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Turntable options !

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Young Croc
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    Posted: 13 April 2017 at 11:37pm
Nice guide Smile I contacted the person immediately through facebook coz it turns out i know him through a friend. He said people have been calling him all the time,one offered a bit more money and hes coming to pick it up tomorrow, quite a hype indeed.
Ehh ive mostly been checking my "local" online ads hoping for a score but no luck it seems. Its full of Lenco L-various numbers which all look like toys, Thorens td-various numbers which look a bit nicer but some are pricy, i guess the hi-fi guys are into these.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote bob4 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 10:58pm
Originally posted by I-shen Soundboy I-shen Soundboy wrote:

Not a steal, it cost that new...
However prices have gone bananas recently, mostly because of the hype around the "new" technics.

If it's boxed + lid and has all the bits (7" center, balance weights, headshell, feet etc) and works (check the arm bearings and smooth speed control) then £290 is a fair price.
If it's in a flightcase and missing bits, walk away...

+1 !!!

other details to check:
- needle light functional? (probably isn't, they tend to break over time and it's not a big deal, but it's a good point to make when haggling Big smile)

- tone arm rest and lock are not damaged (-> both are serious turn-offs! -> serious haggling)
- tone arm is not bent !!! (check for scratches/dents at the point where the tone arm rests on the tone arm rest. Any obvious damage to the tone arm is a deal breaker, or at least a huuuuuge haggling point; 100€ price drop!)

- tone arm base lock can be easily opened
- tone arm base height can be adjusted all the way up and down; mechanism runs smoothly
- pitch fader zero position should have a mechanical "click"/rest point where it locks. if it doesn't, it means a previous owner has modified the pitch fader and removed a part -> HAGGLE MORE Big smile (techno DJs hated the click because supposedly it "reduces pitch sensitivity"/adjustment precision very close to zero point; this is not a big deal either, but a great point for haggling, the other person will think you are an expert LOL)

-check the rubber feet, unscrew at least one, and verify that the rubber has no cracks or other signs of aging. If it does, again….. -> HAGGLE (this is actually important for the performance of the turntable; if the feet are crumbling, you have to replace definitely them -> added expense)

- electrical contacts inside the tone arm. Check if they have any sign of wear, or dirt on them etc…. Lot of idiots "clean" headshell contacts by licking. Result is more dirt and degradation of contacts. 
- RCA cables. Make sure the ground wire is present (If it's missing, again someone has modded/"improved" -> haggle!) 


download the manual and read it, and then go check the item in real life before purchasing!

If possible, plug it into a mixer/hifiamp (don't forget the ground cable), with a headshell/cartridge on the tone arm. listen with headphones for noise or hum. Wiggle the RCA connectors and cables. screw and unscrew the headshell. Verify that the headshell contact is good, and that there is no intermittent buzzing or channel dropout when you handle the tone arm. Audition some records if possible. 


that's all the SL1210 MK2  buyers 101 guide points I remember atm Smile



Edited by bob4 - 13 April 2017 at 11:01pm
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote bob4 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 10:39pm
Originally posted by I-shen Soundboy I-shen Soundboy wrote:

A nice Goldring Lenco GL75 would sort you out for hi-fi and single-deck soundsystems, if you can find one cheap.
Not a bad sound and robust enough to survive, being Swiss and all. All sorts of mods possible (15-80 varispeed etc). Not the best for two-deck mixing. Often seen on roots rigs..

Unless you mod the stock tonearm of get completely rid of it, from my personal experience I'd advise against a Lenco L75. The weak point of the original tone arm are the so-called "V-block" plastic bearings for  the tone arm pivot point. 

I bought a "fully serviced" deck, which unbeknownst to me, still had the original v-blocks, happily disintegrating. Result? the tonearm was randomly skipping sometimes, and I don't even want to know what it did to my records. When I finally decided to get to the root of the problem, I had to disassemble the whole tone arm, which is not fun, just to get to the stupid things.  

I ended up selling/swapping the damn thing at the shop where I originally purchased it. 

But I have to admit, the chassis and the frictional drive are nice, and the actual turntable plate is heavy duty. With a good heavy plinth and a serious tone arm it's a different story. I assembled one for a friend, from a) a CNC milled, veneered Ply plinth (southeast european product off ebay), b) Linn Akito tone arm c) Lenco L75 chassis   d) custom spacer ring made form layered copper sheet to fit the Linn's tonearm base into the the slightly oversized tonearm mounting hole in the L75 chassis. Geek

RE: alternatives to Technics? I'd say get one while the prices don't go ridiculously bananas. Resale value holds, everyone knows it, so you can monetize it if needed, there will always be demand. You will regret later if you don't. The only other widely available turntable that people were seriously considering an equal  contender, and others even preferred over SL 1210s, was the Vestax PDX 2000 (HipHop/Scratch Deejays). I didn't really like it that much. 
 
There might be some higher-grade reloop or stanton models, or some of the pricier Numark models (like the TTX) to consider. I went straight for second hand technics, and have never felt the need to look any further. (well, if I had money and time, I would maybe go down the SP10/15 route, or something crazier, but eh…… haven't even cultivated a proper cartridge habit yet LOL

But maybe someone who has been on a longer DJ turntable quest can chip in?



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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote I-shen Soundboy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 10:32pm
Not a steal, it cost that new...
However prices have gone bananas recently, mostly because of the hype around the "new" technics.

If it's boxed + lid and has all the bits (7" center, balance weights, headshell, feet etc) and works (check the arm bearings and smooth speed control) then £290 is a fair price.
If it's in a flightcase and missing bits, walk away...
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Sypa Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 10:29pm
Fk me if i wont get the levitating one LOL
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Sypa Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 10:10pm
Just stumbled upon a decently priced sl-1210 mk2 on a Croatian online bazaar, I reckon 290-ish pounds is a steal?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote I-shen Soundboy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 9:57pm
If no mixing/scratching is involved, one (or a pair of(belt drive decks work just as well as direct drive (perhaps even quieter) and are cheaper.

Money save on turntables can be spent on better cartridges: I'd recommend some DJ standard cartridges first so you have something to compare with, plus they'll last better than hi-fi ones. If you don't back-cue, you can use hi-fi cartridges, but one mistake and they can die.


Edited by I-shen Soundboy - 13 April 2017 at 10:00pm
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Sypa Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 9:41pm
No need for two no mixing shall be done , just easy selection Smile
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote I-shen Soundboy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 9:13pm
A nice Goldring Lenco GL75 would sort you out for hi-fi and single-deck soundsystems, if you can find one cheap.
Not a bad sound and robust enough to survive, being Swiss and all. All sorts of mods possible (15-80 varispeed etc). Not the best for two-deck mixing. Often seen on roots rigs..
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Sypa Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 13 April 2017 at 8:13pm
Ok,so thinking about getting a turntable but dont wanna or would rather not go the classic technics route.
What are my options? Ideally for both home use and playing out,so would have to withstand heavy sub (not be a total lightweight,deck isolation would be used too offcourse).
Also some cartridge and needle reccomendations would be nice too.
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