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Thinking of getting my first Thorens...

L

Lenny80

New Member
Hi everyone, need some advise:)


I live in Norway and is thinking of buying my first Thorens, (its a 160 b mk2 model) from a guy just a couple og streets away.
But what’s your professional opinion of the price, condition, things to look out for, maybe things that need an upgrade and so on.
He wants 700 USD and for me that’s a good chunk of money so Im abit careful.

I´ll copy paste what he has written about it and also some pictures, know its pretty har to judge it when not being able to hear it but any input would be much appreciated so I know what to look for when I go check it out.
I have a Marantz 2238b receiver and a pair of KEF Cresta 2 speakers.


"I sold this in the 80's to a friend of mine and he has now asked me to try to sell it for him.
As it says, it is a Thorens td 160 B mk 2 with factory-fitted Sme 3009 s3 arm.
It was delivered with Shure V15 type 3 and as far as I remember it was a particularly well-adapted combination.
It plays well and got a new needle some time ago that has played under 100 hours.
What is worn is evident from the pictures; Some small marks on wood and a little matte lid that it should be possible to polish away.
It is now connected at my place and is ready for trial listening by those who want it.”



Best regards/ Lenny
 

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Hi Everyone.

I live in Norway and is thinking of buying my first Thorens, (its a 160 b mk2 modell) from a guy just a couple of streets away.
But what’s your professional opinion of the price, condition, things to look out for, maybe things that need an upgrade and so on.
He wants 700 USD and for me that’s a good chunk of money so Im abit careful.

I have a Marantz 2238b receiver and a couple of KEF Cresta2.

I´ll copy paste what he has written about it and also some pictures, know its pretty hard to judge it when not being able to hear it but any input would be much appreciated so I know what to look for when I go check it out.


"I sold this in the 80's to a friend of mine and he has now asked me to try to sell it for him.
As it says, it is a Thorens td 160 B mk 2 with factory-fitted Sme 3009 s3 arm.
It was delivered with Shure V15 type 3 and as far as I remember it was a particularly well-adapted combination.
It plays well and got a new needle some time ago that has played under 100 hours.
What is worn is evident from the pictures; Some small marks on wood and a little matte lid that it should be possible to polish away.
It is now connected at my place and is ready for trial listening by those who want it.”



Best regards/ Lenny
 

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Lenny80 said:
Hi everyone
Click to expand...

Hi Lenny. Your post belongs in the dollars and sense forum but I'll answer since it is tacked onto the end of a running thread and might be hard to move for the mods.

I don't know prices in Norway but that table is priced about right for the US which has pretty nice prices compared to Europe in general.

The TD looks to be a kind of Super and maybe @tnsilver will know for sure, it being a later model. This means it would have the damping, nice base, thick bottom plate not thin noisy hardboard a few mm thick and a good dust cover hinge system. The table looks very good.

The tonearm is a very low mass arm that requires a high compliance cartridge and that limits its appeal today but the Shure V-15III is a high compliance cartridge and should be a good match. With a newer stylus you should be good for a while as you enjoy the table before you need to think about a new stylus or cartridge.

Go give it a listen and offer a bit less and take home a nice table. Don't put this on some wobbly stand on soft floors that will make the table bounce. You want firm footing for these suspended tables some even mounting them on the wall to avoid the footfalls from causing a bounce. No one dances on the walls.

Welcome to ak.
 
Blue Shadow said:
Hi Lenny. Your post belongs in the dollars and sense forum but I'll answer since it is tacked onto the end of a running thread and might be hard to move for the mods.

I don't know prices in Norway but that table is priced about right for the US which has pretty nice prices compared to Europe in general.

The TD looks to be a kind of Super and maybe @tnsilver will know for sure, it being a later model. This means it would have the damping, nice base, thick bottom plate not thin noisy hardboard a few mm thick and a good dust cover hinge system. The table looks very good.

The tonearm is a very low mass arm that requires a high compliance cartridge and that limits its appeal today but the Shure V-15III is a high compliance cartridge and should be a good match. With a newer stylus you should be good for a while as you enjoy the table before you need to think about a new stylus or cartridge.

Go give it a listen and offer a bit less and take home a nice table. Don't put this on some wobbly stand on soft floors that will make the table bounce. You want firm footing for these suspended tables some even mounting them on the wall to avoid the footfalls from causing a bounce. No one dances on the walls.

Welcome to ak.
Click to expand...


Oh, Im kinda new here so apologize about the wrong forum post, my first first time. But thank you so much for your input!!
 
For the Thorens itself, that would be a very high price, but the SME is a fine arm - I'm listening to one right now, so I'm biased - and it adds a good deal to the value, as does the Shure V15 III. So it may be a reasonable price.
Caveats include the condition of the stylus - there are good aftermarket replacements, but they aren't inexpensive - the rather limited range of cartridges the Series III is best suited to - it was designed for very high compliance cartridges which aren't made any more, and if you want to try something different, like a moving coil, its not straightforward to do so - though it can be done. I'm also a little puzzled by the cartridge, which doesn't look like any V15 III I've seen other than the ones that were glued into Dual cartridge shells. (Dual provided Shure cartridges of various grades premounted, and they are just as good as regular ones, but they don't have the fittings to mount in normal headshells.) Similarly, the stylus assembly looks odd. But it very well may be that there were slight cosmetic differences in cartridges sold in Europe vs those in the US.
The biggest caveat, of course, is whether you like the sound and feel of the combination. I suspect the sound will be appealling, though in some systems the V15 III can sound bright - cartridge loading can help. And not everyone likes suspended subchassis tables. So I suggest you go and see what you think.
 
Thx for all the answers.
He says the needle/stylus has played around 100 hours. What is the average lifespan of that kind of needle/stylus?
 
I still think I paid too much for my mkI ($350 CAD, in 2015), so that seems kind of steep.

Someone in the UK was asking about used gear, so I checked a UK-based used hifi site, and was surprised by how little there was on it, and how high the prices were (compared to its Canadian and US counterpart sites). In light of this, it might well be a good price (those SME arms are highly coveted).

If you find even a mkI with the original TP16 arm for a better price, they are quite good (was my table until this past year, 5 years of enjoyment it gave me, and I can't bear to sell it for sentimental reasons). Those TP16 arms are very good, even though they are on the heavier side and look like a clunky plastic toy. Not to be underestimated until you play around with them!

Good luck and happy Thorens hunting!
 
I have one of these 160B Mk-II's in a low profile plinth. It came along with a TP-16 Mk-II IsoTrack and TP-63 wand and was retrofitted with a 3009 II Imp.

oH5r33Y.jpg


It is not a TD-160 'Super', which is essentially the same thing with extra damping, in a thicker plinth, with metal dust cover hinges - but it is a very nice turntable. I'm not a fan of the 3009 III which binds the owner to very high compliance carts - but in this case, with the V15 III, it's well matched. I'd be checking to see if the motor pulley wasn't kissed by the platter at some point by accident and make sure it's not wobbling. It's looking good!

Long gone are the days classic TD-160's ran stock for a couple 'C' notes online. In it's current cosmetics with the SME and V15 III cart (let alone with a stylus claimed to be in great shape) - I'm thinking this thing is going to sell pretty quick for $700.
 
Thx for your input. And the only way to check if the motor pulley is ok is to open it up from the bottom?


tnsilver said:
I have one of these 160B Mk-II's in a low profile plinth. It came along with a TP-16 Mk-II IsoTrack and TP-63 wand and was retrofitted with a 3009 II Imp.

oH5r33Y.jpg


It is not a TD-160 'Super', which is essentially the same thing with extra damping, in a thicker plinth, with metal dust cover hinges - but it is a very nice turntable. I'm not a fan of the 3009 III which binds the owner to very high compliance carts - but in this case, with the V15 III, it's well matched. I'd be checking to see if the motor pulley wasn't kissed by the platter at some point by accident and make sure it's not wobbling. It's looking good!

Long gone are the days classic TD-160's ran stock for a couple 'C' notes online. In it's current cosmetics with the SME and V15 III cart (let alone with a stylus claimed to be in great shape) - I'm thinking this thing is going to sell pretty quick for $700.
Click to expand...
 
The outer platter comes off easy.

You can flip it over abundance watch the machine run and change speeds.

If the belt is loose it may fall off with a speed change or if very loose the platter would need a push start to have a reasonable start time. Use only a real Thorens belt for the model you have for correct speed. They are about 25 Euros

Theanalogdept on the web is the place for Thorens info. The table could benefit from a mild tune up if you get it. All that is at the website.
 
Another thing, but its more of an astethic thing.
Isnt there a tonearm mounting plate that fits inside the silver plated area? Or is there a reason why its like this?
 
The arm board is the black piece. Suspended with the platter slightly above the silver top plate with the silver tonearm mounted to it. This is the style of the 160 arm board. The 150 and 125 have the boards that are full depth and a few inches wide.
 
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