Picked up a Pioneer PL-41 Turntable...

On my weekly Thrift Store Saturdays and come across a Pioneer Turntable. Wood base and it reminds me a lot of the Pioneer my Grandfather had. I still have his Pioneer speakers with the all wood cabinet with what looks like a bamboo mesh front. Anyway, I proceed to plug it in and it works. Only thing is that it's missing the needle/stylus/cartridge. For $25 I couldn't pass it up. Here's a pic:



Don't know how much work it's going to need. I do know that it needs a needle/stylus/cartridge. Are they hard to find and do I go with the needle/stylus/cartridge that came with the turntable or should I go with another needle/stylus/cartridge? Thanks for looking and any help on what I need to make this thing sound beautifully as it once did will be greatly appreciated.

 

Anyone with suggestions for the needle/stylus/cartridge??

 

The headshell missing (which is part of the arm), is the real PITA if you intend on using it. I assume that's what you mean about the "needle/stylus/cartridge"? If that's gone, good luck...?

 

I have a PL-61, which is from the same era as your table. I have the Audio Technica AT95E with a hyper elliptical upgrade stylus mounted on it, and love it - it sounds great - an amazing option for the price. I think the other AT'S like the 120e and 440mla would be a great choice too (at a higher price).

The difference between your table and mine though - mine is an S-arm and yours appears to be a J-arm, so I am not sure what kind of headshell it would take. There's a free owner's manual available here (you just have to make an account, which is free also):
http://www.vinylengine.com/library/pioneer/pl-41.shtml

 

S or J doesn't matter, what matters is the collet at the end. Can't really tell, but that looks like the standard 4-pin that's used on most turntables. Just get a headshell from Ebay, relatively inexpensive, just stay away from the cheap thin stamped steel ones, Stanton headshells are pretty good. Mount your cartridge, and enjoy. With any luck, the tone arm wiring will be intact. Arm looks to have a bit too much mass for an A/T cart like the 150ML, but a Shure M97 should work well.

 

How much would an original Pioneer PL41 headshell go for? There is a seller on ebay that has a headshell for sale. Thanks for any help on a price range for an original Pioneer PL41 headshell. I am willing to put money into getting this Turntable as original as well sounding as possible. Also, are there any of the other Pioneer headshells that crossed over or could be substituted for a PL41 headshell?

 

The seller of the headshell is in the UK. If I should buy it will it work here in the US? I know the electric current is different in Europe then here in the US. Thanks for any help on this matter.

 

I don't think it should matter where the headshell as it won't have any effect on the electric current. Now I'm not familiar with the headshell on that particular Pioneer turntable, but I know the Pioneer headshell that came as stock on my table is nothing special. It's just a standard OEM headshell that you can find for cheap on the internet with the only difference that there's no Pioneer logo on it.

 

OK...Original headshell has been acquired and hopefully I will get it withing the next 2 weeks. Ebay Bucks made it easy for me to pull the trigger on bidding and winning the auction on ebay. It only cost me $35 US after all is said and done for the headhsell. My next question is this: Which stylus would you suggest I use with the turntable? And, what is the price range on said stylus and where can I get the stylus from? Thanks for all that have put up with these questions. Your knowledge will get me one step closer to having a more permanent turntable. Thanks.

 

I think a quick terminology tutorial would be useful here:

Stylus: the tiny diamond that traces the groove as you play the record. Broadly speaking, can be cut with a plain rounded tip ("spherical") or in an elongated shape ("elliptical") or with complex geometry yielding very sharp edges (various terms depending on the mfr., including "hyperelliptical" or "stereohedron"). In theory, the ability of the performance, particularly ability to trace high frequency, improves as the area of contact with the record decreases with each step from first to last in that chain.

Cantilever: the little usually metal rod to which the stylus is attached.

Cartridge: the little usually metal box, including the stylus and cantilever, that you attach to the headshell (you already know about those). Inside the box are some arrangement of tiny magnets and vanishingly small wires that are made to move relative to each other when the stylus, tracing the record groove, causes the cantilever to vibrate. The resultant minute electrical signal passes to your amplifier and gets boosted to drive the speakers. Cartridges come in two broad classes (oversimplifying here, but good enough for your purposes): moving magnet and moving coil. In the former, the cantilever causes the magnets to move, while the wires stay stationary; in the latter, it's the other way around. Moving coil models usually have such small output that, unless your preamp has a special setting for them, you'll need a separate step-up preamp to use them, but some are so-called "high output" models that will work with any decent phono preamp. (Note: I have omitted another class of cartridge, variously known as "ceramic" or "crystal" or "piezoelectric," in which the cantilever twists or distorts a block of physical material; these are typically real record killers and as a practical matter these days are found only in really, really cheesy bottom dwelling gear. A dead giveaway is if the cartridge has a "flip-over" stylus assembly that you can rotate with a little lever. A cartridge of this type would not be appropriate for your Pioneer.)

Phono preamp: an amplifier stage that boosts the cartridge output to a level that a power amplifier can handle to drive the speakers. The phono preamp also compensates for deliberate tonal distortions applied in mastering the record to overcome its inherent physical limitations. Without this "de-emphasis," your records will sound painfully shrill.

Moving coil cartridges designs get a lot of good press in stratospheric audiophile circles, but for your old table you'll probably do best to stick with a good traditional moving magnet design. Lines to explore (non-exclusive listing and not in any particular order) include Grado, Shure, and Audio Technica, all of which make a variety of models at various price points. Personally, I'd go with an elliptical stylus, at least to start, but that's a matter of budget and, to some extent, records; I gather that you need a spherical for some older 45 RPM pressings. Do a search on the forums and you should find a wealth of conflicting information to keep you entertained for hours!

 

Just bumping this thread because I received the headshell. Looking for recommendations on which cartridge I should get. Thanks for any help with determining which I should get for the turntable.

 

Can't go too far wrong with the Shure 97xE. An Audio Technica AT95E would be a good choice here and might be less finicky about cartridge loading in your particular setup (signal leads from the table and preamp loading). Something like an older AT14S fitted with a Jico Shibata replacement stylus would be the bomb.

For those carts, you can search for the best price for the Shure--use Google. The others, I'd look on eBay, also here and at audiokarma's bartertown (you'd have to subscribe there for access).

 

One of the most popular cartridges of the 1970's was the Shure M91ED; millions of them were sold. You should be able to find one on eBay easily for around $25 with a missing or worn stylus. Add a $15 aftermarket EVG brand replacement stylus (also available on eBay) and you'll be good to go. Those are excellent, low-cost vintage cartridges,



EVG stylus:

 

The Shure 97 or Audio-Technica suggestions are reasonable suggestions for a new cart. Just take your time installing the cart and getting the adjustments right for best results and to eliminate unneccessary record wear. You can find a protractor to print free at the vinylengine.com site listed above.

 

I don't know, it seems strange that no one recommended a Denon DL-103.

 

Why? It seems he was a novice, which probably didn't have the capability for a LOMC. Oh well, this thread is a couple years old anyway.

 

This Pioneer takes a SME style headshell. Common and inexpensive. Medium mass cartridges fine with that tonearm. It is in good order, a fine turntable.

 

Yets, to me this has to be one of the under appreciated turntables. Pioneer doesn't have an illustrious history of turntable making but I think this is a very solid entry into the world of tables

 

Really late to this two year old party, but I noticed no one mentioned Kab USA as one of the best sources for head shells and cartridges, and just about everything turntable-related. Go to kabusa.com. Great one-man site, great service, and the website has a wealth of information besides the products. Highly recommended.

 

Yes, a reliable vendor. I recommend KABUSA.com to many here.

 

Very high markup on generic stylus' there. I would look elswhere first, and if it can't be found, then over to Kab.

 

I found a very nice PL-41 at a thrift for $15.It worked perfect for about 30 seconds then the belt stretched.New belt and it sounded fantastic.It had a Shure cart on it don't remember which.I sold it in a downsizing move.It sure was a nice table though.I'm surprised no one mentioned a new belt yet unless it had one installed.

 

True, probably not a good recommendation for a newbie.

 

Wow...can't believe it's been 3 years since I posted this. Never got the chance to set up the PL-41 properly. I actually got a second one from my uncle's estate when he passed away in June. The best thing about this PL-41 is that it was my grandfathers turntable that my uncle got when my grandfather passed away in '78. I'm just waiting for my guests, family from Italy and Florida, to leave and then I will have the space and time to set up the old turntable. It was well maintained by my uncle and was in use up until maybe a year ago. Maybe in late January I'll have an update on this great turntable.

 

I just got a Pioneer PL50 and it is so clean but I have a problem and need advice. The damping oil in the return mechanism was all dried out so I bought some silicon and now the return works fine but whenever I want to raise or lower the arm using the cue lever the arm kinda jumps up or comes down too fast/hard. I am wondering if the arm pivot also needs some type of damping oil? Does anyone know? And if so how to do it?