine you would have understood what I said.
 
my middle of the road technics sl-qd33r is great so a high ender should be even better! no fuss p mount and mine has not had so much as a hiccup in the 5 months ive been using it. best of all it was a free score. all panasonic/technics stuff ive ever owned is bulletproof and this recent turntable is no exception.
 
I picked up a Technics SL-M1 off CL for $100. It has a Stanton DL 6800EL cartridge and have just set it up. It weighs a ton and sounds great, very quiet. I need to buff out the dust cover since it has some scratches and do a general clean up. Any suggestions on a new mat?
 

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SamSquanch said:
There is a few older turntables for sale in my area, I've read reviews(which is how I found this forum) on all them, but I'm still not sure which one would be the best choice, this will be my first TT! Powering it will be a Technics sa-ax710.

Technics SL-M1 with a Grado GT cart/stylus $160.00
Click to expand...

I would die for a SL-M1.

Get one, fit a cheap Technics P2x cartridge (i.e. P22, P23, P202), change the stylus for a JICO SAS stylus and done, enjoy great sound.
 
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