Hepcat's Turntable Primer!

[taha]

Here are some of my semi-random thoughts on turntable selection and operation.

1. You can throw $thousands on a more expensive amplifier or CD player and not be able to discern the difference in a blind listening test, but spending more on a turntable/cartridge combo after a bit of research/thought will yield big time dividends. This also means that you're not going to get decent reproduction if you cheap out when buying your turntable though.

2. Having said that, decent reasonably priced turntables are made these days by companies such as Pro-Ject, Music Hall, Thorens and Dual. These Pro-Ject Debut III turntables are a particularly popular choice for people who want a decent turntable without spending too much money:

Needle Doctor



Fix My Dual

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FIrst off, HEP is a secret undercover TT **** who moonlights on street corners. As people walk by he throws open his trench coat and peddles his bling of tonearms, cartridges and TT gadgets. So beware of the corner salesman.
Second I will say I have ONE OF THOSE (above) babies in black , a whopping $450 or so, and they provide above ave, sound. HERE'S where I bettered. I bought a QUALITY phono preamp ($250) and that alllows my source to sound good. Nothing is better than your source,,Period.
BUT, I also spent thousands on a preamp and Amp to support it. I do NOT think you need to spend zillions, but you do have to back your source with reasonable products after the TT and TTamp. From the main preamp to the speakers.
On the other hand a $500 receiver will give most everybody good sound and the MUSIC is really what its about anyway

 

[Hepcat]

FIrst off, HEP is a secret undercover TT **** who moonlights on street corners. As people walk by he throws open his trench coat and peddles his bling of tonearms, cartridges and TT gadgets. So beware of the corner salesman.

***: How do you like my new look?

 

[Hepcat]

HERE'S where I bettered. I bought a QUALITY phono preamp ($250)....

Which one did you buy? Which other ones did you consider?

 

[taha]

Went with the Rotel. Solid build, and it looks to have a good interior layout. I like my TT preamp in my Linn pre, but it probably has about $40 worth of parts dedicated to the TT.
So I use the Rotel thru the Aux.
I read about the Bellari and the Project, but I could only listen to the Rotel. And for the $$ I was happy.
.
oan, As we've said before I like your Ort Black, but I think I could only manage a Blue or Bronze next time around outa my Project,,kudos !

 

[LG]

I love the phono preamp built into my Carver, it is really excellent. I have always felt the same Taha, that you have to have a good source or the rest of your system won't live up to it's potential.

I feel the same about a D/A converter for CD players, I have one built into one of my preamps and it does a great job for me as well.

 

[Mr. Shadow]

While I personally have some reservations regarding the Rega product line, Rega turntables do have more than their share of devoted enthusiasts. And I must admit that the Rega P3-24 turntables come in a very appealing variety of colours:

One fault I have heard mentioned with high end turntables is not having any auto-return once the record side has played. It will just linger on the inner part and can damage the cartridge. I have no problems with a quality direct drive. I also heard it best to stay clear of DJ gear if you want good sound quality.

 

[Hepcat]

One fault I have heard mentioned with high end turntables is not having any auto-return once the record side has played. It will just linger on the inner part and can damage the cartridge.

That and having to lift the platter to move the belt manually if you want to change speeds are my two pet peeves with high-end turntables. The incredibly anal thinking is that any feature/function not directly designed to improve sound reproduction must invariably compromise sound reproduction. The fallacy of that logic becomes very obvious when one applies it to high-end performance cars. "Hey, if we eliminate the starter motor in this Ferrari we'll sell more to performance enthusiasts who will be delighted to use a hand crank! And doors? Forget about them! Race car drivers always climb in through the windows, don't they?

 

[Hepcat]

I also heard it best to stay clear of DJ gear if you want good sound quality.

Correct. Those turntables, Stantons and the like, are designed to facilitate the tricks DJs like to perform such as "scratching" records and hand spinning/arresting the platter.

 

[LG]

One fault I have heard mentioned with high end turntables is not having any auto-return once the record side has played. It will just linger on the inner part and can damage the cartridge. I have no problems with a quality direct drive. I also heard it best to stay clear of DJ gear if you want good sound quality.

I don't mind picking up the tonearm when the side is finished playing Shadow, I've been doing it for over 30 years now and it's just routine.

There are or were numerous little gadgets you could buy and install yourself that would "Manually Pick-up" the tonearm when it reached the innermost groove, they weren't expensive and seeing they had no motorized parts contributed no distortion to the overall sound quality. I never bought one but I did look at them.

 

[Hepcat]

I had a Dual turntable myself, it worked fine never had any problems with it.

Here's a website that lists every Dual turntable ever made, complete with years of production, the initial retail price, spec sheet and picture:

Dual Reference

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