As a former pro mobile DJ, I guess I'm required to get all gaga over Technics gear, but I was a fan long before I ever got paid to play. My Technics gear:
SL-1500 Mk I - Bought from a pawn shop to replace a Realistic LAB-2100 stolen from my college dorm. Has speed stability issues & is used sparingly:
SL-B1 - Actually given to me by a college girlfriend who decided to go digital. Had an Empire 2000 E/III cart on it at the time, replaced by a Stanton 500 for DJ duty. Didn't make the cut as the plastic TT weighs 6 oz. & feedback was a huge issue - was replaced by the SL-1500 above. Put a new belt on it last year - still works great, but seldom gets played:
Once I started getting steady DJ work, I decided it might be wise to invest in some pro equipment as the 2nd hand stuff I bought cheap was becoming expensive. Thus I acquired my 1st
SL-1200 MkII:
In addition to the mobile DJ work, I got a job doing overnights at an oldies station. During my tenure there, the station converted to digital and all of the broadcast TT's wound up in a supply closet(!) one day. I inquired about their whereabouts & our tech was surprised someone even cared and offered my pick at a very reasonable price. I should have bought every stinkin' one, but did jump on this
SL-1015:
It came with an EPA-501H arm, but the rubber warp bushing is shot so it rattles. I restored the Rabco SL8E last winter & mounted it to a homemade plinth that utilizes the factory screw holes for the J arm. A friend of mine is in the process of using some cherry wood I had to build a new base onto which I intend to mount the platter, Rabco, EPA-501 and an S arm with various carts. Stay tuned for that one...
The 1200 & 1015 put me into a Technics high that lasted a decade before I'd ever even look at anything else. I bought two
RS-915 tape decks & two
SL-PG100 cd players for DJing & built a rack for them. All are still in service over 20 years later:
When I bought my 1st home PC, I wanted a good quality preamp so I could digitize analog sources. A high-end stereo shop had this
SU-9070 on consignment. It's dead flat & dead quiet:
Last but not least, my 2nd 1200 MkII. I had been using the 1015 as my 2nd TT for doing mix tapes & even DJ'ing (it weighs almost 70 lbs.), but when it was announced that 1200 production was ending, I wanted to buy one last new 1200. Even wholesale was going to set me back $700, so I bought this one used from a retiring DJ for considerably less (he threw in a nice flight case and several Stanton styli so I did OK):
Note the paint worn off of the front edge of the deck. If anybody has had success touching up a 1200, I'd like to clean this up...
