Yamaha YP 701

[pglbook]

Yamaha YP 701 any good? value?

How is the Yamaha YP 701 turntable regarded?

How much would a decent one go for?

I saw one but it locally but it would need a new shell head. Would it be easy to find a replcement head shell for this? How much would it cost for a new head shell?

I am debating between a YP 701 and a YP D8 which I know is much much better but the YP 701 is only 150 dollars and the YP D8 is $400. Is it worth the extra money for the D8? The owner has both and I need to decide by tomorrow night as I will definitely buy one of these.

Thanks.

 

[Van_Isle]

From what I know the YP-701 is from '74 to '76 ... belt drive semi-automatic ... solidly built. If you do a forum search you'll come up with quite a few references and opinions. Any standard headshell should fit this turntable.

Questions of value should be asked in Dollars and Sense forum.

 

[Distortions]

I think you should grab that YP-701 while it is still available. Not many people know how good that turntable is because it is not very common. It was pretty expensive back in the day. I believe it was Yamaha's flagship model in the US. $150 is a very good price. It is actually a better turntable than the common direct drive YP-D8. In fact, I have a YP-701 and a Thorens TD 145. The Yamaha is just as good if not better than my Thorens. Also, you can easily get a new headshell for the YP-701. There was a very positive review of the YP-701 in 'Stereo Review' back in the day. I feel that it would easily cost a grand or more for something that nice to be made nowadays.

 

[AU20K]

If you can afford them, Consider getting them both?!?!?

 

[electra100]

I had the 801, it was a great table, but I needed auto return so I went crawling back to Technics.

 

[loquatious]

the YP-701 is a fantastic turntable. it is virtually the same table as the YP-700. it has a very sophisticated tonearm (for the time). if you are shopping for one make sure all the little weights for the anti skating and lateral balance are there. many times they are missing, and are very hard to find replacements for. the tonearm will not function properly without them.




.

 

[perryinva]

From what I know the YP-701 is from '74 to '76 ... belt drive semi-automatic ... solidly built. Any standard headshell should fit this turntable.

Pretty sure the YP-701 is direct drive, though the 700 is belt drive..

It is nowhere near the table that the YD-D8 is. It is somewhat comparable to a YP-D6, maybe that is what Distortions is thinking of? Nice table for $150, though, I agree. Pics show a standard skeletal headshell was normally supplied. They are available for $10 from turntablebasics.com in either silver or black. Any compliant cart would work well, as it is a heavier mass S arm. Can't tell you what cart to recommend unless a price range is given. Since you mentioned you are using a 2020, you will have to go MM cart, and on a budget, something like the AT-71ELC ($45 budget cart) if you want new cart & stylus, also from turntablebasics.

 

[Distortions]

The YP-701 is belt drive, not direct drive. I own one. It has a medium mass S-shaped tonearm. Not many folks know about how great this table is, so that is probably the reason for your confusion. Make no mistake, this turntable is leagues above Yamaha's fine direct drive units.

 

[loquatious]

The YP-701 is belt drive, not direct drive. I own one. It has a medium mass S-shaped tonearm. Not many folks know about how great this table is, so that is probably the reason for your confusion. Make no mistake, this turntable is leagues above Yamaha's fine direct drive units.

+1 to that. i have two of them. they were TOTL in the mid 70s. belt drive, a suspended chassis for the platter and arm, separately suspended motor, semi-automatic convenience. a beautiful medium-mass arm that took its design cues from the early 3009.

the YP-701 is a wonderful table, with superb build quality, but seems to (so far) be off the radar of most collectors. most i see that come up for sale are missing tonearm parts, especially the anti-skating weight (which hangs on a little monofilament thread) and the lateral balance weight. the original rubber platter mat (which is is crucial for correct platter damping) is also frequently MIA. if you can find a complete one, they are a joy. sound-wise, my YP-701's will best my stock AR XA. that is quite a feat (plus semi-auto and queuing is all gravy).


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[perryinva]

Oops. I was thinking of the YP-D71. Sorry. I'm not a huge belt drive fan, but that's just me. I have an H/K T60, the rest are all DD, besides the 1219. Still, looking at the specs, arm design and pics, I personally prefer the D8 over the 701. There was a TT shootout with the D701 I read online at Innovative Audio, and it fared well, but interestingly, they also called it DD...funny.

 

[rxonmymind]

This sounds like a REALLY complicated TT to set up.

 

[highwaychile]

I just picked one up at a garage sale, along with 3 blues CD's, for $5. Seems to be intact, but haven't even tried it out yet. It appears to have been sitting idly somewhere for a long time; needs some clean up.

 

[smoore3435]

Having picked this exact turntable up 5 years ago, all original parts, I can vouch for it's durability and geeky tinker-ability for that perfect sound adventure. It's a hidden gem among vintage turntables. It's a beast! I can also vouch for it's wow and flutter; at less than .08% is equal or better than a $1,300 Pro-Ject Audio Xperience Classic. I picked mine up from an online auction for $50, including shipping! Insane!!! I would not part with this gem for any reason. I performed a quick search for current prices and found nothing. I found one that sold a year ago at an estate sale auction for $270. That was a steal. If I was forced to sell mine, which is in great shape with just a few not-so-noticeable wear marks and a missing lever on the headshell, I would ask no less than $500.00. I slapped a Shure M97xE cartridge/stylus on the stock headshell. Dreamy.