I have ordered a Pioneer PLX-1000 direct drive turntable.....

[beatcomber]

First off this Pioneer is no "budget" turntable at $700. If the OP wants to test and do a review fine with me but this Pioneer will never be on my turntable shopping list no matter what anyone says, dozens of better choices abound. It's like saying I have to eat/sample every item on the super market shelves/freezers to find out if I might be missing something. I know what I like and it isn't going to made by Hanpin.

An interesting POV considering how enthusiastic you are about the U-Turn Orbit.

I'd be surprised if the U-Turn can outperform this Pioneer... but then again, we're talking $179 vs. $699.

 

[telemike]

Thanks to the OP for the upcoming review.

 

[imdocjas]

 

[SkyLounger]

I can't wait for Wayner to post his findings...

I have seen this Pioneer table twice in the flesh; once in Manchester, UK, and once in Frankfurt, GER, in specialized audio shops, and just by looks and feel alone, it seems like a worthy buy, although I haven't heard it.

 

[jazzwolf]

I'm really looking forward to the review. I definitely don't need another turntable but I would love to see another decent direct drive turntable out there.

 

[Frank Sol]

As I mentioned in the other, now deceased, thread... Would be nice if KAB's fluid damper fits this TT - Maybe in this review we will get an opinion if it might

 

[GPJeff]

I'm looking forward to a sales pitch hype headline review like:
"It's a steal at this price! You'll spend $3,000+ to get better!"
"The blackest backgrounds and 4 veils removed"
"How to piss off an Audiophile"
"Precision high definition details..."
"Holy mother of crap, the best table under $x,xxx!"

 

[jhtstone]

Don't mistake negativity for reality.

I don't.

 

[WaynerN]

I'm looking forward to a sales pitch hype headline review like:
"It's a steal at this price! You'll spend $3,000+ to get better!"
"The blackest backgrounds and 4 veils removed"
"How to piss off an Audiophile"
"Precision high definition details..."
"Holy mother of crap, the best table under $x,xxx!"

Perhaps you need to read my previous posts. I'm not a reviewer, I do not work for Pioneer and I have nothing in this except to help fellow vinyl guys or newbies. I have a degree in designing, and have done mechanical, optical and electrical designs. If you are into the NBA or NHL, or some college basketball, look at the Statue of Liberty at night, or check the time on the Met Life skyscraper, you will see some of my work. If you read the Absolute Sound magazine, you will have seen some of my designs.

I don't do fluff, I do numbers and geometry. I work with geometry all the time. It is my life. I'm going to take all of these skill sets that I have been blessed with and try to do a review for this table, how it works (or doesn't work (for some)) as best as I can. There will be no pep rally.

It will either work (and satisfy myself) or it wont, and if it doesn't, it gets shipped back to the vendor. The end.

Wayner

 

[Brett a]

No, not really. It's possible for someone to make certain assumptions based on published specs but it's not possible to actually know anything. The only way to do that is to properly audition it yourself.

That is not really correct is it. If you want to know how the specs are met you have to measure in the same way. Audition will not tell you much.

John

I took Boreas' point to be that if you can't hear it, it really doesn't matter. For example, if I'm sitting listening to a 'table and it sounds very good to me; good stability and pitch, and then I subsequently find out that those specs aren't very good, it would affect my experience in the future inasmuch as I'd sit listening, distracted adversely by knowing that the specs are poor. That would simply be another form of psychoacoustics.

 

[kermit z]

It's very good of WaynerN to do this. This will help those in the market for a new table to know SOMETHING of this table rather than all the slams and uninformed opinions that are huge on forums. This happened with the U-Turn table. Before it was even out, there were those that said this was the best table on the market!!Really? I look forward to hearing your experience . As to the Specs, some folks can be very sensitive to wow & flutter. I am not. Now if its obvious, then I can hear it, but subtle changes? nah.

 

[Frank Sol]

This happened with the U-Turn table. Before it was even out, there were those that said this was the best table on the market!!Really?

Same thing w/VPI Traveler the very 1st edition. Folks who never heard it (it was just released) made claims it was better than ______ TT

 

[jkilla]

When do you hope to have received the table by?

 

[kermit z]

Same thing w/VPI Traveler the very 1st edition. Folks who never heard it (it was just released) made claims it was better than ______ TT

Very true!

When do you hope to have received the table by?

I think he said tomorrow

 

[Jim Creek]

I have the VPI Traveler version 1.1. It sounds fabulous. But changing carts is ridiculously troublesome. And I change carts monthly. The Pioneer PLX1000 could be more to my style *IF* it sounds as good. If Wayner gives it a good review I may be open to buying one.

 

[GPJeff]

I have the VPI Traveler version 1.1. It sounds fabulous. But changing carts is ridiculously troublesome. And I change carts monthly. The Pioneer PLX1000 could be more to my style *IF* it sounds as good. If Wayner gives it a good review I may be open to buying one.

That's what I miss about my SL-1200, the conveniences over the Scout 1.1. To swap a cart out took less than 5 minutes. I have bought several Technics headshells and mounted my different carts on them for a near plug and play operation. Adjustments could be made by a turn of a dial. I would like to change the arm out with the KAB Cardas wired arm but I'm too afraid to open my new unit (I bought one from B&H a while back) up with my cataracts and I don't like the idea of shipping it off.

Wayner,
I was poking fun of the typical sales reviews that I've come across. I'm pretty sure your review will be a detailed review without all the typical hype.

 

[Frank Sol]

A little more off-topic... a dual arm TT would be idea. Fixed HS for your best cart and a removable HS arm for several carts. I may get there one day but I'm beginning to doubt it

 

[gusten]

I took Boreas' point to be that if you can't hear it, it really doesn't matter. For example, if I'm sitting listening to a 'table and it sounds very good to me; good stability and pitch, and then I subsequently find out that those specs aren't very good, it would affect my experience in the future inasmuch as I'd sit listening, distracted adversely by knowing that the specs are poor. That would simply be another form of psychoacoustics.

If the person buying the TT thinks it´s fine and good enough, that might be what it´s all about, that the person is pleased.

But that is not what I´m interested in, I´m only interested in measured performance, nothing else.

 

[Garven]

I don't want my review to get into "how the music sounds" kind of thing, although that will be part of it. I'm going to take the deck thru its paces, to see how it starts and stops, how the azimuth is, if the tonearm pivots came loose, does it hum, how easy it was to do an alignment....things like that.

Wayner, I really look forward to reading your review, especially since I plan to buy a new tt this year and the PLX-1000 could be a strong candidate.

I'm specifically interested in any motor noise that may get transmitted through to the stylus. I've had two Pro-Jects, a Debut III and Xpression II. Both had noisy motors that drove me crazy. It's not an electrical hum but rather a mechanical vibration that occurs at 60Hz (33rpm) or 88(45rpm). I replaced the motor in the Xpression II with a new Pro-Ject motor but it made only a marginal improvement. There are tweaks around the net, and I've tried them all, but in the end, the only way I can enjoy my rig is to listen to it through a digitized signal I run in real time through iZotope RX noise reduction to remove the offending noise. So much for an all-analog experience!

I've been thinking of buying something like an RP6, Marantz TT-15S, or Clearaudio Concept. I was also thinking about a VPI Traveler, but I noticed the other day that a guy who posts a lot of needledrop videos on Youtube with a VPI Scout/10x5 combo is now getting the same sort of motor noise, so if the Scout has the same problem, the Traveler may as well. I've also considered the AT-PL120 and PL1240, but again a few videos on Youtube seem to indicate they have some serious rumble getting through (yes, I know Youtube isn't the best way to audition audio, but what I'm talking about comes through clearly on quiet passages or between tracks even with video compression).

So I look forward to your review and also your assessment of the rig given your qualifications.

 

[WaynerN]

gusten,

There are not going to be any measured results as I have few tools at my disposal. I also do not have any test record to make a recording of a 3150hz tone, so that is not going to happen, either.

Wayner