Tt

Im going to get a tt - dont want to spend more than a few hundred really (2nd hand), so any suggestions? thanks...ps I know absolutely nothing about them, not a bean!

 

Cant go wrong with a 2nd hand Linn LP-12 Sondek for that money. For about £600, you can pick up an LP-12 with a valhalla power supply and an Ittok arm. There are more exotic TT out there with different sounds, however a product that has been around for 35 years, virtually unchanged, and still selling well as a high end turntable, must be doing something right.

Something like this on ebay - Item no 170214430386

Regards
John

 

You will probably get some more suggestions form those more knowledgeable than me later.

In the mean time:

For your budget if you are happy with the looks why not try a Technics SL1210 (£150.00 2nd hand on ebay). You can upgrade it with a better arm, platter and isolation as you go along. That also gives the additional bonus of teaching yourself a bit more about vinyl replay.

 

Aren't LP 12s really tricky to set up?

If Banpee's experience with tts is limited.....

 

The Mission 775SM is a decent table. I had one with an Alphason HR100S tonearm and a Stanton 881S MM cartridge a few years back. Really enjoyed this rig, but sold it to upgrade to a more advanced one. Should've kept the 775SM as well though, because it sounded very good and I didn't have to be too careful with it when it came to playing less than perfect records. Here's a picture of it.

 

Hi,

A good starting points are the Rega turntables. They have been making Plannar 2 & 3 turntable from years. They have changed over the years but the ones to look at are the ones with the straight tone arms, the RB250 & RB300.

You will pick up these decks for under £200. They crop up on ebay all the time plus many dealers will have them in 2nd hand.

With this deck, you don't need to do any fancy setting up. It will working placed on a rack or a wall shelf. With turntables, you will need to take note of cartridge alignment. If you get a boxed Rega, then there should be an alignment protractor to help you with this. A good dealer will set it up for you.

Another deck to look at is the Technics SL1200/1210 Mk II. This deck has been around for a long time and has excellent build quality. It can be tweaked to high heaven but can be used as is. No complex set is needed. These decks were adopted by djs because of their robustness and quality. There are millions of these decks knocking around. Beware of battered ones which have been hammered in the clubs.

There are many other decks that could be had for a few hundred pounds but some these will be old and need some tender loving care. The Regas & the Technics are good starting points.

A 2nd hand Linn LP12 can be a good buy but you will not find them at a couple hundred pounds unless it is very old and/or battered. Also it will need some tweaking.

SCIDB

 

I agreee with most of what has been said, however LP-12 are not that tricky to set up. The wizardry around how to do it is all smokes and mirrors, boiling down to one thing - using 3 springs to level the platter. Takes a bit of fiddling but is not difficult.
You can find good examples relatively reasonably (see the item number i posted that is currently on ebay). Whilst the p3 from rega is, without doubt, a capable turntable, the LP-12 is in a different league.
Also, spare parts for the LP-12 are in abundance (due to its longevity) and new after market parts are well established. It is easily tweaked and upgraded, only limited by your budget. Also all of Linns upgrades are retro fit so you can have the up to date spec.

John

 

I would agree with the Rega suggestion but also worth considering the Ariston which can be had for not a lot of money.

Good luck with the search though. I replaced my Linn Basik last year for a Gyro and have been really enjoying music with most of my listening now being vinyl rather than CD.

Sam

 

Hi John,

I never said that LP12s are that tricky to set up. Other turntable are easier to setup. I was on about a dirt cheap LP12 for a couple hundred pounds. One of these would most likely not be in good condition or be quite old so work would have to be done to get it up and running. But you could strike lucky and find one in excellent working order for a few hundred pounds.

I generally agree but not everyone has time or effort to do it. Some people will find will find this easier than others.

The thing is Banpe2006 wants to spend no more than a few hundred pounds. I'm assuming around a couple of hundred pounds. The LP12 you have shown is much more expensive than a Rega 3. I would expect it that LP12 to go for more than £520 upwards. There are plenty of Rega turntables for under £200 but a good LP12 will set you back around £400 upwards.

If Banpe2006 wants to spend more then he will have more choice and a better deck.

That is the good thing about turntables like the LP12. You can do a lot to it if you like. Some people would like to tweak while other don't. It's down to the buyer.


SCIDB

 

go get yourself a michell Syncro... you will pick one up with a rega arm and decent cart for less than a few hundred and its a huge step up over the basic rega decks. It can respond amazingly well to modifications and it takes a heck of a lot more money to better it conclusively.

my friend went from a syncro to an SME 20/2A and thats quite a jump needed to really come out ahead. I now have the syncro and couldnt be happier.

Its also frankly a work of art in the visual department and leaves pretty much any turntable for dead when it comes for looks vs price.

 

If you want something real purdy, my first TT was a Transcriptors reference with an SME 3009 MkII improved with a silver rewire and a Goldring 1042 cartridge. Despite a round critical slagging, I still contend it was one of my best turntables (I can almost feel the dissent), and I've had a few. £600 was all I paid from memory. A bloke in France bought it, and sent me a photo of what could best be described as an exploded diagram, after the dear old Post Office had finished with it. I always meet to collect either a TT or valve kit, as at least its plank-proof.

 

I'd advise against a fussy suspended deck if you know absolutely nothing about them. Many of the popular ones, but especially a vintage LP12 will require periodic set-up which can be fiddly and difficult if you DIY and is usually performed by a dealer for a fee.

I'd buy a used Rega Planar 3 with RB300.
That would cost you <£200 and just needs a decent cartridge such as a Denon DL110 or AT440MLa (both around £75) to sing.

I've assumed 'few hundred' is 300-500 but if you have more to spend then there are some alternatives.

 

Thanks for the advice....Ill perhaps explain in more detail what I want and why....
I have a large cd collection, which I rarely play as I keep skipping tracks to my favourite ones. I have a, perhaps rosy, vision of putting on a record and LEAVING IT to play. I like all manner of "older" music and think i could pick up some of the older types of music - sinatra, tony bennett etc fairly easily, Im also into the beatles and would love to have the option of the albums through cd or TT. I absolutely dont want to be doing any fiddling around setting up (apart from what is essential) and neither do I wish to be changing arms, cartridges etc, as I know so little and with 2 small children, dont have the time really..In short, i want to buy and play...Ive already bought some Vinyl and have some old bits knocking around my parents....I reckon I could go to £500 at a push.(if a few sales go through).Is there as much difference in sound quality with TTs as ther is with CDs?

 

banpee

Just a thought....

I have a thorens td 160 super here, an (one of many just now.) unfinished project.

There seems to be a mass of information available for these and their deritives (TD 150 etc), if you fancied soemthing to tweak?

I'm talking generally, btw , mines not for sale .

 

Far more IMO.

The differences between well engineered digital solutions are inconsequential to user enjoyment IMO but with analogue front ends (ie the the TT/arm/cartridge) differnces can be huge.
The best are stunning, the worst are truly dreadful.

 

oh dear, so it is a potential minefield then?

 

I'm in a very similar situation regarding kids and turntable knowledge (although I know more now). With most of my music on cd I was looking to get my old vinyl collection down from the roof and have fun adding to it.
I ended up getting a planar 3 with a rb300 arm from ebay for £200.
In my opinion this is very hard to beat, easy to set up and with a decent record beats my cd player (meridian 206b). The rb300 arm is very capable of taking a decent cartridge and there is little to go wrong with a rega - just make sure u get an older planar 3 rather than a later P3 (sounds better).
I'm in the situation now where if I have a cd I love, i'm tending to buy it on vinyl 'cos it sounds better.
I'm sure there are other more exotic sounding turntables but for £200 (you'll get a 1/2 reasonable cartridge with it) you won't be dissapointed - then if you really love the vinyl, sell it on and spend heaps on a linn lp12 (in my opinion you have to spend heaps to get it sounding worthwhile).

 

No it needn't be.

There are some good reasonably priced solutions that require minimal set up and sound good.

 

I was same boat as you - love the sound and 'occasion' of vinyl, but want a 'fit and forget' solution.
From the options I listened to, my view is get the best turntable you can and if need be scimp on the arm and cartridge and phono stage. That was my solution, so I have a good steady base and if I feel the need in the future, I can upgrade, but so far ...... I have cheap arm, cheap MM cartridge, the £60 special from Cambridge as phono stage ....... and the turntable still walks all over my CDX/CDPS combo.

I didn't realise the synchro comes in at the budget - get a listen to one. I have been really impressed with my Gyro and previously I was just on the Linn track.

 

...that prob rules out the Thorens.....and LP 12 I'd guess.

The impression I have is that cd will (potentially) win in the timing stakes but Vinyl will give a better soiundsstage (again potentially).

I wouldn't skimp on the arm/cartridge combo....though I guess its right in that you can come back to it later. If its fit and forget you won't, though.