Holy Grail TT Search: Semi-Auto/Auto Lift, VTA and Real Wood Veneer?

H

HiFiPhil

New Member
Over the past few years I've bought and sold quite a few vintage low-fi to mid-fi turntables to find my musical preference and fund my hobby. I've realized lately that I have enough $ tied up in lesser machines to sell them all and buy a really nice TT for less than $1000 while keeping a good back up TT. While I'm still searching and reading threads, I'm having more difficulty than expected identifying an "end game" candidate so I'm reaching out to the collective. :music:

Here's my wish list in some manner of priority:
- ideally factory produced (I could veneer a plinth or add an auto-lift but not my first desire)
- ideally semi-automatic but could live with an auto lift/stop at end of record
- reliability (willing to invest in recapping and other maintenance)
- real wood veneer, ideally walnut but very open
- Vertical Tracking Angle (VTA) adjustment

So far I'm finding
Yamaha YP-D8/D10 and GT-750/1000
JVC QL-A7, QL-A75, QL-A95, QL-Y3F, QL-Y5F, QL-Y7, QL-Y55F, QL-Y66F, QL-Y77F
Denon DP-70M, DP-57L, DP-59L, DP-60L, DP-62L, DP-67L, DP-72L, DP-1200 (not a huge fan of the "spaceship" appearance and am leery of reliability)
Dual 721 (not a full wood plinth, not sure if real wood veneer)
Sansui XR-Q7, XR-Q7 II
Thorens TD-145 (not really a fan of the old school appearance)

Are there Sony's, Marantz, Pioneer's or Kenwood's I'm missing? Thanks in advance for any thoughts! :)
 
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Pioneer PL-70L, PL-50L, Kenwood KP-990D, KP-770D come to mind. You may want to browse the Reverb listings for Unisound, Japan. I've purchased several turntables from them (KP-770D, Micro DQ-7, Technics MLA-1) and all arrived in bomb-proof packaging in a week in as listed condition. Note that most are 100 volt and will require a step up transformer. https://reverb.com/shop/unisounds-gear-bazaar?product_type=home-audio
Of all of my current tables the JVC QL-A75 is my go to reference.

JVC.jpg
 
Also have way too many turntables but I've settled on a JVC QL-Y5F as my regular table. It is really nerdy with the q-damping electromagnetic feedback tracking/anti-skate mechanism that, if it goes south, will not be fun to fix. The veneer is finished with a high-gloss and has held up well.

I also have a Pioneer PL-41D that is pretty old school but doesn't have VTA (although you could shim the spindle support to raise the platter somewhat). I've been lucky that I haven't had to do much other than replace the spindle support bearing plate and lubricate. The finish is not glossy and a little lighter shade than the JVC.

Good luck
 
Keep in mind the Yamaha PF1000/800

I see that company Art and Sound has been buying up large amounts of the better vintage tables, and doing a restore/hot-rod to them and then selling them for a much higher price than what they were prior. That being it is bring up the cost of the inventory of what is left out there. They are hot on the Yamaha PF800's.
 
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Thanks bikspk and Ken, I’ll check those out too. Isn’t the PL-41 a full manual? I was just at a friends place ogling his PL-61 this afternoon- they sure are handsome!
 
If you want real wood veneer, you'd need to check some of those models closely. Wood veneers are not the norm on Japanese turntables, wood-look laminates are. I haven't gone through those models one by one, but I'd say that the QL-Y5F and Denon DP59L are both surfaced with shiny plastic, which makes it quite likely that some of the others are as well.
 
Ken Boyd said:
Keep in mind the Yamaha PF1000/800

I see that company Art and Sound has been buying up large amounts of the better vintage tables, and doing a restore/hot-rod to them and then selling them for a much higher price than what they were prior. That being it is bring up the cost of the inventory of what is left out there. They are hot on the Yamaha PF800's.
Click to expand...
Their prices are way too high for what you get. There is a store on ebay that sells some of the higher end vintage Japanese turntables for a much more reasonable cost.
www.ebay.com

vintage_audio_2000 on eBay

Follow vintage_audio_2000 on eBay. Buying, Selling, Collecting on eBay has never been more exciting!
www.ebay.com

For example, they are selling a Pioneer PL-505 for around $600 or a JVC QL-7 for about the same.
 
bkatbamna said:
Their prices are way too high for what you get. There is a store on ebay that sells some of the higher end vintage Japanese turntables for a much more reasonable cost.
www.ebay.com

vintage_audio_2000 on eBay

Follow vintage_audio_2000 on eBay. Buying, Selling, Collecting on eBay has never been more exciting!
www.ebay.com

For example, they are selling a Pioneer PL-505 for around $600 or a JVC QL-7 for about the same.
Click to expand...
Their prices seem high but as you can see everything has been made to like new condition. And updated the choices of colors and upgrades. For the prices they charge you will not find any new table that will meet the specs of the yamaha P800 /1000, near that price. Check what a new SOTA sells for.

But you can find used PF800's in the wild in your price range they won't require much if you buy a clean one.
 
HiFiPhil said:
...So far I'm finding
Yamaha YP-D8/D10 and GT-750/1000
JVC QL-A7, QL-A75, QL-A95, QL-Y3F, QL-Y5F, QL-Y7, QL-Y55F, QL-Y66F, QL-Y77F
Denon DP-70M, DP-57L, DP-59L, DP-60L, DP-62L, DP-67L, DP-72L, DP-1200 (not a huge fan of the "spaceship" appearance and am leery of reliability)
Dual 721 (not a full wood plinth, not sure if real wood veneer)
Sansui XR-Q7, XR-Q7 II
Thorens TD-145 (not really a fan of the old school appearance)

Are there Sony's, Marantz, Pioneer's or Kenwood's I'm missing? Thanks in advance for any thoughts! :)
Click to expand...

I would go with a Victor or Denon from your list. Safest option would be to talk with captmark09 if he's still in business, otherwise you will find these tables from reputable shops in Japan. Be aware the shipping cost is high and it will add a lot to the total. There are many tables you can add in your list, for example from Kenwood the KP-1010/ 9010/990 models.
 
I own a Yamaha PF 800 that I've been quite happy with. It's got a black wood base, so no beautiful wood grain, but it still looks very nice. I think the PF 1000 version of it has stained wood base and maybe a heavier platter, but is otherwise the same...
 
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