Yes, Crutchfield has never failed to take care of me. I haven’t bought a scratch & dent from them, but nothing about my experiences with them would suggest you’ll have a problem if something isn’t up to snuff. I think they most likely do make sure things are in working order before putting them up as scratch & dent, and if not, they’ve got the best return policy in the industry, IMO. This should be a nice score!
Seems like a no-brainer in your situation. Hope you end up liking the table! If it’s anything close to my mk2, you probably will. Pretty much an indestructible utilitarian table that’ll most likely need very little service in the time you own it, if any.
any details about the finish? Is it gonna looks like the 1500C with silver/gray buttons? Same build quality?
Ringo, Be sure to give the onboard phono and bundled phono leads a fair go. They may well surprise you.
Nice bargain, as long as the bearings are all okay! I mean, a dent could mean that it has been dropped. You should check those. Edit: looks like some other folks already replied about the same thing, so nevermind lol
There is a picture of it in the first post, the assumption is that it is the same as the black 1500c except for the buttons and tonearm color, just with a different rear plate without the preamp. I don't see any reason to assume otherwise. And the cheaper cartridge, and $999 instead of $1199 in the US.
that what I assumed...thanks for you comment. As some who listen mostly to digital, the 100c looks great option to upgrade my analog side.
Well, Crutchfield are good folks, so that's a plus. And I use a Sumiko Blue Point Evo III that I love, so they're in my mindspace! I hope you'll enjoy the TT and give us a full report!
Crutchfield will take care of you. I've bought many of those type items from them, usually get full warranty.
I returned a 1500C to a reputable dealer (Crutchfield) around New Year's because the platter wasn't flat enough for my picky self. The 2nd one I got is the one I still have. Loving it! Do consider the KAB damper if you decide to keep the 1500C. It makes the rather good 1500C rather great.
Thanks for the tip! I bookmarked their charmingly 90's style website. The Audiogon reviewer described their A/B tests in detail, and claimed about a 10% overall increase in SQ which would be huge! I take it you've installed the KAB, what are your thoughts? I assume the device will probably fit the sl-100c as well. It's on the truck headed to me house. Going to be a long impatient work day. But any day you have a new turntable arriving is a great day! I plan to spend all evening A/B-ing my current decks vs. the 1500c, with and without the built in pre, swap in different carts etc. I'll come back and give some impressions for anyone interested. Cheers!
I think the TD-1000 from KAB is one of the best <$200 choices I've made to my vinyl listening experience. I was immediately impressed with how much it seemed to sonically clean everything up. I can't say I've noticed quantifiable differences in trying different mats or cables but the KAB damper made a noteworthy improvement in my house. I imagine it will be compatible w/ the SL100C, seeing as the 100C and 1500C are cut from the same cloth.
Awesome! Thanks for the recommendation. The Audiogon review said similar, that this mod didn't necessarily add "more" of anything, but reduced some less desirable traits and as you say, cleaned up and refined the presentation. If this deck levels up my vinyl sound quality vs. my current turntables, and I can then level it up again with this relatively modestly priced device, that'd probably represent pretty much the end game turntable, for me personally. The Audiogon review of the TD-1000 is linked in the KAB website linked by Aunitedlemon, but for convenience here is that review link for anyone interested.
Interesting insight. How difficult is it to change this? What kind of calibrations did you have to do after changing this?
How difficult is it to change the silicone damping fluid? Probably a bit tedious. How difficult is it to install? Very simple. No additional calibration needed. Same VTA, tracking force and anti-skate. Just instant benefits. Smoother cueing, better tracking, tangibly improved sonic detail and separation.
The 1500c arrived yesterday, and I had a great time! It really is a beautiful piece of kit. It's wonderful to use and gives off an aura of no-nonsense competence and reliability. I haven't directly compared its sound with my current turntables, since I was having too much fun listening to records. But there's a clear difference - sound is really kicked up a notch. Or two. Much more vivid. The Red cart is not bad - some "graininess" in the highs, though it was not sharp or shrill or unpleasant, as I'd read. Not a ton of resolution/detail retrieval, but an enjoyable performance. Actually the soundstage is very 3-D with the Red. And it's not even broken in. The Red is a nice entry-level cart, I like it far better than I thought I would, based on what I'd read. At any rate, it's an excellent match with this table. I'm going to want to put an Ortofon Bronze on, at some point. Need to try my Blue cart, maybe tonight. I did A/B the built in preamp. To me, it's very good, at least as good as, to perhaps a bit better than, my Uturn Pluto. So I left the built in pre on duty & swapped in my wonderful Sumiko Moonstone cart. Oh, my. First off, there really is a toe-tapping quality to a direct drive. I was moving and grooving in my chair much more than usual. The sense of...attack? Transients? I don't know all the jargon. But that aspect is MUCH better. Snappier snare drums, etc. I'd suspect confirmation bias was at play, except that I was actually getting *startled* involuntarily by the music, repeatedly. Like, the notes just hit that suddenly. At my normal listening volume, which isn't that loud. Thrilling, once I got used to it! Some songs seemed to have more of a swinging beat than I can recall from past listens. Lots of detail, separation of different instruments, could hear the faintest little echoes in the vocals on one track, nice long cymbal decays. I've never really had a soundstage extend beyond the outside of the speakers but I was getting a bit of that last night. It's like you're there in the recording studio. With the Moonstone I'd say the soundstage might've been a bit smaller than the Red actually, yet more nuanced and composed, with much greater detail, as befitting its higher asking price. Again, I never got around to direct A/B comparisons with my Orbit or Fluance yet. but quite obviously a significant improvement has occurred. And I haven't really fine tuned things fully yet, just made sure the table was level and set the tracking force. I was pleased that my Polk S55 speakers, which are crazy good performers for their price, were able to scale up to convey this new higher level of vinyl playback performance. Sooo...basically I love this turntable so far. Other than a big greasy fingerprint on the stop/start button reminding me that yes, in fact this is an open box deal, there seems to be nothing wrong with the unit I got. It's great. I will definitely get that KAB device at some point - I mean, a clear improvement over *this*? Wow, sign me up! Also, I reeeaally like having four feet vs. three. Makes set up a lot easier. I'd recommend the 1500c or the 100c, assuming it's as expected, to anyone looking to step up from entry level decks, since it gives a pretty big performance leap while being very easy to use. P.S. I was having so much fun last night that my girlfriend has already nicknamed the Technics "Jolene"...she feels she is Dolly Parton in this situation, like the song, begging Jolene not to steal her man lol
I can tell you that, with my brand new GR, my own big greasy fingerprint was pretty obvious on the stop/start button for about the first week or two of using it. Over time, I think between occasionally wiping it and the continual addition of more big greasy fingerprints each time I use it, the whole surface has homogenized quite a bit and looks fine!
Good to know, thanks! :-D BTW, I dig your avatar, love me some Gordo. Oooh I must spin Sundown on my new table....what great sounding LP! Summertime Dream too, though both of my copies are a bit beat up
The SL1500C is an amazing table. Definitely worth picking up a technics overhang gauge if you can- made a helluva difference for my VM95ML into my ifi zen. Got a damper in the post as well. I still think the SL100C will be great as well, just to reiterate.
+1 on the toe-tapping, swing, and wider soundstage; the dynamic range is also great. The DD motor is something to behold. Tonearm and Technics alignment also play a part- I've not heard the inner grooves sound better.
Ha! Body chemistry is a weird thing. I wash my hands frequently, like some people would say too frequently. I always make sure my hands are at least wiped off/dried before doing anything involving my records or turntable. Doesn’t matter: greasy fingerprint on the brand new GR start button first time I turned it on. Same sort of issue with the backs of my guitar necks. I always wash my hands thoroughly before playing guitar, yet the neck is almost always kind of sticky in spots by the time I’m done playing.
