Turntable Recommendations, Please

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by funknik, Sep 26, 2018.

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  1. Drewan77

    Drewan77 Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK/USA
    Yes it does, all four stereo versions of the standard 2M series are interchangeable & it's only the quality of playback that varies. I frequently use a blue stylus on the black/bronze body.
     
  2. Eno_Fan

    Eno_Fan Staring into the abyss: Brockman BIF, Pilbara WA

    Location:
    Izieu, France

    As one poster stated, simply moving from a sprung-subchassis to a solid, un-suspended plinth will not solve your problems if you're unable or unwilling to move to a wall-shelf. As such, and given that you're Stateside, I'm surprised that the SOTA Sapphire has not been mentioned. If you're looking for a turntable that is least-affected by its mount and surroundings, then the reviews have it that this is the acme. Its (sprung-) suspension is both damped and of the tension- rather than compression-variety, i.e., the subchassis is suspended from those (four) springs rather then balanced upon them. Moreover, that suspension is pre-set and not meant to be user-adjustable, without the need for resetting on moving.

    For my part I have run a sprung subchchassis deck forever on everything from bouncy wood floors on down, but mine (the STD) has a foam-damped suspension and that is key to reducing excitability in the springs -- thus I think that the suggestion of a Gyrodec is just about the worst way you could go -- its suspension is completely undamped and boings like a bouncy castle; when I tried one of these, I had trouble getting the thing to be stable enough to manually-cue!

    So, wall-shelf is best in your situation, as others have said. If that's not on, then audition the SOTA. It's a fugly deck to my mind (and that's coming from an owner of one of the ugliest turntables ever!), but it might be just what you need.

    Oh, and yes, avoid Rega unless you want to pick up all the motor noise as well as your own every movement (Google 'Stereophile', 'Rega' 'Motor noise' and 'stethoscope') -- a 'Vibration-Measuring Machine' indeed -- its own!

    N.B. You won't ever buy a turntable that is "out of the league" of your amplifier -- assuming that you're not running it through some toy, Fischer-Price amp, then a good source will never be outclassed by its downstream electronics, but a great amplifier will always be a waste of money if you pair it with a poor TT (or any CD player! :D ). The SOTA is in your budget and will support any arm from SME V down in weight (I ran a Hadcock GH228 on my STD, so don't believe the nonsense about unpivots on sprung decks either). All I would add in this regard is spend as much of your source budget on your TT and then your arm -- don't be tempted to splurge resources on a high-end cart -- it wears out and will never stop costing you money, and its performance is entirely dictated by the quality of TT and mount that you put it upon.
     
    Last edited: Sep 27, 2018
  3. Guitarded

    Guitarded Forum Resident

    Location:
    Montana
    Buy or build an isolation platform. Easy enough to do.
     
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  4. Alan Beasley

    Alan Beasley Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    That’s good to know. I’ve always thought red and blue, black and bronze.
     
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  5. Drewan77

    Drewan77 Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK/USA
    Red/blue share the same body as do bronze/black to a higher spec but all styli can be swapped about.
     
  6. SandAndGlass

    SandAndGlass Twilight Forum Resident

    Which is an advantage of going with the Ortofon 2M line. If you have the Bronze cart, then you can change to any of the available stylus combinations that will fit, including those in the OM line and the Black.

    This will change the SS of your TT. It's like having a drawer full of different MM cartridges available to you, without having to manually change them out and realigning them each time. Once you have the cartridge installed and correctly aligned, then you need only to change out the stylus itself to achieve a different SS.
     
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  7. Drewan77

    Drewan77 Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK/USA
    I mainly use the blue stylus for background vinyl listening to preserve the life of the more expensive styli, not necessarily to just change sound signature. I have something similar for several of my MMs:

    Audio Note IQ3 -> G1042 stylus (+ IQ2)
    2M Black -> Blue stylus
    OM40 super -> stylus 10, stylus 20
    AT150ANV -> 440MLa stylus (+ 150MLX & 150Sa)
    Roksan Corus Black -> G1012 stylus
    Goldring 1042 -> G1012 stylus

    With the IQ3 or the Corus Black, the 1042 Gyger 2 stylus sounds superb so I play this variant a lot (the full IQ3 is expensive & can put many MC cartridges to shame).
     
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  8. McRib

    McRib Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Fairbanks
    @funknik - I was also somewhat forced in to an upgrade and had similar concerns/budget. I went with the MMF 7.3 and would highly recommend it, especially for stability, tracking, and ease of setup. It's not quite plug and play, but it requires very little fuss after the initial setup. The cart is installed and aligned but it is worth it to double check and fine tune the VTA, etc. I love the looks of VPI and other tables too, but this thing is just rock solid.

    The only caveat is depending on what you mean by premium when you say you'll never upgrade to a premium amp or speaker setup. If the rest of your setup makes you feel like you aren't getting your money's worth from the table it could be hard to look away from that. Have you considered Pro-ject's The Classic? You could save several hundred dollars, keep the vintage look, and get immediate mileage out of your 2m blue stylus on the premounted 2m silver's body. Don't know how it is with isolation though, maybe owners here can help.
     
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  9. McGuy

    McGuy All Mc, all the time...

    Location:
    Chicago
    VPI Prime Scout for sure! and check music direct, they often have floor models or refurbished ones for less than retail. I got mine from them and am thrilled!
     
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  10. SoundDoctor

    SoundDoctor Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    I have a P3 and I love it. Sounds great, looks great, and also has ability to upgrade.

    @funknik I would try the Rega P6 with Exact 2. Haven't heard it, though have P3/Elys combo and it's fantastic. If you choose to go the VPI path and need to learn how to set it up, Michael Fremer's DVD may be of help. I have it, but haven't watched yet. I will need it for when I upgrade my cartridge. (Bit of a conflict of interest, I know.)
     
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  11. Jeffreylee

    Jeffreylee Rock 'n' Roll Typist

    Location:
    Louisville
    It doesn't matter what turntable you buy it's going to skip on an old, springy wood floor. I know from experience. And you can't stabilize an old springy wood floor.

    It's wall shelf or skipping.
     
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  12. KT88

    KT88 Senior Member

    I have a 100 year old wood frame house and I never have problems with Rega decks skipping. I have had some issues with Linn and Thorens units which were spring suspended design however. Still, a wall shelf is a great accessory for most turntables.
    -Bill
     
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  13. Echoes Myron

    Echoes Myron Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    Same here.
     
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  14. Josquin des Prez

    Josquin des Prez I have spoken!

    Location:
    U.S.
    I've never had any issue with any turntable skipping (Rega, Linn Sondel, Clearaudio Ovation), but I've only used wall brackets for the past 30 years (Target, and now Solidsteel).
     
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  15. Drewan77

    Drewan77 Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK/USA
    I experienced feedback/skipping issues in a wooden floor room with both suspended decks I owned (Linn/Michell) but never Rega, Clearaudio or Technics.
     
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  16. displayname

    displayname Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dallas
    I'm going to echo what a few others have said, but here are my thoughts.
    Knowing this and that you are living with this and likely not going to a wall mount, I would be hesitant to go to a Rega. It fits your other priorities, but I've read mixed reviews about how well their tables handle footfalls. Really solid isolation could be an option too as others have mentioned. I would focus on a deck that focuses on high mass designs personally.

    This really seems to be a popular sweet spot right now. You've identified a few, and others have thrown in a few more to think about. The MoFi tables are another good option, but I don't think the best for your specific focuses.

    I've always read that VPI is worth the extra work, but they are not the easiest to set up and can be picky with cartridge matching with the uni-pivot arm. The 1200GR is an excellent fit for these points. The 7.3/9.3 aren't hard to set up and maintain, but they will require belt changes. Any detached motor might require a nudge from time to time too. All small things that wouldn't bother me, but I think it's worth pointing out that the GR doesn't require these things.

    The 1200GR also checks these boxes with the high mass design, s-shaped arm, and isolation feet.

    This is probably the one area where the 1200GR might come into question, but your cart choice can effect this significantly as well. I believe that the 1200GR works well with Grado carts, which are known for their warmth.

    For your specific needs, I honestly think the 1200GR is the best fit. In budget, the design focuses align with your needs, and leaves $700-800 in your budget for a cart of your choice. I'm not sure what you're using for a phono, but that budget leaves a lot of great options for both MC and MM options. I'm not saying it's the absolute best deck in the price range (I don't think that exists) but I do think it's potentially perfect for you.
     
  17. Gabe Walters

    Gabe Walters Forum Resident

    Another vote for the SL-1200GR based on the OP's stated needs. Fits the bill very well.
     
  18. Rickchick

    Rickchick Forum Resident

    Location:
    PA
    VPI
     
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  19. snorker

    snorker Big Daddy

    Including the OM series styli, which look odd on the 2M body, but work fine. The 40 stylus is really nice.
     
  20. ls35a

    ls35a Forum Resident

    Location:
    Eagle, Idaho
    Yes, SL-1200GR all the way.

    I have owned a lot of belt drive tables over the years. I now have the TOTL Technics and love it to death. NO. HASSLES.
     
  21. Yamaha Denon KLH Nut

    Yamaha Denon KLH Nut Somewhere Lost in The Music

    Location:
    Manchester NH
    Grab a SL-1200, i have a 100 Year old house with wood floors n every table minus the 1200 would skip if u didn't tippy toe slowly in the same room & good luck with that if u have kids lol. Never mind the 1200 is built like a Tank & Speed is never a issuie as its always dead on.
     
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  22. Jeffreylee

    Jeffreylee Rock 'n' Roll Typist

    Location:
    Louisville
    But was your floor real loose and bouncy? That’s the issue and it’s the situation that the OP faces.

    The vast majority of houses in the world are wood frame so that isn’t the dividing line. It’s the condition of the floor that is the issue here.
     
  23. Dennis0675

    Dennis0675 Hyperactive!

    Location:
    Ohio
    A shelf and a solid floor is great advice but as far as a table is concerned, VPI. The ones they made 30 years ago still sell for 2k and are worth it. The platter and the feet makes it hard to skip with a footfall.
     
  24. Dennis0675

    Dennis0675 Hyperactive!

    Location:
    Ohio
    I moved from a new build to a century home and I haven’t had a skip from a footfall since. The rafters and studs are oak compared to composite beams and pine.
     
  25. mdelrossi

    mdelrossi Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn nyc
    Wall mount,
    Used VPI HW-19 MK 3 or MK4
     
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