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Philips GA-312 vs Technics SL-Q5?

Philips 312 or Technics SL-Q5?

  • Philips 312

    Votes: 4 57.1%

  • Technics SL-Q5

    Votes: 3 42.9%
  • Total voters
    7
R

redbuffet

New Member
This may not be a very helpful thread as the two turntables are very different, but just in case someone has had experience with both, I thought I'd ask!

I recently wound up with each of these after looking for something with a small footprint. The SL-Q5 survived being shipped relatively unscathed but the 312, no so much. The platter wasn't packaged separately so the tonearm wound up getting broken. I have a replacement off of a 212 but still need to have it installed and everything else likely needs to be tuned up. Fortunately, the belt hasn't melted and all the switches seem to be working.

The SL-Q5 has an AT V235EP cart with a new Thakker ATN 102 EP stylus. Sounds great to my ears and having it be automatic and not really needing adjustments has been really nice! I definitely will be keeping it as either a solid backup or one for daily use.

As for the questions, can the 312 be fixed up to the point of being a better sounding table? Or, are they distinct enough (sound quality wise) to warrant having both? How far can each be upgraded? As a side, the aesthetics of each won't make much difference, as I like both.

The cartridges I have for the 312 are a Philips 400 and an Empire 5000 MKIII. From what I gather, I can probably do better from a cartridge standpoint. My thinking is that if the 312 can be brought to the point of being a significantly better sounding (or at least different) table, then I'm all for going on the journey of fixing and tinkering with it. However, if the effort and cost is going to just get me about where I already am, then I figure I may as well sell it and upgrade the SL-Q5 as far as I can.

Any other points to compare and contrast would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
 
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It's hard to predict what a repaired turntable will sound like, but the Philips arm is basic enough that if you replace the whole thing, it should be fine.
Beyond that, I suspect it is a matter of taste. Suspended subchassis belt drives have something of a characteristic sound, as do direct drives, and possibly, linear arms. So you may like one or the other, or both.
The cartridge may be the actual deciding factor. I wouldn't assume that the Philips or the Empire would not sound great - cartridges (and styli) are very idiosyncratic - system and ear dependent. If the styli are good, or if you can find inexpensive decent styli, try them out.
 
If you put your location in your byline, someone may be near you to assist!
Somewhere I read that the bearings in the 212 arm were metal and th 312 plastic? Anyway, I have had both 212 and 312 tables, always liked them, also called The Poor Man’s Thorens! I did a 212 arm on a 312 due to a similar shipping problem. It worke fine. Only issue was taking the time to adjust for the auto lift. Once set, excellent table. I typically used M91ED share cartridges, but there are some AT that also work well.
 
Thank you both! That really helped me decide to go for it with the Philips- it'll be nice to have some variety. New needles for both carts along with an extra belt are on the way. Now to learn how or find someone who can help install the new arm. If anyone knows a good repair person in Boise, ID let me know!
 
I think you can just unsolder the leads and unhook the antiskating mechanism and the plop the new one in. But that is just based on a distant memory of the table.
 
Nat said:
I think you can just unsolder the leads and unhook the antiskating mechanism and the plop the new one in. But that is just based on a distant memory of the table.
Click to expand...
That's what it looked like when I got it open. Not sure if admitting this will cause my AK profile to be deleted, but it might be time to finally learn how to solder :oops:
 
Soldering is easy once you understand what is involved - why you need flux, and why the work needs to be hot before you apply the solder - so this may prompt you to finally learn.
Removing insulation - that's a different story. Just a pain with very thin leads. So unsolder the tone arm leads, do not cut them thinking that it will be a piece of cake to strip them.
 
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