# Turntables / record players



## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Since I know next to nothing about them, but would like to purchase one soon...
What are the most important features to have for accurate playback? 
(direct drive/belt drive, speed, etc...)


Nostalgia aside, do todays units play better than "vintage" units?

What are some midlevel units/brands that would be a good place to start looking? I'd like something reliable that plays well.


Thanks


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## zoomer (Aug 2, 2009)

what is your objective? you can buy usb record players for a couple hundred. You can pick up good used record players at yard sales or craigslist for $10.. or go hog wild and pay many kilo dollars. Keep in mind you also will need a receiver or preamp or integrated amp with a PHONO input. this is a low level input with the correct equalization for records. 

but first check this link out Needle Doctor


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

What do the USB record players do? Enable you to record from Vinyl to digital format?
That would be a nice feature, but not a necessity.

Just looking for a unit that can play multiple speeds, track very well and sound great. I'd prefer automatic function for the arm as well.


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## ryan s (Dec 19, 2006)

captainobvious said:


> What do the USB record players do? Enable you to record from Vinyl to digital format?
> That would be a nice feature, but not a necessity.
> 
> Just looking for a unit that can play multiple speeds, track very well and sound great. I'd prefer automatic function for the arm as well.


Yep, the USBs transfer music directly to the computer with the appropriate program.

The main advantages of newer units is the lower tracking force which is easier on the records. My über-alt Pioneer is like 3 (maybe 6?) grams which is pretty heavy.

With older ones, needles and belts and headshells and weights etc are harder to find, and they WILL need some of those parts to get going...a new needle at the least.

Well I guess it's your call...spend ~$150 for a new-ish Technics SL-series direct drive, or $10 for a CL special plus $50 for a new needle and hope you get a good working one for $60


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## drtool (Nov 26, 2007)

People seem to like V I P, Clearaudio, and Pro-ject brands a lot. Picking the right cartridge for the tone arm you have is the hat trick that makes it all come together.
In 1983 I bought a Sony PSX-800 $1000.00. The cart I bought was $1200 at the time.
The pay off was 20 years of LP playing 1/2 speed masters that sounded better then the cd of the same title even after 20 years of use.


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## Dryseals (Sep 7, 2008)

captainobvious said:


> Since I know next to nothing about them, but would like to purchase one soon...
> What are the most important features to have for accurate playback?
> (direct drive/belt drive, speed, etc...)
> 
> ...


I still have my PSX 600, it won't power up, but Sony had a rash of problems with these turn tables. Some day I'll get around to fixing it.

The last problem for a turn table was effective mass, the weight of the tone arm being pulled across the album. Sony fixed it with the PSX series.

I have several turntables. But I bought an Audio Technica PL-120 just to record albums and play them once in a while. It was on sale dirt cheap. It's a decent turntable works well. The biggest factor is the tone arm, it's balance and an alignment for the cartridge. If you plan on playing real old albums the 78's then you'll want a turn table with a removable head shell to swap needles. 78's use a much larger needle.

Most TT won't play 78's, they are only set up for 33's and 45's. You'll need and older amp with the phono inputs for the RIAA curve or a pre amp made for it. Several out there pretty cheap the Behringer UFO202 is a decent setup for going straight to the PC or to your amp, so you can do either when ever you want. Plus it come with Audacity, which is a free down load, but it's a nice extra.

Main thing to look for in an older turn table is the arm and balance setup, some are cheap some are non-existant.

Take a look here and you'll see that to get it right, you'll need to be able to adjust a few things.


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## manifest (Feb 20, 2009)

Obligatory Technics 1200 recommendation, though I think they stopped making them a few months ago. They are built like tanks and parts are readily available. No automatic function for the arms though. You can find them used for a pretty good price.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

manifest said:


> Obligatory Technics 1200 recommendation, though I think they stopped making them a few months ago. They are built like tanks and parts are readily available. No automatic function for the arms though. You can find them used for a pretty good price.


I hope it's not so, I know that they are still available. They may not be uber high end 50K decks but they will out live you.


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## DBM_SF (Mar 1, 2010)

they absolutely DID NOT stop making the SL-1200. That was a rumour.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

DBM_SF said:


> they absolutely DID NOT stop making the SL-1200. That was a rumour.


seems to o around every 4-5 years.... marketing propaganda from stanton


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## habagat (Dec 6, 2009)

X2 on the Pro ject. Rega has a few that aren't too pricey. Since your building your amps you might want to pick up a preamp with phono output or a dedicated phono pre. Also need to decide if you want mm or mc before you get one.


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## up2late (Jul 8, 2009)

I have (3) active 1200's. (2) MK5's and one original MK-II. The MK-II is probably ~15 years old. Still works like a tank and it's been extremely loved (used).


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

I have an original, original MKII, first gen with the old-skool LEDs in the strobe. god only knows how old it is. I bought it WELL USED 17 years ago.


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