What makes a good turntable good?

By that, I mean what should one look for in a good turntable?

And please avoid things which only describe ridiculously expensive ones. Let's be reasonable here. :)

:P

I'll make a note of that!

:P

The Linn Sondek, used, is the shiznit.

The Music Hall turntables, which are current, are very well-reviewed, and have models below $500.00, IIRC.

Jesus, who can afford this shit?

:wow:

There really is a difference, when you get to the high-end stuff.

Mind you, I had no furniture. One must choose one's priorities.

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=music+hall+turntable&category0=

Audiogon.com is a great resource for used high-end gear.

If you're looking in the $100.00 or so range, Thorens, Luxman, Harman Kardon, and Denon all made good gear. Look for belt-drive as opposed to direct-drive (the latter has the engine directly coupled to the platter which increases noise).

That's exactly the sort of thing I was looking for... belt drive vs. direct... thanks again! :hug:

On machines 20 or so years old, the belt can become aged and useless. Replacements are something that must be available, but I haven't researched them. Make sure that anything you buy has replacements available, or are working perfectly as-is. Good luck, and post pics.

:yourock:

even on the good ones. However, I disagree with your recommendation of belt driven turntables. If you're not going to spend a lot, direct drive is the better way to go. It takes a certain amount of engineering to make a good belt driven turntable and that takes money. It's easier, and cheaper, to make a direct drive TT, so if you're not going to spend a lot of money (meaning less than $500) then you should get a direct drive, IMNSHO

I'm no expert on belt replacement, so I don't know if there are generic lengths that can merely be slapped on, or not.

As the subject of Billy Skank's post says, heavy platter, belt drive, and if possible, a separate plinth for the engine, and the three-spring suspension used on the Linn.

I don't know anything about the used market, so if you can get a good belt driven for a competitive price, then what you say makes sense. I bought my AR turntable over tenty years ago for about $800 IIRC. I guess I wouldn't get much more than $300 now, so it makes sense.

And yes, the Linn TTs are spectacular

Lots of them for sale, at various prices. Redqueen, this might be a good idea.

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=ar+turntable&category0=

In the Stores, there are at least two new belts for about $22.00 each.

To be honest, I'm not familiar with all the models. Mine is the one identified as "VINTAGE 1984 AR ACOUSTIC RESEARCH TURNTABLE NICE L@@K !", and I think it's like one step up over the XA's, but I could be wrong about that.

:rofl: :hi:

:P

:P

he posted about this as I recall. I bookmarked it somewhere - I'll have to look.

Later, though. MrCoffe has me all crying and sad now. :(

Stability of the platter, and accurate and stable speed.

:)

so that when you put your hand on the record the platter keeps turning beneath the slipmat. This is why you need a high torque motor and direct drive - no belts. You want a heavy platter and a solid mounting so that it doesn't rock much when you handle the record. This is all necessary so that the needle does not jump when you try to mix or scratch.

Of course, other people may have different requirements from their record players. :D

A differing opinion... thanks billyskank. :)

I mean, you can spend a lot of money on DJ turntables, but... not the stratospheric sums you can on audiophile ones. Vestax are the most pricey DJ turntables I've ever seen, but the industry standard is still the Technics SL1210, which you can get for £330 each. Although you need two. ;) Dunno what they cost in the US.

although my brother's Geminis go to plus or minus 10, which is close. ;)

It's infinitely better to get a good-quality belt-driven turntable than a low-quality direct-drive. Belts will stretch a bit and eventually break after several years, but they can be replaced cheaply and easily. I paid around $15 for one a few months ago and installed it in about 10 minutes.

I'd look for features such as pitch and anti-skate controls and adjustable tonearm balance, which most turntables have now. Pitch control is a must, especially if you live in an older home where voltage can fluctuate a bit and mess with the platter speed. Damped cueing is another must, since it makes it impossible to drop the tonearm onto the record.

The key thing, though is the cartridge. Figure on spending at least half as much on the cartridge as the turntable itself, and you're better off spending about the same or more. It's much better to have a $150 turntable with a $200 cartridge than a $300 turntable with a $50 cartridge. (I can't debate the relative merits of elliptical vs. ceramic vs. magnetic cartridges as I don't know them.)

Poke around at www.crutchfield.com. I've used these guys for like 25 years. They're absolutely straight with you on "What do I need?" stuff.

:hi:

:hi:

:crazy:

Good turntable for the money.