Braun PS-500 turntable, designed by Dieter Rams

Beautiful TT!

 

The headshells arrived today from Germany, as expected. They are real deal vintage NOS Braun, in the original box with paperwork, screws, etc.

The first cart I tried was a DL-103, with a 3g insert plate to add some mass. It sounded pretty good, but a bit too forward. I guess this arm isn't a great mate for low compliance carts,

I then switched to a Grado Black2. Grados are known for being very fussy, but it's sounding terrific on the Braun, with no hum or tracking problems.

My initial impression is it sounds smooth and open, but with nice dynamics, not unlike the TD-124 I used to own. (Of course, the hybrid belt/idler drive system on the Braun is similar to the TD-124.) Rumble is non-existent, backgrounds are very quiet.

So far, I'm liking it a lot.

 

I listened to a few sides last night and everything is working well.

The only concern is the presentation is kind of soft/smeared. I also noticed that the pitch adjustment knob has to be set at the end of its range to get to 100% pitch, and the platter takes a few rotations to get up to speed.

I am almost certain that the problem is the 48-year-old belt... so I have ordered a replacement from Thakker.

 

Was this deck seeing regular use by the prior owner, or just boxed up for a while? Seems like the latter, or they were quite used to an uneven platter and inaccurate speed!

 

I believe it was stored for thirty years...

 

Makes sense. I have seen some people crazy out of touch with this stuff though. The current deck I have was bought from a couple that used it regularly for their old albums they didn't have on CD, which I actually think helped the internal mechanics stay in top shape. When I got it home I realized the speed was pretty off on the pots, and the tracking was horrible, which I figured was wear. Turned out the entire cart was very loose in the headshell, and they had been playing all their albums with that! Needless to say the few freebie albums they gave me had groove wear despite having VG+ surfaces.

 

My wife repaired the Braun for me last night.

Here's what happened. On the night that I set it up with replacement headshells, I spent a few hours listening and it performed well, but something was not quite right. It tracked OK and the pitch was consistent, but transients sounded oddly soft. I figured that the old belt could be a contributing factor, so I went ahead and ordered a new belt from Thakker, and didn't use the Braun for a few days.

Last night I rearranged the gear on my rack, and moved the Braun to the uppermost shelf and hooked everything up. When I switched on the motor, it fired up but the platter was not spinning. %#*%^&@#!!

I quickly figured out what the cause was... there is a long piece of twine that connects at one end to a stationary bracket, bends around a hook, and ends at a spring that puts tension on the idler wheel bracket so that it makes contact with the belt pulley. The twine had apparently given out and was broken by the hook, and so the idler was not making contact.

This is where my wife came in.

Restringing the entire run would have been a complete PITA, because the end connected to the pulley was impossible to get to without taking the drive system apart. There was only a fairly small piece of the thread exposed on that end. My wife, a professional fiber artist, is very skillful with her hands and is experienced with using thread. With me holding a flashlight and directing what needed to be done, my wife was able to tie a new piece of twine to the hard-to-grip broken end, run it through the hook and reconnect it to the bracket, followed up by a dab of glue to hold the knots permanently. The platter fired right up.

I next spent 3-4 hours listening to the Braun, and it sounded considerably better than before, with plenty of punch and immediateness, strong bass, and vivid imaging. Its presentation reminded me of the TD-124 I used to own, unsurprising considering it has a similar design. The PS-500 is even better than I thought!

I'm guessing that, because the idler was making poor contact, there was some undamped resonances interfering, due to the tension string starting to give out.

The arm on the Braun is a completely compatible match for fussy Grado cartridges too. I had been using my $75 Black2 on a Dual 1019, and it sounded pretty good, if a little dark/congested. On the Braun, it sounded much more open, vivid and detailed, and the bass performance (ie: texture, depth) from such an inexpensive cartridge was quite impressive.

I look forward, once it arrives, to seeing if the new belt makes further audible improvements.

 

Interested, after a bit of time how you are liking the '500? I have one of these, picked it up at the Goodwill back in '95. I have always liked the sound of mine but I don't use the Braun headshells. They do not seem to be made to the same standard as the rest of the deck. Altogether to flimsy a joint where the shell meets the SME post - a press fit. It looks great though! For regular use I use other SME shells I have around. I think this table came stock with a Shure M95. Mine tracks well with that, and I use an old VR 'brick' for 78 play. I am planning to 3D model the Braun headshell and do a resin 3D print - but I need to pick up a few SME blank posts to bed in the print. I should be able to increase the rigidity markedly, and maybe increase the length a centimeter to give the arm length a bit of a boost.

I will one day put the '500 side to side with my Thorens 124 and see what I think but me thinks my ears may be a bit past the challenge.

For my money I prefer the design in visual terms and in principal to B&O (latter model tables) Don't get me wrong, B&O made some wonderful stuff (love the early cartridge SP1 and BEOMASTER 1000 and 1200) but the Braun stuff was engineered as well as designed. That matching R2R was a great performer as well - fantastic S2N ratio and motor specs.

 

Probably one of the most beautiful turntable designs of all time. Actually their entire line of electronics are all stunners. Shame they never really got big in the US so pretty tough to find here.

 

Well, one thing might have been the Price!!!! (From old Hi-Fi yearbooks)

In 1970, Lenco GL75 W/ Arm = 36 Pound Sterling, Garrard 401 = 25 Pound Sterling, Thorens TD135 (sim124 w/ Arm) = 37 Pound Sterling, Thorens 150 w/Arm = 26 Pound Sterling, Braun PS500 = 110 Pound Sterling, the PS1000 was about 200 Pound Sterling.

 

Very cool project and turntable. I love finding things like this and getting them running - cool to see you were rewarded with good sound!

 

I saw a Braun setup in New York a few years ago. Looked stunning. I've seen a few since and love the clean minimalist design.

 

UK or European pressing of Gerry Rafferty/City To City Side One
Many early 1960's Columbia Masterworks LP discs

(both with music cut close to the label area, many automatics can't play them without issue.)

 

Thanks for this history. So, the PS-500 did get officially imported to the USA, in at least small numbers. I knew the speakers and the TG series tape recorders did get sold here in the USA in small numbers.

 

Interesting to see this thread come back from the dead!

Braun hifi seems to have been imported in much greater numbers to Canada compared to the US.

I liked it very much, and could tell it had great potential, but it sounded kind of dull on top. I figured it was due to the crappy interconnects that it came with. Anyway, I stored it away for a few months.

A few weeks ago I upgraded the interconnects on my SL-1200MK2, but hung onto the originals, which are perfectly fine. I remembered the Braun, and decided to move the Technics interconnects to the Braun.

I haven't yet sat down and listened beyond confirming that the connections were good. Tonight I'll mount a cart and have a proper listen!

Interesting project! I'm surprised you were able to get other headshells to work; I couldn't get cartridges to align with other headshells. Fortunately Thakker has NOS Braun headshells, so I was able to buy a few.

 

@action pact

Any news on this? I might have the chance to pick one up (I'll tell the story in case I am able to get it) and I was wondering how that went with the interconnects. I want to make sure I like the sound on this thing.

 

Yikes, I still haven't set it up.

 

Oh shoot On top of the price I get asked (if the person was willing to sell), you're the one that's gonna help me decide ahah. Please let me know once you do set it up.

 

You betcha! I won't be able to do it before tomorrow evening, so hang tight!

 

I'm setting it up now... stand by...

 

It really sounds terrific with a Grado Black2 and the replacement interconnects.

It has that typical idler drive plump tightness to the bass, and really spacious imaging. Backgrounds are quiet.

I might have to leave this one hooked up for a while, I'm digging it.

 

YEH! Now I'm begging that the person is willing to sell it for a price I can justify (I'm only picking it up if it is for a price I can consider a bargain).

I'll let you know, thank you sir!

 

Just be sure to carefully check that the suspension isn't sagging! It's nearly impossible to repair the oil-filled 'boots' if they're leaking.

 

Could you please tell me how I can quickly check that? It's the first time messing with a suspended TT and I'd need to go to the owner's house to check on it so I wouldn't be able to open it up.

 

Take a look at the position of the platter relative to the top plate, and see if it's evenly balanced or very lop-sided.

You can further examine it by unscrewing the bottom panel and looking inside. If the boots are leaking oil, you will see the stains on the inside of the bottom panel.

On my turntable, one of the boots is leaking, but not very seriously. I was able to lift up that side by turning an adjustment nut on the suspension, and it hasn't shifted at all since last summer, so the leak must be very slow. It isn't a major concern yet.

This is what a PS-500 looks like inside, you can see the three large oil-filled boots: