What is the best all around Vintage Turntable?

[LP-THORN]

The problem is not replacing the bearing, the problem is that for overhauling (and then calibrating) the electronics you need to put the turntable upside down and since this involves putting the top plate upside down, the bearing drips all its oil which can contaminate the surroundings if you're not careful.

You can avoid this by removing the top plate first but to do it you need to unscrew the top plate retainers which involves... putting the turntable upside down (unless you have a special jig where you can easily access the underside.)

How often does the TD125MK2 require service? Not often but the switch contacts are somewhat exposed at the bottom and in my TTs they tended to get dirty from time to time. And the electronics are fragile; the ua709 opamp is VERY fragile (but fortunately can be replaced with a modern opamp if you know what you are doing), and the light bulb that is part of the circuit is critical and made of unobtanium. DO NOT touch that light bulb... the exact specific type of light bulb is necessary for the correct working of the circuit!

I have written more about the TD125MK2 in this or other forum. I owned two of them. One of them had the deluxe SME base and looked terrific. By the way, the best you can do for sound is to remove the suspension springs and replace them with rubber supports. You get a slight bit of rumble but it is worth it. At the end i replaced it with the Sony PS-2251 which sounded better with the same tonearm and cart.



Yes but those problems are always just caused by hardened grease, which frees just by strategically applying some solvent. Relatively easy. The 1229, on the other hand, has the VTA adjuster problem...

flavio81,these are minor points that do not actually detract from a turntable's sound which afterall is what the buyer wants.
The oil will drip from all turntables like the 125 (linns,aristons,systemdeks and so many other otherwise excellent turntables).Does this mean one must avoid buying one?I own 4 such turntables and I'm happy with all of them,as I am also with my Garrard 401.
Modifications like rubbers in place of springs,actually compromise the performance of a suspended turntable as it was intended by the designer,as you also say yourself in your comments,that of course are purely subjective.You may accept to live with the compromise of rumble,while others may not.
Don't forget also,that talking about vintage turntables, yes, some points/details can be done better today.

 

[flavio81]

flavio81,these are minor points that do not actually detract from a turntable's sound which afterall is what the buyer wants.
The oil will drip from all turntables like the 125 (linns,aristons,systemdeks and so many other otherwise excellent turntables).Does this mean one must avoid buying one?I own 4 such turntables and I'm happy with all of them,as I am also with my Garrard 401.

Yes, i agree with you. The sound is #1 after all.

 

[flavio81]

Old grease and the dreaded steuerpimple. Too fiddly for me to undertake so I had my 1019 done by fixmydual when I got it last year

But the dreaded "steuerpimpel" is a really really easy thing to solve:

1. Buy a normal pencil (the ones that have an eraser on the other side)
2. Remove eraser
3. Get a x-acto knife and cut about 2mm of the eraser (so you have a 2mm-thick eraser-rubber disk)
4. Screw that disc where the steuerpimpel should have been.
5. Apply a tiny bit of glue to keep it in place.

Ta da! Problem solved!

 

[Greeter]

I would say the B&O 4002 or 4004 are both under rated and sound great second would be almost ANY Technics direct drive TT. Greatest impact on sound between very good TTs the cartridge and the mmc cart with the B&Os were very good indeed

 

[Kingshead]

My vote would be for the Well Tempered Lab if sound was THE ONLY criteria. But I truly like my AR XA and Thorens TD166 MKII for their ease of use and sound with a quality cartridge installed. I know Thorens made better tables, but on the used market today the 166 is an absolute bargain. And for someone just getting into vinyl for the first time the 166 will likely need less work to get up and running correctly than the older AR.

 

[rnorton]

My favorites are the entire Mitsubishi LT line, my H/K T-25 and my Micro-Seiki built Sanyo +Q40.

 

[danj]

Maybe the Technics SP10 and the Linn Sondek LP12 or Thorens TD150. There are other great machines out there but these are the tops of what I have experienced.

 

[Gang-Twanger]

Yes, i agree with you. The sound is #1 after all.

I had a feeling there'd be people talking Dual shop. How about this? He kept the arm and everything.

My dream (Well, one of them at least... Some others involve... Oh geez, you don't even wanna' know) is to one day have a 1019 with an outboard arm... I think that might be the end all, be all. But until then, I'll probably get a Lenco and start learning outboardedness on that for now. I love the look of the 1019 deck though. Plinthed or not, she's a looker. And look at the size of that motor. I bet you could use that drivetrain for one serious custom table, just like Jean Nantais and the Lenco drivetrain.

 

[hamsterdam]

In a perfect world I would have the Denon DP-100M, The King of the Denons, with the Lathe motor drive. It was 7 grand in 1980, something tells me, if anyone were ever to sell one, it would command a higher price now.

 

[FONSguy]

Linn Sondek LP-12
Technics SP-10

 

[Ths364]

EMT or Kuzma. You'll need some serious money though.

 

[4Play]

The best turntable for me would be my Morin mod AR ES-1 with AT 440-OCC. My Dual 721 with Shure M97xE and 1219 with Shure M91-ED are also some of the best tables.

When you have more than one turntable, it's hard to decide which of them is the best.

 

[Vinylcalle]

As with all threads of this kind about 50% mentions their own TT. That wouldn´t be a problem if all of those owned Thorens References, Prestiges, EMT 927, Micro Seiki SX-777 (hey I mentioned my own =) ), SX-8000, SX-8000II, SZ-1, Pioneer Exclusive P3, Onkyo PX-100M, Nakamichi TT-1000, Denon DP-100, Technics SL-1000 MK3, Kenwood L-07D, Luxman PD-555, PD-350 etc.

But they don´t.

 

[Dandy]

As with all threads of this kind about 50% mentions their own TT. That wouldn´t be a problem if all of those owned Thorens References, Prestiges, EMT 927, Micro Seiki SX-777 (hey I mentioned my own =) ), SX-8000, SX-8000II, SZ-1, Pioneer Exclusive P3, Onkyo PX-100M, Nakamichi TT-1000, Denon DP-100, Technics SL-1000 MK3, Kenwood L-07D, Luxman PD-555, PD-350 etc.

But they don´t.

That's because most of these tts are very scarce and high end. Some, like the Kenwood L-07D are reported to have unobtainium parts if they develop faults. Hifi World carried a story on this a few years back.

What's the point of making claims about tts that we've never heard, or even seen?

BTW, your Micro Seiki looks amazing. Care to tell more about it?

 

[Vinylcalle]

That's because most of these tts are very scarce and high end. Some, like the Kenwood L-07D are reported to have unobtainium parts if they develop faults. Hifi World carried a story on this a few years back.

What's the point of making claims about tts that we've never heard, or even seen?

BTW, your Micro Seiki looks amazing. Care to tell more about it?

The best things performance wise will allways be expensive and scarce.

The point of mentioning them is because they are the answers to this threads topic. There are plenty of threads where you can post pictures of your own TT etc.

If someone ask you which is the fastest production car you can´t answer VW Golf just beacause Koenigseggs and Buggatis are very scarce, high end, and most people have never driven or even seen one.

Regarding my TT it was expensive as hell considering its 30+ years old. Its a great TT probably only surpassed in performace by a few other TTs ever manufactured. It weighs 46 kgs + 5 kg for the airpump. I am using it with a Fidelity Research FR-64FX and a Ortofon Cadenza Bronze.

Here is a picture of it (a bit dark)

BTW I hope now one takes offence to my comments. Sometimes a simpler TT has its advantages too. One of them being the moment when you pay for it :tears:.

 

[Dandy]

Thanks for posting a pic of your superdeck. More information, in a separate thread, would be interesting.

 

[Squirrely]

I haven't had much experience with different tables but I just picked up a Micro Seiki dd40. This is a huge step up for me! I'm loving it!

 

[danj]

You got a thread on doing that? I need to do the same with my 1019. Works pretty well now, but sometimes doesn't shut off. Need to re-do the headshell leads, and the mute switch...

Sorry for taking so long to reply but.....

No thread for that, sorry. I didn't use a service manual, just the experience gained from having worked on many Duals over the years.

I did get rid of the 1019 last year - it was a difficult decision - as a donation to a local charity auction. They got a very nice $250 for it.

To answer the thread, the best vintage turntable is the one you own and use without regret.

 

[frommerstop]

I think the Sota Sapphire would be one of the best all around vintage tables... assuming vintage to be 30 odd years of age. It's speeds are remarkably stable, with an excellent suspension and can support just about any arm (a suspended) table could. If we're talking about older designs, I'd be torn between the AR & Empire designs from the sixties.

On sound quality grounds, I'm partial to suspended, belt driven designs, so I don't have much interest in many tables that predate those, except as interesting pieces of machinery.

 

[capt.chaos]

The best things performance wise will allways be expensive and scarce.

The point of mentioning them is because they are the answers to this threads topic. There are plenty of threads where you can post pictures of your own TT etc.

If someone ask you which is the fastest production car you can´t answer VW Golf just beacause Koenigseggs and Buggatis are very scarce, high end, and most people have never driven or even seen one.

Regarding my TT it was expensive as hell considering its 30+ years old. Its a great TT probably only surpassed in performace by a few other TTs ever manufactured. It weighs 46 kgs + 5 kg for the airpump. I am using it with a Fidelity Research FR-64FX and a Ortofon Cadenza Bronze.

Here is a picture of it (a bit dark)

BTW I hope now one takes offence to my comments. Sometimes a simpler TT has its advantages too. One of them being the moment when you pay for it :tears:.

I love your table!:thmbsp::My vintage table is a Micro Seiki BL-91. I just bought an Ortofon TA-110 tonearm and a Cadenza Black cartridge for it.