Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Stereo Turntable and stylus recommendation.

Since I haven't looked at turntables since the 70's, I'd like a recommendation from somebody that knows what an excellent variety is today. In the 70's I had a Technics turntable with a Shure v15 type 3 stylus.

I guess I better put a maximum dollar amount on it. Lets say, no more than $1000, if possible.

I wonder if the 'Clearaudio Statement Turntable' for $170,000 would reproduce all of the clicks, pops, needle surface noise and static just like my old Dual TT from the 1970s so capably did. What would a disc cleaning machine (remember those?) from that company would be worth?

Now I remember in the early 80s why I immediately abandoned LPs & went to one of the first Sony CD players that didn't even have a remote control feature - all for $700 on sale, ha!! I'm never going back; however, I do like the sound of my tube amp...

TAM

I was good at keeping my vinyl clean back then. Seems to always sound good. Sometimes I would get get one that has improperly recorded, and came with sound problems. I remember one produced a scratch sound in one spot for the entire side played with no physical scratch appearance.

I read somewhere today that since fewer are made, the discs are about twice as heavy as before, made with better materials, and more care is taken when produced.

On that link, I'm thinking one on page 2 in the $800 to $1300 price range would probably be what I'd be looking for.

http://www.needledoctor.com/Grado-Platinum1-Wood-Body-Phono-Cartridges?sc=2&category=270

Cartridge pick.

I got back into vinyl about 6 months ago. I broke out my pioneer turntable from my youth (pl630) . Over time i upgraded the cartridge and the last one i bought was a grado reference series. I retired that table and bought a Music Hall MMF 7.1 that came with the mojo ( made by ortofon )cartridge. This is one quiet cartridge ,nary a tic or pop and the imaging and separation is first rate. I am also using a project tube box se II phono preamp . A lot of the new albums i have bought are pressed on 180 gram vinyl and often sold as 2 disc set giving more room to put the music on. Vinyl is something that is truly an enjoyable experience. The music hall uses projects carbon fiber arm so, the project tables are very favorably reviewed.
The VPI traveler is also a great American made entry level turntable that i had considered. Just don't forget to allow funds for a phono preamp , the ones built in to receivers these days are not the greatest.

BTW the guy i bought my TT from absolutely kills the prices that needle doctor charges. Mine came in 300 cheaper than needle doctor. Talk to wally at underwood hifi he will save you a lot of cash.

First I'd heard that comment. I'd probably try the one built into the SC-67 first to see how I liked it. What's to be gained by getting another phono preamp?

I was afraid you would ask that lol. I am not good at describing what i hear but i do know that its not an important feature as far as av receiver makers are concerned and moving to a separate unit was a huge improvement in the sound reproduction chain. Once i got back into vinyl i started hanging at www.vinylengine.com , the info there is overwhelming and lots of guys who are absolute experts on everything vinyl.
BTW i though you had a denon receiver. I have a denon avr 3311ci and a Yamaha aventage RX=A1000 and neither has a decent phone stage,but hey give it try and then you will have a baseline for an upgrade.

Thanks for the info. It'll give me something to research about for a while. The turntable will probably be down the food chain so looking at probably 1 to 2 years before actually getting one.

Do like i did and maybe start with a used TT and see if your still excited about it or lose interest after a few months.That cartridge you linked to is the exact one i have on my pioneer. Very nice cartridge.

Good idea! I'll search Craig's List every now and then when I have some funds set aside for it. Right now buying that Pioneer SC-67 receiver is going to drain me for a while.

Definitely going to take a while. Looking at Local CL ads only reveals a pile of very old junk turntables. Looks like everybody is cleaning out their basements. As you can see, I'm not the type of person that visits stores that sells bargains. Generally bargains mean junk. But patience might pay off someday.

When i got a turn table, i discovered that most processors/ receivers today do not have an input for turn tables anymore.. So, a preamp for the TT is a must.. I got a cambridge audio Phono preamp.

http://www.spearitsound.com/Phono_Preamps-Cambridge_Audio_540P.html#!prettyPhoto

I tried to do a considerable amount of research on what turn table to buy…. I was about the same price point at you Brian.. I was planning on about 1,000$ for the turn table, and then whatever else for the preamp…
I found the TT that I wound up buying on Craigslist. The guy I bought it from had about 4 of them, and was a pretty big TT guy.. The one I bought was his “pride and joy”. I got a Dual CS 5000 for $300. I think it was manufactured in the 80’s or so.. It was a decent TT at it’s price point.
Brian, you may remember this thread.
http://www.axiomaudio.com/boards/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=360165&page=1

I think my total cost was around 4-500$

Yeah, I do remember that. I'll read it when I get the time. I'll probably just set aside a small sum here and there and buy new, though. I'm just anal that way.

The receiver I'm buying does have a Turn Table input on it. The pre-amps that I've looked at aren't all that expensive. I suppose I could buy one, then return it if I don't perceive a difference.

What do you plug the TT pre-amp into, at the back of the Receiver?

My processor has numbered analog inputs. So, i connected it to one of the stereo inputs.

My Denon has a phono jack I wasn't aware of.
I don't see any analog inputs on ny Denon.
Don't know if the Pio 67 has them. Can't get a good look at the back. All the online photos are too low quality to see everything. Maybe a detailed listing will show me.

Did a little research. The Denon 3313 (I have 3312) has 8 analog inputs. The Pio 67 and 68 have 2,

Just don't know what it's called. I look at the back and nothing says analog input.

Here Ya Go I often download the manual if need be. Any line level input that says dvd or some such will work. You can rename the input easily.Originally I bought a jolida jd9 (500bux) but it had too much gain and a lot of hum and feedback that I could not live with. Sent that back and bought a Project Tube Box SEII (750). If your handy with a solder iron there are some good do It yourself preamps around. Anything that's around 50 to 100 bux wont impress you any more than whats in a receiver.