Project 1 Xpression

Hi guys,

Well I have finally narrowed down my selection of turntables. As much as I would love to spend a fortune on a tip top turntable it is neither practical or feasible. Not only do I need to buy a house, I don't really listen to or own that much vinyl. Probably half a dozen lp's ( old skool dance from the late eighties, FPI project, Voodoo ray etc). I will be buying vinyl so I don't want a rubbish turntable.

From what I can gather the best buy 2003 in WHF was the Project 1 Xpression ( ortofon 5e cartridge)
My budget would be about £150 so this seems like the perfect purchase to accompany my
NAD c350 and mordaunt short MS902 declaration sigs.

So, is this turntable all its cracked up to be???. Is it ideal for a vinyl virgin like me or is there something out there that would be better.
I am trying to avoid second hand as I like the comfort of warranties etc.

Thanks in advance
Greg

P.s. Is the ortofon 10 cartridge better than the 5?

 

I own the model below it - the Debut II and have to say that as a budget turntable it is excellent value for money. Don't know about the 1 Xpression, but I would imagine it would be a good improvement over the Debut II.

The other deck to consider for about £140 is the new Goldring deck with an Elektra cartidge. It is based on the Rega P2/NAD 533 deck. Given that both the NAD/Rega decks retail for about £200, it looks as if the Project Debut II/1 Xpression could be up against some tough competition.

Basically - audition all three of them and see which one you like. LP hunting can be fun and it can be very hard to resist not looking in that charity shop/used record store once you've got a TT!

 

At the risk of sounding faceitious, if you can seriously consider being able to afford a house right now, you can afford any turntable under the sun IMHO!!!

Right - on to helpful comments - it might be worth waiting until February as apparently Rega are releasing a new turntable at around the £100 point - might be worth checking it out?

I personally don't like the Project Debut II, but the original Debut seems a lot better - go figure. Of course this is all IMHO (and I run a Rega 3 in one system and a NAD 533 in another so that's the minimum I could drop to now).

 

Cheers Guys,
Just had a look at that goldring deck. Looks pretty nice.

I will have to audition some i reckon. Problem is i dont know what a really good deck would or should sound like. I will have to ask the guy in the shop if i can use a really good deck as a comparison. hope they dont mind.

Hey dom, the house is a necesiity. Theres no way i can play music at the desired volumes whilst living with the girlfriends parents!! Whatever the cost of the house its a small price to pay in comparison!!!

Regards
Gc

 

Ive got a MK1 Debut, a Tag McLaren 60i and Acoustic Energy 120 floorstanders with a project phonobox SE. I demo'd an Xpression on a better rig, and there were no real improvements over what I had at home. All project decks use the same motor assembly, so the difference between a new debut and a new xpression is probably quite small (if you're buying new you may as well spend the extra cash and get an xpression, the build quality is better), but second hand you'll get a better deal on a debut, as the xpression is quite new.
But buy a Rega if you can. Richer Sounds are selling the P2 cheap, - make sure you appear as if you know what you want to buy when you go to Richer, else they'll rip you off; and dont pay too much attention to what the sales people say,!

 

Fair play - but I'd personally rent for a couple of years - prices are flipping crazy right now...

Of course, I've been paying rent since 1993 so I'm used to it - I've not lived at home properly since I was 5. Parents are all well and good but once you're used to your space...

The Debut mk1 is a pretty nice machine - much better than the current model oddly enough (IMHO of course). If you go to Richers, make sure they have someone who knows how to fit a cartridge to the Rega. I got a NAD533 from them (with a Goldring Electra cart), and promptly took the deck to Audio-T and had them put my old Ortofon 530 on it - the Goldring cart as supplied on the NAD is AWFUL. SHOCKINGLY bad in fact - it mistracks and sounds very nasty...

I've not heard the Goldring turntable but I'd assume that would sound fine; all their other carts seem OK but that Elektra - :chunder:

 

The Goldring has a Rega arm, so my guess is it's the best VFM ATM.

-- Ian