thorens 124 newby

cries55

cries55

Active Member
Hey folks- well due to economic forces beyond my control my MIchell Orbe has gone away, to be replaced by a thorens td 124. I must say that with my fisher 400 cx the TD 124 sounds better in some instances than the Michell. But is has what looks like an inexpensive micro-seiki tonearm and a shure v15 cart. It sounds pretty good, has had recent service. Is there anything I should do immediately, or anything i can do to improve the sound? Cart upgrade but to what, a dynavector dv20xh perhaps?

Anyway I know nothing about these guys. Any info would db greatly appreciated.
 

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Looks nice. They do sound good. There are plenty of mods that can be done to the 124 for sound and performance if so inclined. Do a search hear. There are lots of threads on the 124.
 
You could change the oil and clean the bearing immediately. Other than that, you could replace the thrust washer in the bearing, you could rebuild the motor, replace the ball bearing with a ceramic one, replace the various soft bits (mushrooms, motor suspension, belts), the list is fairly endless. Just a question of time, money, and skill. Most of it is fairly easily accomplished.
 
Get rid of that hollow plinth and mount it in something more solid, like the plywood plinths sold by Jim Campbell (jec965) on eBay. It really does make a difference.
 
Thanks folks- to start with what is the biggest bang for the buck? I Have no work space so unless it can be done on a kitchen counter I'm at the whim of an expert.
 
cries55 said:
Thanks folks- to start with what is the biggest bang for the buck? I Have no work space so unless it can be done on a kitchen counter I'm at the whim of an expert.
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At the very least, I urge you to have the motor rebuilt so that it gets up to speed quickly, runs smoothly, and maintains consistent pitch. Jim Campbell offers this service for $110 (IIRC) via his eBay auctions, and his work is top notch and quick.
 
sound like a good idea but it seems to already do that. Is there any way to tell if the motor has already been rebuilt? Or to visually identify previous work? I have a service history that seems recent.
 
cries55 said:
sound like a good idea but it seems to already do that. Is there any way to tell if the motor has already been rebuilt? Or to visually identify previous work? I have a service history that seems recent.
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Yes... look at the underside of the table and see if the motor has two rivets near the bearing. One needs to drill out the rivets to get inside the motor, and they are then replaced with screws.

This one has not been rebuilt:

1000x1000.jpg


This one HAS been rebuilt (or is about to be!):

6544150573_9500e17ee8_o.jpg
 
If you have a Shure V15 cart you can always upgrade to an SAS stylus. That would be a good Bang for the Bucks.
 
There are a Thousand and one upgrades that can be done to a 124. I have done 998 of them and all can de done on your kitchen counter. :D
 
Checked out the SAS stylus- seems like a reasonable choice. Is the Shure cart comparable to say a dynavector DV20-h? which would you choose? I have found that cartridge/stylus choice makes a HUGE change in the quality of sound. Should I just bite the bullet, sell this one, and upgrade to a $1k cart?
 
cries55 said:
Cart upgrade but to what, a dynavector dv20xh perhaps?
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I can't tell from looking which model 124 this is, but the earlier model has a cast iron platter that (from what I've read) pull a MC cart down and not release it due to the magnetic attraction. That's the model I have and I ended up using a Grado. Others with this model say it's not a problem with theirs....
 
now that's an analogy i can relate to- but I believe that it's service of last year did that. However i would love to undertake the oil change if only to familiarize myself with the deck. where can i find the step by step?
 
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